8.5 | / 10 |
Users | 4.5 | |
Reviewer | 4.0 | |
Overall | 4.2 |
Paul Edgecomb is the head of the block guards during the 1930s at the Cold Mountain Correctional Facility. Through his many years of watching men live and die, Paul's faith and sanity has deteriorated. He is assigned to watch over John Coffey, a giant man convicted of murdering two little girls. But John acts more like a child than a cold-hearted murderer. Edgecomb and other guards find themselves in a moral dilemma when they witness John accomplish healing miracles.
Starring: Tom Hanks, David Morse, Bonnie Hunt, Michael Clarke Duncan, James CromwellPeriod | 100% |
Crime | 83% |
Melodrama | 72% |
Drama | 45% |
Mystery | 28% |
Supernatural | 21% |
Video codec: VC-1
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.78:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.85:1
English: Dolby TrueHD 5.1 (48kHz, 16-bit)
French: Dolby Digital 5.1
German: Dolby Digital 5.1
Italian: Dolby Digital 5.1
Spanish: Dolby Digital 5.1
Portuguese: Dolby Digital 2.0
Turkish: Dolby Digital 2.0
English SDH, French, German SDH, Italian, Italian SDH, Portuguese, Spanish, Cantonese, Danish, Dutch, Finnish, Greek, Korean, Norwegian, Swedish, Thai, Turkish
50GB Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region free
Movie | 3.5 | |
Video | 4.0 | |
Audio | 4.0 | |
Extras | 3.0 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
When it was revealed that The Shawshank Redemption director Frank Darabont’s follow-up project would be yet another period prison drama adapted from a Stephen King story, many looked forward to a spiritual successor to that that wildly beloved first film, while others shook their heads warily, wondering if Darabont was simply trying to once again catch cinematic lightening in a bottle. After all, The Shawshank Redemption’s formula of nostalgia, emotional camaraderie, and unashamed hopefulness made it a wholly unexpected sleeper hit, one that has since served as a kind of comfort blanket for audiences, who project their own struggles onto those of the noble prison inmates played by Tim Robbins and Morgan Freeman. Of course, The Green Mile was never to match Shawshank’s almost mythic resonance, but it is a striking companion piece, a bit of Hollywood-style magical realism that combines King’s trademark folksy storytelling with Darabont’s old-fashioned awe and wonder at the transportive power of filmmaking.
John Coffey, like the drink.
Much like The Shawshank Redemption, The Green Mile's memory play aesthetic lends itself to a color palette soaked in nostalgic honey brown tones, a warm and slightly stylized appearance bolstered by a solid, but not quite perfect 1080p/VC-1 encoded transfer. This is certainly the best the film has ever looked on home video, and I personally wouldn't hesitate to upgrade from the DVD, but there are a few slight issues that keep The Green Mile from being thoroughly impressive. Though the film has always had a strong sense of saturation and contrast, here primary colors can seem too strong at times—like old Mr. Edgecomb's red rain slicker or the yellow cast in young Paul's house—and black levels have a tendency to crush detail during some of the dimmer indoor scenes. Dark hair sometimes becomes a mass of solid black, sides of faces are lost to chiaroscuro shadows, and the lapels and pockets of the prison guards' deep navy uniforms are frequently indiscernible. How much of this is intentional is hard to say, but in all other ways, this is a winning transfer. Aside from a few soft shots, clarity is exceptional, with every pore, crease, and bead of sweat visible on Tom Hanks' face. I noticed some light edge enhancement during a few scenes, but you'd have to go out of your way to look for it. Film lovers will also be glad to hear that The Green Mile retains all of its natural and pleasing grain structure, which is thin enough most of the time that even the most virulent grain haters won't mind. And as the film fits nicely onto a 50-GB platter, you won't find any compression-related problems like banding or blocking. If it weren't for the occasionally too strong black levels I would probably be singing this transfer's praises, but even with the crush I found the film's picture quality to be warm, sharp, and inviting.
