Green Card (film)
Green Card | |
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Directed by | Peter Weir |
Written by | Peter Weir |
Produced by | Peter Weir |
Starring | |
Cinematography | Geoffrey Simpson |
Edited by | William M. Anderson |
Music by | Hans Zimmer |
Production companies | |
Distributed by | Buena Vista Pictures Distribution (United States) Roadshow Entertainment (Australia)[1] UGC Distribution (France)[2] |
Release dates |
|
Running time | 107 minutes |
Countries | United States Australia France |
Language | English |
Budget | $12.5 million[4] |
Box office | $38 million (US/Australia)[5] |
Green Card is a 1990 American
Plot
Brontë Parrish, a
Contacted by the Immigration and Naturalization Service for an interview to determine if her marriage is legitimate, Brontë tracks down Georges, who is working as a waiter. Although the two have little time to get their facts straight, the agents who question them appear to be satisfied with their answers. But when one of the agents asks to use the bathroom and Georges directs him to a closet, their suspicions are aroused, and they schedule a full, formal interview to be conducted two days later at their office.
Advised by her attorney that she could face criminal charges if their deception is uncovered, Brontë reluctantly invites Georges to move in with her. They try to learn about each other's past and their quirks and habits but quickly find they can barely tolerate each other. Georges is a fiery-tempered selfish slob and smoker who prefers red meat to vegetarian food, while Brontë is shown as uptight and cold, obsessed with her plants and wrapped up in environmental issues.
Meanwhile, the parents of Lauren Adler, Brontë's best friend, plan to leave New York City and consider donating their trees and plants to the Green Guerrillas, a group overseeing the development of inner-city gardens. Brontë is invited to a dinner party to discuss the issue and discovers Georges is there, having been asked by Lauren. He so impresses the Adlers with an
When Brontë's boyfriend Phil returns from a trip, Georges reveals that he is married to her. Brontë angrily kicks Georges out, but the pair nonetheless appear at the immigration interview the next day. The two are questioned separately, and when Georges is caught out by the interviewer, he confesses the marriage is a sham. He agrees to deportation but insists Brontë not be charged for her role in the charade. He lets Brontë believe the interview was a success and the two go their separate ways.
A few days later, Georges invites Brontë to join him at the cafe where they first met. When she notices one of the immigration agents is waiting outside, she realizes Georges is being deported and tries to stop him from being sent away as they've both realized they are in love with each other. Georges promises to write every day asking the same question "When are you coming, chérie?", a line he had also used when describing their fabricated courtship to the INS. Just before he leaves with the immigration agent, Brontë asks if he still has their wedding rings; he pulls them out of his pocket and they quickly exchange rings again, laughing and kissing. Then Georges departs with the agent as Brontë watches from the sidewalk.
Cast
- Gérard Depardieu as Georges Fauré
- Andie MacDowell as Brontë Parrish
- Bebe Neuwirth as Lauren Adler
- Gregg Edelman as Phil
- Robert Prosky as Brontë's Lawyer
- Mary Louise Wilson as Mrs. Sheehan
- Lois Smith as Brontë's Mother
- John Spencer as Harry
- Ann Dowd as Peggy
- Larry Wright as Larry Wright, The Bucket Drummer
- Ethan Phillips as INS Agent Gorsky
Production
Peter Weir wrote the script, an original, specifically as a vehicle for Gérard Depardieu to introduce him to a wide English-speaking audience.[6] The film had a similar theme and plot to The Paper Wedding (French: Les noces de papier), a 1989 made for television Canadian film directed by Michel Brault, which was subsequently entered into the 40th Berlin International Film Festival.[7]
Partial funding for the film was provided by the
Music
Original soundtrack
Green Card: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack | |
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Sydney, Australia | |
Genre | Film score, instrumental pop, new-age, soft rock, world, classical |
Length | 44:56 |
Label | Varèse Sarabande |
Producer | Hans Zimmer, Peter Weir |
Green Card: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack was released on 22 January 1991 on Varèse Sarabande.[9]
Some of the music like "River", "Watermark", and "Storms in Africa" by Enya, "Holdin' On" by Soul II Soul, "Oyin Momo Ado" by Babatunde Olatunji and "Surfin' Safari" by The Beach Boys are heard in the movie, but not included in the soundtrack.
