Green Card

*** contains spoilers ***

Two strangers - Georges (Gérard Depardieu) and Brontë (Andie MacDowell) - each need to be in a marriage for professional reasons, so they conspire to fake one, even though they don't know the first thing about each other.

Which gives this film a tough remit - throughout their subsequent battle to prove their fairy-tale romance to US immigration, we're meant to be rooting for the little fibbers.

Early on, it's clear that much of the comedy here is intended to be mined from Georges and Brontë's hamfisted attempts at blagging. Unfortunately Depardieu and MacDowell both ham-up their characters' falseness to such pantomime levels, that it's inconceivable to suppose that anyone around them can possibly be buying it.

With greater subtlety, and a little cleverness, this romcom could have had a real edge.

Instead, well, if you still can't guess how this mindgame ends, then the poster will leave you in no doubt.


Ethan Phillips is likable as the immigration guy. I'm glad he won.