The Green Mile

Name: The Green Mile
Genre: Drama, Mystery, Fantasy, Crime
Released: December 10, 1999
Duration: 189 min
Rating: 61
Cast: Michael Clarke Duncan, Tom Hanks

1999

METASCORE

Generally favorable reviews based on 36 Critics

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USER SCORE

Universal acclaim based on 466 Ratings

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8.3

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8.3	User Score Universal acclaim based on 466 Ratings

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THE GREEN MILE

Movie Details & Credits

Warner Bros. Pictures | Release Date: December 10, 1999

Starring: Michael Clarke Duncan, Tom Hanks

Summary: Set on Death Row in a Southern prison in 1935, this is the remarkable story of a prison guard who develops a poignant, unusual relationship with one inmate who possesses a magical gift that is both mysterious and miraculous. (Castle Rock Entertainment)

Director: Frank Darabont

Genre(s): Drama, Mystery, Fantasy, Crime

Rating: R

Runtime: 189 min

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Awards & Rankings

95	#95 Best Movie of 1999
8	#8 Most Discussed Movie of 1999
10	#10 Most Shared Movie of 1999

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Metascore

Positive:

Mixed:

Negative:

Critic Reviews

100

TNT RoughCut - Christopher Brandon

So moving, so memorable, so magically produced, it's going to delight millions of movie fans and sweep the Oscars.

Film.com - Sean Means

Darabont follows King's book fairly closely, allowing the audience to steep itself in the setting and characters slowly, like reading a good novel. Read full review

Entertainment Weekly - Lisa Schwarzbaum

Excessive, but I, like Mr. Jingles, can't resist the Christmas-season cheese. Read full review

Philadelphia Inquirer - Carrie Rickey

Surely a life sentence goes by quicker.

Film.com - Robert Horton

I still feel pushed around by Darabont's mysticism, and his overbearing sense of grandness; a little bit of the Mile goes a long way. Read full review

Film.com - Tom Keogh

Simply a case of severe overreaching and the illusion that an overstuffed movie is an epic movie. Read full review

Newsweek - David Ansen

A lumbering, self-important three-hour melodrama that defies credibility at every turn.

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User Reviews

Van4808

Nov 26, 2011

It makes me angry to see many low scores from critics, this is probably one of the best and most emotional movies I have ever watched.

24 of 25 users found this helpful241

sissi_stess

Sep 3, 2017

One of the best movies I ever saw!! If you don't cry I don't trust you.The story is so moving and the casting is also really good.
RIP Michael Clarke Duncan

0 of 1 users found this helpful01

E.R.

Aug 24, 2007

Touching.

0 of 0 users found this helpful

manuprathap

Jul 3, 2014

Seriously? Metascore of this movie is 61!!!What a disaster. Then what are these so called critics expect from a movie.It's interesting,thrilling,emotional ,well directed movie with an amazing story and screen play .
Actors are really mind blowing.Story and screen play as what i expectedSeriously? Metascore of this movie is 61!!!What a disaster. Then what are these so called critics expect from a movie.It's interesting,thrilling,emotional ,well directed movie with an amazing story and screen play .
Actors are really mind blowing.Story and screen play as what i expected from the great 'King'.The Drabaont-king gang have presented us one another gem not lesser than that of 'The Shawshank Redemption'
got more than i wanted.
the critics who gave thus a movie a low rating ,at the same time garnishes the 'waste of time movies' like syriana,up in the air,michael clayton with scores more than 75 .Fools.… Expand

1 of 1 users found this helpful10

GaryA.

Mar 2, 2008

Those so called movie reviewers who slated this movie are not representative of the ordinary guy on the street who enjoyed the film. As shown by the average score of 9.

0 of 0 users found this helpful

drlowdon

May 24, 2013

As with the fantastic Shawshank Redemption, The Green Mile is based on a Stephen King story and directed by Frank Darabont and I can give no higher praise than to say it is just as good.

The film centres on a stretch of death row known as The Green Mile in which a giant of a man known asAs with the fantastic Shawshank Redemption, The Green Mile is based on a Stephen King story and directed by Frank Darabont and I can give no higher praise than to say it is just as good.

The film centres on a stretch of death row known as The Green Mile in which a giant of a man known as John Coffey, accused of murdering two young girls, has been imprisoned. King is widely known for his horror books but, while there are supernatural elements to this story, as with The Shawshank Redemption this film is all about relationships between people in difficult circumstances.

The Green Mile may be three hours long but every minute of that is used to develop the characters and story so that by the end we really do care what happens to them. Those that dismiss Kings work as chart filler may be pleasantly surprised by what they find in this movie.… Expand

1 of 1 users found this helpful10

Sk3z

Dec 30, 2013

This film is Pander. Period.
Basically, it starts and ends without questioning death penalty. Death penalty is barbaric for MY culture, and the behavior of the characters never seems realistic to me. The horrible system behind death row is depicted in a mitigate, sweetened way. There's noThis film is Pander. Period.
Basically, it starts and ends without questioning death penalty. Death penalty is barbaric for MY culture, and the behavior of the characters never seems realistic to me. The horrible system behind death row is depicted in a mitigate, sweetened way. There's no room for compassion in death penalty as shown in the film, and this film is basically offensive solely for the way the characters are behaving.
Second: nothing is believable. Clearly is a fantasy drama, but still as the stereotyped characters (bad people are bad without a reason, they are simply mad. Good people are in fact not really good, but seam dumb and ataraxic, resulting in unlovable characters). The main character is basically a scary black giant who cries all the time. Very easy way to provoke reactions in the viewer is to show him something which he's unconsciously scared off while enforcing this unconscious fear with clever direction. Incidentally this unconscious fear is based on a black stupid strong man stereotype overlapped by the boogeyman figure. I'm a caucasian european man and i find this VERY offensive.
The whole story, in the end, is based on emotional tricks. (the *spoiler* bad death scene is traumatic and unnecessary, at least as it is shown). Giving strong emotions to people based on meaningless story or characters is a cheat.
This film is bad. I couldn't expect this since the reviews are so high. But i found this film ruffian, manipulative and ultimately ugly.… Expand

2 of 17 users found this helpful215

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