Good, but let's not go overboard

Rating: 7/10 (12 December 1999)

I must say I was pleasantly surprised by this film. The acting and story were both much better than I thought they would be.
However, I do not really agree with the view that Oscars should immediately rain down upon this for a few reasons. First, the screenplay, while certainly entertaining, has all the originality of a Disney script. This is not to say it's bad; I just thought the movie was extremely predictable. In places, it even lapses into cliché.
Second, while Tom Hanks and company do a fine job of acting, none of the roles were particularly difficult to play. All of the characters (with the possible exception of John Coffey) were extremely one dimensional. Half an hour into the movie I knew how each of them would handle just about any situation-- there was none of that ambiguity or uncertainty that can make a character not just an image but an extension of the audience.
Finally, the directing is also good, but not spectacular. While this movie script may be more challenging than most to shoot well, I think our director again lapsed into clichés with some of the screen shots (for a good example, pick any of the bird's eye view shots with the camera slowly moving up. Apparently the director is fond of these, as he also was liberal with them in The Shawshank Redemption.)
Overall, this is a good, entertaining movie, but if you want an Oscar winner, walk over to the next screen and see Being John Malkovich or American Beauty.