It's not perfect, but powerful performances and a stirring story make this a supremely moving motion picture ***1/2 (out of ****)

Rating: 9/10 (11 January 2003)

The first time I read Stephen King's The Green Mile, I enjoyed it thoroughly. But it is only now, three years later, having just read it a second time, that I realize how brilliant a story it is. This is perhaps King's best book, and oddly enough, its a departure from his genre. Frank Darabont, who adapted King's novella Rita Hayworth And The Shawshank Redemption into one of the greatest movies ever made, has remained incredibly faithful to the book, and in a way, that's both a curse and a blessing. The Green Mile does not duplicate the success that Darabont had with Shawshank, but we must remember that such a film as the latter only comes along once in a generation. Still, this dark parable is incredibly well-realized, with most of the heart-wrenching emotion of the book still intact, thanks to exceptional performances given by all, especially MIchael Clarke Duncan, whose portrayal of the simple-minded miracle of nature John Coffey truly deserved an oscar (this was the ONLY film I have ever cried at the end of).