Another Superb Darabont Prison Film

Rating: 10/10 (28 December 2011)

Director Frank Darabont, who made an acclaimed feature film debut with The Shawshank Redemption, based on a Stephen King novel set in a prison, returns for a second feature, based on King's 1996 serialized novel set in a prison in The Green Mile.It was adapted by him from the 1996 Stephen King novel of the same title. The story is told in a flashback format and tells the story of Paul Edgecomb with John Coffey,and his life as a death row corrections officer during the Great Depression in the United States, and the supernatural events he witnessed.The movie stars Tom Hanks and Michael Clarke Duncan as Edgecomb and Coffey respectively,and David Morse,Bonnie Hunt and James Cromwell together Michael Jeter, Sam Rockwell, and Graham Greene.
In 1935, inmates at the Cold Mountain Correctional Facility call Death Row "The Green Mile" because of the dark green linoleum that tiles the floor. Paul Edgecomb is the head guard on the Green Mile when a new inmate is brought into his custody: John Coffey,convicted of the sadistic murder of two young girls. Despite his size and the fearsome crimes for which he's serving time, Coffey seems to be a kind and well- mannered person who behaves more like an innocent child than a hardened criminal. Soon Edgecomb and two of his fellow guards, Howell, notice something odd about Coffey: he's able to perform what seem to be miracles of healing among his fellow inmates, leading them to wonder just what sort of person he could be, and if he could have committed the crimes with which he was charged.
It was a long film that was a shade under three hours.But that does not mean that it was boring.In fact,it was absorbing and compelling as we get sympathetic to the lead character particularly John Coffey.Also,despite the clichés and stereotypes that characterized this film,the performances of the cast manages to lift it from the depths of the commonplace and make watching it enjoyable.Credit should be given no only to Tom Hanks but also to Michael Clarke Duncan for his honest and sincere portrayal of Coffee,which definitely touches the audience heart and empathy.Also,Darabont once again pleases the viewer with his superb direction just like in The Shawshank Redemption.