Green Card (1990)

A man wanting to stay in the US enters into a marriage of convenience, but it turns into more than that.

Director:

Peter Weir

Writer:

Peter Weir

Stars:

Gérard Depardieu, Andie MacDowell, Bebe Neuwirth

Nominated for 1 Oscar. Another 3 wins & 3 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Gérard Depardieu	...	Georges
Andie MacDowell	...	Brontë
Bebe Neuwirth	...	Lauren
Gregg Edelman	...	Phil
Robert Prosky	...	Brontë's Lawyer
Jessie Keosian	...	Mrs. Bird
Ethan Phillips	...	Gorsky
Mary Louise Wilson	...	Mrs. Sheehan
Lois Smith	...	Brontë's Parent (Mother)
Conrad McLaren	...	Brontë's Parent (Father)
Ronald Guttman	...	Anton
Danny Dennis	...	Oscar
Stephen Pearlman	...	Mr. Adler
Victoria Boothby	...	Mrs. Adler
Ann Wedgeworth	...	Party Guest

Storyline

George Faure is a Frenchman who has been offered a job in the U.S. But in order to get the job he must obtain a work permit - green card, and the easiest way is to marry an American. Bronte Parrish is a New Yorker who is a keen horticulturist and just found the perfect flat with its own greenhouse. Unfortunately the flat is for married couples only. A marriage of convenience seems the ideal solution to both problems. To convince the immigration officers they are married for love, they must move in with each other. As the mismatched couple attempt to cope with life together, they start to fall in love.

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Plot Keywords:

love | immigration | greenhouse | green card | photo album | 

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Taglines:

The story of two people who got married, met, and then fell in love.

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama | Romance

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Certificate:

PG-13

Details

Country:

France Australia USA

Language:

English French Spanish

Release Date:

11 January 1991 (USA)

Also Known As:

Carte verde

Filming Locations:

American Irish Historical Society, 991 Fifth Avenue, New York City, New York, USA

Box Office

Gross:

$29,888,235 (USA)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Touchstone Pictures, Australian Film Finance Corporation (AFFC), DD Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

103 min 107 min (TCM print) (dvd release)

Sound Mix:

Dolby SR

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

When Bronte and Georges go to shopping after Bronte reluctantly agrees to allow Georges to stay over for weekend so they can understand each other better there is Hindi conversion in background which translates "I will be late for couple of hours".

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Goofs

Phil tells Bronte that he found 3,000 square feet of top soil for their gardening project. Soil is measured in cubic feet, not square feet. (Or cubic yards, cubic meters, etc.)

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Quotes

Georges: I am the husband!

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Connections

Referenced in The Book That Wrote Itself (1999)

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Soundtracks

"Strossa Stroma Sou"
From the motion picture soundtrack of "Zorba The Greek"
Written by Mikis Theodorakis and I. Kambanellis
Courtesy of Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation

User Reviews

Better than expected

I'm normally not too much a fan of Gérard Depardieu, at least not when he plays a role in a movie that isn't French. But this time I was willing to make an exception and the main reason for that is because I was interested in the subject of fake marriages in order to be able to stay in the country permanently. It's a problem that is all too known known over here as well and I couldn't think of any other romantic movie that dared to use this subject. That's why I was curious about it.

George Fauré is a French citizen who has been offered a job in the U.S.A., but before he can start working, he'll need a work permit. Since it's very difficult for him to get one, the easiest way is to marry an American woman. Brontë Parrish loves plants and has dedicated her entire life to them. Now she has found a wonderful flat with its own greenhouse, but there is one problem: the flat is for married couples only. The best solution for both is a marriage, but to convince the immigration officers that they are married for love and not out of convenience, they must move in with each other and try to cope with all the difficulties that this will bring...

It wouldn't have been a romantic comedy / drama if there weren't the necessary complications between the two people, so in that perspective this certainly isn't an original movie. But there is one difference: normally this kind of movies never shows a marriage of convenience, as it is something that doesn't belong in the perfect image of love and happiness that this kind of movies wants to portray. Fact is that it is a 'daring' move - although only to a certain extend - that really works. I really didn't have any problem to believe that in reality Brontë and Georges would never marry because their worlds are too far apart. And I admit that I was still a bit surprised when seeing the end of the movie. Of course their ideas about each other change, this is still a romantic movie, but it was all done in a very decent way.

Overall the acting in this movie is quite good. Despite the fact that I had my doubts about him before watching the movie I must admit that I even liked Depardieu, probably because he didn't have to conceal his awful French accent when speaking English. He more or less could be himself this time and that's good. Also nice was Andie MacDowell's performance and I loved Jessie Keosian as the noisy landlady.

All in all this is an interesting romantic drama - I wouldn't really call it a comedy - that offers a good story and some nice acting. It's perhaps not the best in the genre, but it's certainly better than average. That's why I give this movie a 7/10.