Customer Reviews

Green Card

5 star:		(21)
4 star:		(18)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

The slim premise of Green Card -- a French slob wants to be a US citizen; a left-wing socialite wants a fabulous apartment with a greenhouse; they get married -- creeps up on you, and expands in ways that will surprise you. Yes, this is a love story, but it is somehow much more than that. Peter Weir, who directed Witness (a wonderful, evocative romance), has a way of weaving a spell on you with his movies. Here, he is aided by the galvanic performance of Gerard Depardieu, who is life itself. Andie MacDowell, who is his inferior in the acting department, is suited to her uptight role in a way that favors her: you can actually believe she could be this person, which is usually not the case with this lovely but inept actress. Bebe Neuwirth is her usual dead-on self, in a great, if small, supporting role. The New York locations, particularly that spectacular greenhouse apartment, are winning, and shot with affection. On top of everything, the movie features, in key moments of tension and emotion, the music of Enya, which of course elevates and punctuates scenes in inventive ways. The final moment is a well-earned emotional one, and I think you, like me, will find it hard to resist Green Card, after all is said and done.

I never tire of this movie, watching it probably five or six times a year. Here is absolutely enchanting Andie MacDowell of the subtle Southern accent and prim Peter-Pan-collar blouses, who is happily single and dating but wants a penthouse-cum-greenhouse in a New York City co-op and needs to present herself to the co-op board as a married, dependable type. And here is somewhat bumbling and beastly although undeniably sexy Gerard Depardieu, supposedly a French composer of African-inspired music, who has a shady history and strange tatoo and wants to marry for a green card. The ending of the movie always makes me cry, no matter how many times I've seen it. Oh, the way that Gerard Depardieu looks at her after The Kiss! One of my all-time favorite movies.

This is a sweet and funny film about two strangers, Bronte (Andie McDowell) and Georges (Gerard Depardieu)who agree to marry to keep Georges from being deported. Before they know it, they encounter immigration and have to live together in order to give the premise that they are happily married. It is when these two are forced to live together, that they begin to fall in love! This movie is a lot of fun to watch and Gerard Depardieu is terrific!

This amusing romantic comedy stars the beautiful and talented Audie MacDowell who plays Bronte, a botanist and gardner, and the charming teddy-bear like Gerard Depardieu, who is a music composer but moonlights as a waiter until he hits the big time. Each with their own agenda, agree to a marriage of convenience and break the law. Bronte's purpose is to have enough money to continue her projects of creating gardens in the inner city for the disadvantaged. George's purpose is to obtain the coveted green card, since he arrived only on a visitor's visa. The unexpected twists and turns in this creative comedy provide great entertainment, making it a "must see" film ...

The Immigration and Naturalization Services (INS) pull a surprise visit to spoil their plans ... Bronte had just moved into an exclusive apartment. She had been interviewd by the tenant's committe to whom she lied that her husband was in Africa, doing academic research on music of the region. George moves in with Bronte as they scheme how to outwit the INS who are investigating if theirs is a "real marriage" or a ruse to trick the government. When their personal habits clash - the two realize just how little they know about each other. They share personal information and create a detailed nonexistent past - to outwit the government agents. Gerard Depardieu is amazingly funny as he ad libs scenes inventing stories to cover up his fake husband role ... He is especially effective in scenes where Bronte meets her good friend Lauren, played by the ever dead-pan comedienne, Bebe Niewirth, who is intrigued by George. George does an outstanding performance to impress Lauren's parents at a dinner party in their home. He wins Bronte's affections due to his creativity. Even Bronte's parents are won over by George's antics. Bronte does all she can to make their relationship appear like her cover story and then surprise (!!!), Philip, her boyfriend enters the picture. Next, the INS visitors arrive and everything goes topsy turvey. The film has one of those unexpected endings that leaves the viewer satisfied but craving for more. Erika Borsos [pepper flower]

I remember watching this movie on tv quite a few years ago when I was still quite young, but the story was so fantastic that I had ranked it as one of my most favourite movies. Recently I came across this movie by chance and bought it, it's still as wonderful as ever, I was totally absorbed in the movie. I love Gerard potraying as the charming and funny Frenchman and Andie as the demure New Yorker, the chemistry between them is simply awesome! Go and get this video and watch it on a Saturday afternoon, you'll enjoy it I promise. This movie deserves to be on your shelf.

What a great movie...very funny and very romantic! Illegal alien Gerard Depardieu marries American gardener Andie MacDowell for his Green Card in this absolutely charming comedy. The INS is investigating their marriage to make sure it's for real. Depardieu's got that puppy-dog face that women find irresistable; Andie's goal-oriented modern woman has a sweet, vulnerable side. The scene where they take "honeymoon" photos is really cute. You'll be cheering (and crying!) at the end. Both stars give unforgettable performances and the script is delightful. A wonderful "date movie!"

