Written and directed by Peter Weir. A romantic comedy. Romcoms are not often respected, and if the author is perceived as having done interesting work in other genres, preferrably drama, then the romcom becomes the poor relation. It's not really fair. I'd rather watch Green Card than Picnic at Hanging Rock any day.
A marriage of convenience. Bronte (MacDowell) needs to present herself as married in order to persuade a condo board to let her rent a special apartment. She's a horticulturalist and the flat has a greenhouse, very unusual feature. Georges (Depardieu) needs a work permit, a green card. So, they marry, and then separate. Then immigration comes to check-up on them and suddenly Bronte needs Georges to move in and together start studying each other so that they can pass for a real couple. He's not her type, ok? He's a slob. He's an oaf.
Oh dear. Guess where this is going? Yup. That's right. You got it wrong.
The other day I tried conclusions with a new romcom, Anybody But You (2023). My goodness, it was so bad it was incredible. Two hard bodies trying to pass for actors, and a series of situations that failed the credulity test within the first five minutes. Now, look at Green Card. Depardieu, the greatest actor of his generation, making his US debut. Not your chiselled, abbed, pecked, biceped and waxed hunk, by any stretch. But, unquestionably, a man, and a charismatic man at that. MacDowell really does have model beauty, but she can act to an acceptable level. And their odd couple burgeoning relationship is genuinely charming. He's in her apartment, her space, an intruder, and she wants to boss him until he's gone. And he lets her, until he doesn't, and when he takes charge...mmmm.
The musical soundtrack is a curious mix of the Celtic and the African (did you know the study of the Celtic fringe is sometimes extended to include Africa? Ahhh). Enya, who also contributed to Steve Martin's lovecom, LA Story (1991). The screenplay suggests more than it elaborates, and whilst one might wish for more discussion, wouldn't that weigh things down? It would. What this movie is great at is eliciting subtle gestures that indicate the first growth, a germinal state leading to stems and leaves and buds, of love between two people. Depardieu is good at very small facial twitches, very subtle, hence the close-ups. MacDowell manages to convey something of the change felt on the inside, almost as if a burgeoning feeling, unanticipated, of love were a kind of pregnancy.
Ok. That's enough enthusing by me. It's only fair to say that Green Card is more romantic than it is funny, more reflective than competitive (the other man, Phil, is conveniently out of sight most of the time). This is a very good example of the movie where a relationship, fractious at the start, metamorphoses into the sweet friction of love between opposites. The ultimate opposites, man and woman.
Recommended for anyone in need of a love story.
A marriage of convenience. Bronte (MacDowell) needs to present herself as married in order to persuade a condo board to let her rent a special apartment. She's a horticulturalist and the flat has a greenhouse, very unusual feature. Georges (Depardieu) needs a work permit, a green card. So, they marry, and then separate. Then immigration comes to check-up on them and suddenly Bronte needs Georges to move in and together start studying each other so that they can pass for a real couple. He's not her type, ok? He's a slob. He's an oaf.
Oh dear. Guess where this is going? Yup. That's right. You got it wrong.
The other day I tried conclusions with a new romcom, Anybody But You (2023). My goodness, it was so bad it was incredible. Two hard bodies trying to pass for actors, and a series of situations that failed the credulity test within the first five minutes. Now, look at Green Card. Depardieu, the greatest actor of his generation, making his US debut. Not your chiselled, abbed, pecked, biceped and waxed hunk, by any stretch. But, unquestionably, a man, and a charismatic man at that. MacDowell really does have model beauty, but she can act to an acceptable level. And their odd couple burgeoning relationship is genuinely charming. He's in her apartment, her space, an intruder, and she wants to boss him until he's gone. And he lets her, until he doesn't, and when he takes charge...mmmm.
The musical soundtrack is a curious mix of the Celtic and the African (did you know the study of the Celtic fringe is sometimes extended to include Africa? Ahhh). Enya, who also contributed to Steve Martin's lovecom, LA Story (1991). The screenplay suggests more than it elaborates, and whilst one might wish for more discussion, wouldn't that weigh things down? It would. What this movie is great at is eliciting subtle gestures that indicate the first growth, a germinal state leading to stems and leaves and buds, of love between two people. Depardieu is good at very small facial twitches, very subtle, hence the close-ups. MacDowell manages to convey something of the change felt on the inside, almost as if a burgeoning feeling, unanticipated, of love were a kind of pregnancy.
Ok. That's enough enthusing by me. It's only fair to say that Green Card is more romantic than it is funny, more reflective than competitive (the other man, Phil, is conveniently out of sight most of the time). This is a very good example of the movie where a relationship, fractious at the start, metamorphoses into the sweet friction of love between opposites. The ultimate opposites, man and woman.
Recommended for anyone in need of a love story.