The Green Mile Review: A Gentle Giant on Death Row
8.5/10 — The Green Mile (1999)
Pros
- Michael Clarke Duncan's heartfelt performance
- Strong supporting cast
- Powerful emotional beats
Cons
- Overlong
- Reliance on a 'magical' character trope
In 1935, death row guard Paul Edgecomb, played by Tom Hanks, meets John Coffey, a huge, gentle inmate convicted of murdering two girls who seems to possess miraculous healing powers. Frank Darabont again turns King into compassionate drama.
What works
Michael Clarke Duncan is deeply moving as Coffey, and Hanks gives a warm, weary lead performance. The film is gripping and emotionally powerful, helped by Doug Hutchison’s loathsome Percy and a memorable scene of Mr Jingles the mouse.
Where it falters
At three hours it overstays its welcome, and the magical Black character who exists to help white characters is a trope that hasn’t aged well.
Verdict
Moving and well performed, though it leans on tears and tropes more than it should.
