After
creating what was, in my opinion, the best film of the Nineties (THE
SHAWSHANK REDEMPTION) in his first time at the helm, now years later
writer-director Frank Darabont has the impossible task of topping
himself in his second outing, THE GREEN MILE. He heads back into the
waters that struck gold for him the first time out, with another
Stephen King adaptation for Castle Rock, and another one set in
prison to boot. While clearly not as great as THE SHAWSHANK
REDEMPTION, the fact that this is one of the best films of 1999
should leave most siatisfied that Darabont's prowess was no
fluke.
Here we have a story of Paul, a prison guard for death row inmates during the 1930s. One day a massive young black man named John Coffey enters the pen of the damned, after being convicted for the rape and murder of two little white girls, and Paul discovers there's more to him than meets the eye when John miraculously cures an affliction that has been paining him for some time. The miracle worker befriends the guards and together they discover the essence of good and evil in an imperfect society.
A fine cast, beautiful cinematography and stellar writing and directing by Darabont turns what might have been an overly ambitious dud at the hands of lesser talent into Academy Award-worthy material. Some may scoff at it's three hours running time, but there isn't a scene wasted, incorporating heaps of character development that ultimately pays off with a powerhouse ending (even if the epilogue does diminish some of the film's power a bit). Deliberately paced and emotionally draining, THE GREEN MILE is another wonderful piece of work by Darabont, taking a mediocre Stephen King series of novellas to the peak of it's potential. However, as good as his forst two films have been, I hope that in his third outing we'll witness Darabont doing something altogether different, and see he can make lightning can strike a third time.
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