It might not be rife with bombastic, ear-pummeling, channel-panning sound design, but The Green Mile's Dolby TrueHD 5.1 surround track is dynamically solid, clean as a whistle, and modestly engaging. The rear speakers nearly always broadcast subtle ambient sounds—rain pours, thunder claps, birds chirp, crickets sing, chain gangs clank, and electricity zizzits ominously, a portent of lethal surges to come. Indeed, the electrocution scenes find this track at its most active and disturbing, with the buzzing hum of power mixed with squealing, frying, and crackling sounds not unlike bacon sizzling on a griddle. With the exception of some mumbled lines by Michael Clark Duncan, dialogue is crisp and clear, well prioritized even in the more sonically cluttered scenes (of which there are few). Actually, the track is quite impressive when dealing with small sound effects that need to stand out from Thomas Newman's fantastic score. I loved hearing Mr. Jingle's little paws patter across the linoleum floor of the green mile, just discernable enough to register as convincing. Though short on sonic theatrics, this track suits the largely dialogue-driven film and frequently builds up an involving ambient soundfield.
Owners of previous DVD releases will find nothing new here, but the special features are definitely
worthwhile for those that haven't seen them before. The disc is housed in a digibook that
includes trivia, actor bios, and a short essay.
Commentary by Director Frank Darabont
Darabont hops right into this track, launching into a discussion about on-location shots and studio
set-design, and the pace rarely relents over three hours as the director offers up more technical
and production-related information than you could shake a prison guard's baton at. Oddly
enough, Darabont gives us not only a backstage view of the film, but also of his commentary
itself, as mid-way through he introduces Emily, the associate producer for the commentary, who
admits "I make sure he says everything that he needs to say." Darabont says, "She keeps me in
line, and she keeps me talking."
Walking the Mile: The Making of The Green Mile (SD, 25:30)
A standard-issue but entertaining "making of" featurette, Walking the Mile features interviews
with all the key players and lots of behind-the-scenes footage. The material here is eclipsed,
though, by the exhaustive documentary that follows.
Miracles and Mystery: Creating The Green Mile (SD, 1:42:54)
A full meal in and of itself—I wouldn't recommend watching it right after the three hour film—this
six-part documentary explores every aspect of the The Green Mile's journey from
serialized novel to the screen. Stephen King: Storyteller is an overview of the author's
style, The Art of Adaptation features Frank Darabont talking about the process of writing
the screenplay, and Acting on the Mile includes interviews with the film's actors, who all
seem to agree that making The Green Mile was a terrific and rare experience.
Designing the Mile delves into production design, cinematography, and costuming,
The Magic of the Mile examines the film's often subtle visual effects, and The Tail of
Mr. Jingles praises animal trainer Boone Narr's work wrangling the 15 or so mice that were
each trained to do different "stunts."
Deleted Scenes (SD, 3:38 total)
Includes two scenes, Bitterbuck's Family Says Goodbye, and Coffey's Prayer.
Frank Darabont offers optional commentary for both scenes.
Michael Clarke Duncan's Screen Test (SD, 8:26)
If I had watched these fantastic screen tests, I would've hired Duncan too.
Tom Hanks' Makeup Tests (SD, 5:30)
For most of the production, Frank Darabont always intended for Tom Hanks to play the old
version of Paul Edgecomb as well. After seeing the unsettling and less-than-believable old age
makeup by practical effects gurus Rick Baker and Greg Nicotero, you'll understand why Darabont
decided to cast Dabbs Greer instead.
Trailers (SD)
Includes the "lost" teaser trailer (1:58), which was abandoned when Darabont realized the
mouse looked like a giant rat, a brief documentary about the scuttled teaser trailer (4:47), and
the theatrical trailer (2:23).
While The Green Mile may not be a great film—like its predecessor—it is a good film, one that makes a case for compassion and decency when the world around has dried up and turned sour. The film is presented pleasingly on Blu-ray, and with a great digibook case, it makes an excellent companion piece to The Shawshank Redemption in more ways than one. Recommended.
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