The Green Mile: what age is it for? 17, alone or with a parent
From 17, alone or with a parent.
Official US rating: R. In France, zinema would say 15.
Alone, or with you
The official US rating is R, and we never go below it. Alone from 17, and not before, even with an adult.
The sweet spot: around 17-18, when you can think about justice, wrongful convictions and the death penalty. Why a sweet spot?
The trailer
What it's about
A supernatural tale set on death row in a Southern prison, where gentle giant John Coffey possesses the mysterious power to heal people's ailments. When the cell block's head guard, Paul Edgecomb, recognizes Coffey's miraculous gift, he tries desperately to help stave off the condemned man's execution.
Why 17
- The official rating, firstRated R in the US (restricted, under 17 requires an accompanying parent); 12 ans in France. zinema never goes below the country's rating: it explains it.rule
- The electric chair, shownThe movie follows life on a 1930s death row: three condemned men are executed in the electric chair, before our eyes, in front of witnesses. One execution goes wrong, and the man burns alive amid smoke and screams.
- A crime against children, and bloodTwo little girls were abducted and killed: we see their bloodied bodies in a man's arms, and blood on a porch. What was done to them is not said, but it can be guessed.
- Cruelty that hurts to watchA sadistic guard crushes a condemned man's pet mouse under his boot and botches his execution on purpose. A violent inmate spits at, insults and attacks the guards, and another inmate is shot dead in his cell.
- Very harsh languageRacist and homophobic slurs from one inmate, crude swearing and obscenities, throughout the movie.
- Heartbreaking scenesSeveral moments bring tears, adults included. The movie calls for being there to talk about it afterward.
What the movie brings
- A great story about justice, wrongful conviction and the death penalty that makes you think.
- Kindness where you least expect it, and the question of what you do when you know something is unjust.
Watching it together
You might say beforehand that the movie is about the death penalty in 1930s America, and that one of the executions turns into a horror.
at 17 and up
What do you think of the death penalty after this movie, and what would you have done in the guards' place?
See the facts
For the same age, on zinema
- Hope 17
- Animals 17
- East of Eden 17
- The Housemaid 17
The latest guides
- Sinners 17
- Weapons 17
- Heat 17
- The Uprising 17
A zinema reading from October 2, 2026 · the whole movie, watched in full · the age by zinema's rules for the US and France, and a human reading · report an error · how this guide is made