Aug 06, 2009 04:08 PM
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During my stay in Korea, I happened to visit a place called Seodaemun Prison in Seoul. It was a notorious prison during the Japanese occupation of Korea from 1930 till the end of the war. After Korea gained independence, the prison was converted into a memorial.
The experience of visiting it was quite unsettling, as there were visuals, graphic depictions of prisoners being tortured and executed. Now in that memorial, there was an exhibit, where you could actually experience a live hanging. It was a kind of arrangement, where you sat on a stool, heard your death sentence being prononunced, and then all of a sudden, a click, and for a moment, I felt the noose around my neck, and the trapdoor opening. Yes it was simulated, but for a moment I felt like I was gone. Something which just made me think, if a simulated hanging could just upset me so much, what of those people who are actually on death row.
What would be the state of mind of a person who knows that in a couple of minutes the entire world would come to an end for him? And more important what would be the feelings of people who actually execute the order? Are they just doing their job? Or would the experience of seeing people being executed right in front of their eyes affect them at some level?
An issue explored to wonderful effect in The Green Mile directed by James Darapont, which was his second adaptation of a Stephen King novel after The Shawshank Redemption. Paul Edgecomb( Tom Hanks) is a corrections officer at the Cold Mountain Petinentiary in Louisiana, which basically means he has the responsibility of marching condemned prisoners to their execution along the"Green Mile" so called because of the greenish color of the lining. Paul supervises the executions along with his 2 other colleagues Brutus Holwell and Dean Stanton. The death row has 2 personsArlen Bitterbuck, a Cherokee Indian and Eduard Delacroix, waiting for their execution.
For all the work he does, Paul remains a dignified, sensitive soul, who treats the prisoners like human beings. Quite unlike his other colleague Percy Whetmore( Doug Hutchison), who treats prisoners like scum, and behaves in a real boorish manner, making use of his connections. Percy is hated not only by the prisoners, but even by his other colleagues, and Paul totally detests him. They are however forced to tolerate him, as he happens to be well connected. Things take a turn in the prison with the entry of John Coffey( Michael Clarke Duncan), a 7 foot giant of a man, who is black.
Coffey has been sentenced to death for the brutal rape and murder of 2 little White girls. Though he claims he is innocent, none is ready to believe him, as he was found with the bodies of the girls. Along with Coffey, another criminal too arrives on the death row, a totally deranged, sadistic pyscho called "Wild Bill". Though the inmates are terrified of Coffey's fearsome appearance, he in fact is a gentle giant, a child at heart, who sobs whenever a prisoner is executed. And Paul finds that Coffey is really not what he seems, after a series of incidents convince him, he could not be a killer.Will Coffey be able to prove his innocence? Will the real culprit be found out? What effect is felt by Paul? Well watch the movie to really experience it.
Like the Shawshank Redemption, the Green Mile, is a movie that overwhelms you with it's sheer emotional intensity, its characters, its detailing. Some of the scenes could be really disturbing like the one where DeLaCroix's execution goes horribly wrong, its so hard hitting, leaves you shocked. And we see the execution is botched up due to Percy's deliberate sabotage. The scene where Coffey cures Paul and later his boss's ailing wife are brilliant. Another wonderful scene is where during a mock execution, the guards start laughing, out and Paul admonishes, telling them death is not a joke.
But more than anything it is the issues the movie raises, that makes it such a profound one. The movie looks at the greyish world between life and death, between faith and reason. And most importantly it takes a look at the issue of capital punishment. While one has no remorse for pyschotics like Wild Bill, does it need to be applied to people like Delacroix and Bitterbuck, who repent for their actions? And if they are criminals what about men like Percy, who abuse the system, for their own selfish purposes, are not such people more dangerous? **Paul lives longer than the men he executed, but for a major part of his life, he feels like a dead man, living with guilt. It is this sense of moral ambiguity among the characters that makes this movie a classic. Barring people like Percy or Wild Bill, most of the other characters are just victims of their own circumstances.
Though some of the scenes do drag on, I would still recommend this movie for its sheer emotional brilliance. It is a movie that makes you think, make you question, and makes you look at life and death in another angle. You feel the anguish of the prisoners, when they are marched to the death row, and yet, the lighter moments make you feel good. And yes it has a climax, that just hits you somewhere. And add to it some fabulous performances by Tom Hanks( brilliant as ever) and Michael Clarke Duncan as Coffey, along with excellent support acts, this is a movie that is not be missed at any cost. Go watch it.