Track listing
- "Street Drums" (Larry Wright) (1:29)
- "Instinct" (3:33)
- "Restless Elephant" (2:55)
- "Cafe Afrika" (2:59)
- "Greenhouse" (3:15)
- "Moonlight" (1:24)
- "9AM Central Park" (1:48)
- "Clarinet Concerto in a Major: Adagio" (W.A. Mozart) (8:38)
- "Silence" (4:38)
- "Instinct II" (3:09)
- "Asking You" (1:45)
- "Pour Bronté" (6:19)
- "Eyes on the Prize" (The Emmaus Group Singers) (3:04)
Reception
Critical response
On Rotten Tomatoes the film holds a 59% approval rating based on 32 reviews, with an average rating of 5.5/10.[10] On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 58 out of 100, based on 17 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".[11] Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "A" on an A+ to F scale.[12]
Janet Maslin of The New York Times called it "as breezily escapist as a film this facile can be" and added, "Ms. MacDowell ... has a lovely, demure ease that makes George's appreciative gaze quite understandable. Mr. Depardieu, in the role that gets him into a New York Yankees cap, proves that he is nothing if not a sport ... He comes to life most fully when he lapses into French or is otherwise momentarily freed from the story's constraints."[13] Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times observed the film "is not blindingly brilliant, and is not an example of the very best work of the director who made The Year of Living Dangerously or the actor who starred in Cyrano de Bergerac. But it is a sound, entertaining work of craftsmanship, a love story between two people whose meet is not as cute as it might have been."[14]
Peter Travers of Rolling Stone called the film a "captivating romantic bonbon" and added, "Don't look for the originality and grit that distinguished Weir's Australian films Picnic at Hanging Rock and Gallipoli, Green Card has all the heft of a potato chip. But Depardieu's charm recognizes no language barriers, and MacDowell, the revelation of Sex, Lies, and Videotape, proves a fine, sexy foil."[15] Rita Kempley of The Washington Post said, "Like Ghost and Pretty Woman, this romance is blissfully dependent on our staying good and starry-eyed, seduced by the charisma of the leads. And we do, despite its lackadaisical pace and disappointing ending."[16]
Box office
Green Card grossed $29.9 million in the United States and Canada.[5] In Australia, it was the highest-grossing local film with a gross of A$10,585,060 (US$8 million).[20][21][22]
Accolades
Award | Category | Nominee(s) | Result |
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Academy Awards[23] | Best Screenplay – Written Directly for the Screen | Peter Weir | Nominated |
British Academy Film Awards[24] | Best Original Screenplay | Nominated | |
Golden Globe Awards[25] | Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy | Won | |
Best Actor in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy | Gérard Depardieu | Won | |
Best Actress in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy
|
Andie MacDowell | Nominated | |
London Film Critics' Circle Awards | Actor of the Year | Gérard Depardieu | Won |
Writers Guild of America Awards[26] | Best Screenplay – Written Directly for the Screen | Peter Weir | Nominated |
Home media release
Touchstone released the film on VHS around 1991 and Touchstone Home Entertainment released the film on Region 1 DVD on 4 March 2003. It is in anamorphic widescreen format with audio tracks in English and French.
Green Card was released on DVD by Umbrella Entertainment in February 2004. The DVD is compatible with all region codes and includes special features such as the original theatrical trailer, Umbrella Entertainment trailers, and interviews with Peter Weir, Gérard Depardieu and Andie MacDowell.[27]
See also
- Cinema of Australia
- Hold Back the Dawn (earlier film with a similar theme)
References
- ^ a b "Green Card - Review". Oz Movies. Retrieved 6 June 2021.
- UniFrance. Retrieved 6 June 2021.
- ^ "Green Card (1990)". IMDb.com. Retrieved 15 November 2021.
- ^ "AFI|Catalog". Catalog.afi.com. Retrieved 15 November 2021.
- ^ a b "Green Card". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved 15 November 2021.
- ^ Katherine Tucker, "Peter Weir", Cinema Papers, August 1990 p 6-10
- ^ Marc Horton, "The movie to see on immigration scams". Edmonton Journal, February 7, 1991.
- ^ Bob Evans, "OUR PIECE OF THE ACTION", The Australian Financial Review, 18 October 1991 p 33
- ^ "Hans-Zimmer.com - Green Card". Archived from the original on 22 October 2015. Retrieved 30 July 2015.
- ^ Green Card, retrieved 19 January 2023
- CBS Interactive. Retrieved 2 April 2022.
- ^ "Home". CinemaScore. Retrieved 3 April 2022.
- ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 1 September 2021.
- ^ "Chicago Sun-Times review". Rogerebert.suntimes.com. Archived from the original on 28 March 2013. Retrieved 1 April 2022.
- ^ "Green Card : Review : Rolling Stone". Rolling Stone. 24 October 2007. Archived from the original on 24 October 2007. Retrieved 1 September 2021.
- Washington Post. Retrieved 15 November 2021.
- ^ "Variety review". Variety.com. Archived from the original on 28 June 2009. Retrieved 15 November 2021.
- ^ "Green Card". Time Out Worldwide. 10 September 2012. Retrieved 1 September 2021.
- ^ [1] [dead link]
- ^ Broeske, Pat H. (14 January 1991). "Home Alone in 9th Week as No. 1 Film : Movies: 'Godfather Part III' takes dramatic slide from second to sixth place in its third week out. 'Awakenings' is in second". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 1 January 2011.
- ^ "Film Victoria - Australian Films at the Australian Box Office" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 18 February 2011. Retrieved 20 November 2010.
- ^ "Top Australian Domestic Grosses 1991-1995". Screen International. 10 May 1996. p. 17.
- ^ "The 63rd Academy Awards (1991) Nominees and Winners". AMPAS. Retrieved 20 October 2011.
- BAFTA. 1992. Retrieved 16 September 2016.
- HFPA. Retrieved 28 July 2021.
- ^ "Awards Winners". Writers Guild of America. Archived from the original on 5 December 2012. Retrieved 6 June 2010.
- ^ "Umbrella Entertainment". Archived from the original on 20 October 2013. Retrieved 23 May 2013.