The Green Mile-A Review

We each owe a death,

There are no exceptions.

But Oh Lord,

Sometimes the green mile seems so long.

These were the words spoken by a man who once witnessed the death of someone who shouldn't die-a man who now desires to die, but couldn't.
        "It was my punishment," he sighed. Those very words sent a deep pang of sorrow into Anne's heart. She felt awfully sorry that while blood was shed and bones were piled upon men's insatiable search for immortality, there were some who reached the point where they had nothing more to be gained from living.
        Speaking about death, the ubiquitous question would be:"What would we do in the face of death?". But had we ever thought of this:"What would we do if we witnessed death?". This movie cast death in a whole new light-death in the eyes of the prisoners, the executioners and the witnesses of the execution. While she found it agonizing for the prisoners to count their remaining days when death was literally just next door, Anne simply couldn't bear the thought of watching death at such a close distance-much less executing it on someone else, even if they deserved it.
        That was why she cried so hard during the execution of John Coffey. She couldn't fathom the state of mind of people who had so little left in this world that they wished for nothing but to leave. It wasn't that her strong urge of survival guided her into subconsciously projecting it onto those who had lost theirs, but the undeniable fact that life was once and forever. No matter what they believed death allegedly had to offer-an escapade from mortal sufferings or an afterlife as depicted in religious metaphors-they must also believe that everyone lived for a special reason, especially someone with a gift like John.
        In Anne's eyes, a true hero didn't need superpowers, but the courage to save the world from all its sufferings. With that belief in mind, it didn't really matter how long the green mile stretched, because every minute of our journey had been worthwhile.
        And that, Anne felt, was the true essence of immortality which everyone had been seeking all along.