The Green Girl (2014) Reviews

• Outstanding and Insightful

  samlmt2014-08-10

  A true revelation in celebrity documentaries, told with love, respect, earnestness and compassion. The amazing part is that this film could be as emotionally compelling as it is, given that the subject - actress Susan Oliver - was so hard to pin down as an individual. Part mystery, part enigma, and gifted beyond compare, her legacy is thoughtfully preserved in The Green Girl. You don't have to be a fan of Susan to enjoy this film. You don't even have to know who she was. You'll be drawn in, and find yourself wanting to discover her works. Great job by the director and editor. An obvious labor of love for all involved, meticulously researched and presented.

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• A Splendid Film

  areopagan2014-08-10

  I was fortunate enough to see this film at one of its limited theatrical showings. I have seen Susan Oliver in many films and television shows over the years, but I knew vary little about her. "The Green Girl" brought the person behind the roles to life for me. She was as accomplished off screen as she was on, and it's tragic that she has not been acknowledged for all that she did. The unwillingness of many of the well-known actors with whom she worked to provide interviews for this film only serves to underscore that fact. Despite that absence, George A. Pappy, Jr. and Amy Glickman Brown have managed to produce a very compelling story of Ms. Oliver's life and career. I know that I will be watching it again on video more than once.

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• Excellent Doc on little known actress

  davemth2014-08-10

  The one thing I ask from a good documentary is that it tells me something I don't already know about its subject. "The Green Girl" exceeds that in spades. It's a very well produced documentary on Susan Oliver, a staple of TV shows from the 60s who was an independent woman in every sense of the word. Her post-Hollywood career is full of amazing facts and deserves a movie all on its own. Filmmaker George Pappy does a great job in assembling Susan Oliver's life through the numerous film clips (which for a TV nostalgia nut is a can't miss opportunity all to itself) and interviews with the various actors and crew members she worked with over the years. I won't spoil anything but can only say that for baby boomers and even younger, if you're a Star Trek fan or just a fan of Hollywood in the 60's this film is well worth getting.

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• Great Documentary about an actress who was in Star Trek ***WARNING-SPOILERS AT BOTTOM***

  leftwingchief2014-08-12

  Disclosure-I donated on Kickstarter, saw this in a theater prior to DVD release, am not an employee, am not related to cast or crew and not connected with Hollywood. ***WARNING-SPOILERS AT BOTTOM*** First, Thank You to Susan's family, friends and co-workers who took their time to reminisce about her and share photos and other items and to the crew. Susan Oliver died in 1990 in obscurity, but news travels fast today on the Internet. Curiosity and technology caused George Pappy to use his iPhone to see Susan's IMDb page, he read her autobiography and this set into motion events that made this movie. The dedicated crew made this for less than $80,000, with much hard work, wearing of multiple hats, frequent flier miles and countless Tweets and Facebook posts. Amy Glickman-Brown did a fantastic job sifting through hours of B&W and color footage to showcase Susan's life. Since some footage is over 50 years old and of varying quality, a considerable amount of time was spent on digital video noise reduction. Much of Susan's dialog is from scripts, so Elizabeth Brown excellently acts as her voice, speaking life from Susan's written words. The soundtrack music is unobtrusive and smoothly augments the movie's flow. Production finished in the nick of time, as Peter Duryea died during filming and Nancy Malone, Biff Manard, and Mira John Slovak died before the DVD release. The Director's commentary elaborates on some topics and mentions an outtakes DVD will be made. When all film, television, still photo, print and web credits are listed, it's an amazing amount of time, research, travel, legal work, editing and test screenings to produce a 96 minute documentary! I saw Susan first in 1976 in "The Menagerie". In late 2012 on Antenna TV, I saw her in "The Naked City", went to IMDb and saw "The Green Girl" link. This DVD showed me many things about Susan; I saw the M*A*S*H episode she directed, many of her movies and television appearances, read her autobiography and would've loved to have met her. I spoke with fixed and rotary wing pilots about aircraft flight characteristics and I'm amazed Susan crossed the Atlantic alone in a single engine plane with 480 flight hours; she really was driven! Susan had many facets: actress, record setting pilot, writer, director, humanitarian (flew for Easter Seals) and "a good egg" to name a few and she strikes me as someone who would probably have succeeded in almost anything she attempted. For a such a stunningly beautiful, fascinating woman who brought much joy to millions, sadly her life was not very happy. I've bought several DVD's for friends who like Star Trek and one is a retired military pilot. ***FINAL WARNING-SPOILERS BELOW*** In the DVD, my favorite photos of Susan are: holding the 1970 Powder Puff Derby trophy, in pigtails, smiling brightly from ear to ear, as pilot Margaret Mead talks nearby in a telephone booth and wearing a flight suit near a military jet. The last scene is a black screen with white letters captioning Susan's words as she leaves a farewell message on a relative's answering machine. Presented without music, each sound, the answering machine beep, the original cassette tape's limitations and the receiver hanging up sound is perfection. The crew gives Susan the final word in her own voice, some of the last words she ever said to loved ones. Rest In Peace.

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• The Green Girl Movie Does Great!

  rileyrose2014-08-11

  The Green Girl Movie is a wonderful story about Susan Oliver, her life and her career. The story is told through the eyes of many that worked with her in Hollywood as they knew the quality of what she did and could do as an actor. It's filled with a lot of old Hollywood footage and great tell-all interviews. Susan was a woman driven toward multiple avenues of accomplishments, this was a surprise and a ride, one should surely get on board with. The director's (George Pappy's) point of view is very telling. Susan's life was indeed full but very challenged. This is a story you won't want to miss seeing. I think it's very enjoyable with a lot of life lessons about the Hollywood road towards success and the expectations, as such. See it, you won't be disappointed, I think you'll enjoy this story on the very colorful life of Susan Oliver.

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