Leonard Maltin may call Green Card a "thin, scarcely credible" romantic comedy, but how many romantic comedies are really "credible"? "Pretty Woman", "Sleepless in Seattle" -- both are great romantic comedies, but neither would win any realism awards. This movie has what all good romantic comedies need to have -- two attractive and charming lead characters facing humorous roadblocks to their obviously meant-to-be relationship.

This film was overlooked when it came out, but it deserves a second chance. Andie Macdowell is lovely and funny as Bronte, but it is Gerard Depardieu as Georges who steals the show. It is wonderful to see this unkempt, chain-smoking, abrasive Frenchman start to make inroads into the all too proper Bronte's heart.

One of the funniest scenes is the impromptu concert composer Georges gives for Bronte's stuffy society friends.

If you love lighthearted romance, this is one movie you'll really enjoy.

It is uncommon to find, such as in this gem worth keeping, a great combination of casting, feel-good and an almost believable plot (e.g., being asked the brand of Bronte's facial cream or perfume was pushing it), colorful New York setting (fortunately set somewhere from spring to summer), fine interior decorating, great camera shots (the fish-eye lens image of George in that orbiting peephole; watching her at the back of the elevator as she lets her hair down; the late afternoon light at her deck or rooftop) and moving soundtrack that I can only describe as trademark Hans Zimmer. Everyone was perfect for his and her role, including the unforgettable Lauren character played by Bebe Neuwirth. And who could forget the change of heart in Lauren's mother, in that goofy but heart-rending piano scene? That pesky building manager who lives across the hall, and the equally pesky but well-meaning lobby watchman-guard; Bronte's Jeff Daniels-ish boyfriend (lesser version, though) who, being an inflexible person, doesn't quite draw our sympathy; the aging seductress guest in Lauren's dinner party who checks out George and elaborates, "The Faure!" and "Whatever do you mean by that???" It is a great movie to watch, particularly while falling in love. Perhaps when in this emotional state, one can truly relate to the last scene when she pines hearing from him on that "sunny" rain day, opens the door to find out it was the doorman (reminiscent of Sandra Bullock thinking it was Bill Pullman instead of the doting neighbor in "While You Were Sleeping"), reads the short note to the accompaniment of some mysterious, enchanting music that gave me goosebumps when I was watching it at "that" time of my life. You could feel her emptiness after they split from the interview and as he walks the various neighborhoods of the city and later tends for her plants but does not really feel like doing it. And, after she gets the note, one senses her "butterflies in the stomach" as she sits in the cafe, wondering if he would show up. And how it all ended!

What an amazing movie! I would be glad to own it in DVD format.

Ever since I saw this wonderful film I have always dreamed of somebody making Green Card 2, in which Bronte follows Georges to France.

Also, I would love to see the film coming out in DVD format!

To be honest, I don't remember how I heard about Green Card. I think it was as simple as seeing it in a video-rental store and thinking, "What the hey?" At any rate, it was one of the first DVDs I ordered when expanding my own library a couple of years later.

Bronte is a single woman set on living in an apartment with its own greenhouse. She would need to be married to do so, so a friend suggests the unorthodox: marry a stranger that she will never see again. Enter George, a Parisian on the verge of deportation. As romantic comedies go, Bronte and George are forced not only see each other, but even live together while the INS gauges the validity of their marriage. Poor George tries to give Bronte breaks from his intrusion in her life, but fate keeps shoving him back in her path. The pair is highly mismatched, and it is that which makes the sexual tension between them both surprising and pleasing.

The only reason I gave this movie four stars was because of Andie McDowell. There are scenes where George's slovenly behavior drives Bronte (McDowell) up the wall, but instead of releasing real human rage on him, she states her insults in an even-paced, albeit loud, monotone. It wasn't enough to ruin the movie, but it did make me frown, just a moment. She does, however, redeem herself in the final scene, giving a display that made me proud.

Gérard Depardieu makes up for any shortcomings in spades. His talent overflows in this film and makes you see NOT Mr. Depardieu, but George, an immigrant desperate to stay in the US. Even with his unkempt habits and knack to get in the way, George manages to emerge an endearing character, one that you want to see succeed and get exactly what he wants.

Overall, Green Card triumphs to be a sweet, slightly quirkier-than-most romantic comedy, one that I enjoy pulling out now and again. I especially grow nostalgic for a viewing when watering my houseplants.