The Green Mile (1999)

The lives of guards on Death Row are affected by one of their charges: a black man accused of child murder and rape, yet who has a mysterious gift.

Director:

Frank Darabont

Writers:

Stephen King (novel), Frank Darabont (screenplay)

Stars:

Tom Hanks, David Morse, Michael Clarke Duncan

Top 250 #63 | Nominated for 4 Oscars. Another 15 wins & 23 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Tom Hanks	...	Paul Edgecomb
David Morse	...	Brutus 'Brutal' Howell
Michael Clarke Duncan	...	John Coffey
Bonnie Hunt	...	Jan Edgecomb
James Cromwell	...	Warden Hal Moores
Michael Jeter	...	Eduard Delacroix
Graham Greene	...	Arlen Bitterbuck
Doug Hutchison	...	Percy Wetmore
Sam Rockwell	...	'Wild Bill' Wharton
Barry Pepper	...	Dean Stanton
Jeffrey DeMunn	...	Harry Terwilliger
Patricia Clarkson	...	Melinda Moores
Harry Dean Stanton	...	Toot-Toot
Dabbs Greer	...	Old Paul Edgecomb
Eve Brent	...	Elaine Connelly

Storyline

Death Row guards at a penitentiary, in the 1930's, have a moral dilemma with their job when they discover one of their prisoners, a convicted murderer, has a special gift.

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Plot Keywords:

prison | death row | prison guard | 1930s | murder | 

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Taglines:

Miracles do happen.

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Genres:

Crime | Drama | Fantasy | Mystery

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for violence, language and some sex-related material

Details

Official Sites:

official site

Country:

USA

Language:

English French

Release Date:

10 December 1999 (USA)

Also Known As:

Stephen King's The Green Mile

Filming Locations:

Blowing Rock, North Carolina, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$60,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

£83,473 (UK) (25 February 2000)

Gross:

AUD 7,730,847 (Australia) (15 December 2000)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Castle Rock Entertainment, Darkwoods Productions, Warner Bros

Technical Specs

Runtime:

189 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital SDDS

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The plot unfolds in the form of Paul telling Elaine the story of the Green Mile. In the book, Paul writes his story down in the form of a novel. At the end of the film, as Paul leaves the cemetery after Elaine's burial, a tombstone can be seen behind him that reads "Greene", and two others, one in the foreground and one to the right of the screen, that read "Story".

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Goofs

Although Scotch tape was invented in the 1930s, it had a yellowish tint and would never have been used over a person's mouth. It did not have the adhesion of modern-day packing tape and would immediately come off from saliva. Rather, they would have used white cloth adhesive bandages that came on a metal spool that fit in a steel sleeve. Even early Johnson & Johnson Band-Aids were cloth with a sticky, white adhesive that would remain when removed. Clear packing tape was not widely introduced until the 1980s. Even the packing tape used in the 1970s, made of the same plastic, was brown.

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Quotes

Paul Edgecomb: Seeing a man die isn't enough for you, you gotta be close enough to smell his nuts cook?

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Connections

Referenced in Prisoner (2007)

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Soundtracks

"Old Alabama"
Written and Recorded by Alan Lomax
Performed by B.B. and Group
Courtesy of Rounder Records by arrangement with Ocean Park Music Group

User Reviews

True to the book, which is odd for a movie.

Having seen the movie, The Green Mile, and read the novel of the same name by Stephen King, I am glad to say that the movie stays true to the book, which in itself is a great read. I read the book in one setting about a year ago, and after seeing the movie, I didn't see one scene from the book, or one plot point, left out. There were a few minor changes from the book but which in no way detract from either work. As far as performances, I can imagine many people pointing to Michael Duncan as John Coffey or Tom Hanks as Paul Edgecomb as the best performances of the movie, and they are good, but I would hope that Michael Jeter would receive recognition for portraying Eduard Delacroix. He plays Delacroix exactly as I pictured him when I read the book. I can very well see why King himself said this is his favorite of the movies adapted from his novels. It is the only one played out as he had written it. I wouldn't compare this movie or the book to (Rita Hayworth and) The Shawshank Redemption because that would be unfair to both. They are both great, but are both different. The Green Mile isn't a movie about hope and friendship, as The Shawshank Redemption was, it is a movie about a miracle of a man, and the people he affects. But like The Shawshank Redemption, I give The Green Mile 4 out of 4 stars. Great story, great cast, great look.