068 - A Flash of Green

Synopsis: Local reporter caught in the conflict between developers and environmentalists 

Director: Victor Nunez

Actors: Ed Harris, Blair Brown, Richard Jordan, George Coe

Date: 1984

How viewed: youtube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iUMKve_PJ44

Rating: 5/5

David Meyer says:

Nunez has a feel for the light of Florida, for the weight of its heat and for the lust that springs up in the boredom of air-conditioned afternoons. He has a gift for atmosphere - moral, sexual and political - and that makes up for his shortcomings as a storyteller.

I say:

This is the 2nd of my 'missing' films which I finally found on youtube - though it is available on VHS (does anyone still have a VHS player?) - and although it's a bit blurred and the sound is fuzzy and it's been posted in 6 parts, it still shines through as a great little film, and it's a mystery as to why it's not more widely available.  On IMDB there are just 8 user reviews, 3 of whom score it 10/10 and the others either 8 or 9/10. It came as an interesting contrast to the previous film (Candy Mountain) which is clearly written and acted but features grand landscapes - whilst The Flash of Green is so natural and slow and small and quiet. It's based on the book by John D MacDonald (see also Cape Fear) which surprisingly doesn't seem to be available in the UK. Anyway, Ed Harris is wonderful as a small town reporter (I kept seeing echoes of James Stewart) in Florida who is courted by the local movers and shakers to dig the dirt on the little protest group who are campaigning against their plans to build a new housing development on the bay. However, his sympathies tend to lie with his protesters who include his friends and neighbours. As the dirty tricks get more and more dirty he has to decide whose side he is on, but following his conscience results in him being ostracised, beaten up, and persuaded to leave town. He comes back however, and whilst he regains his job and his lover he cannot stop the march of progress. By the way a flash of green light is what can sometimes be seen at the moment the sun goes down (and when you should make a wish) - see also The Green Ray directed by Eric Rohmer.