Review of Green Book (2018) by Andrewburge — 24 Feb 2019

They just don't make 'em like this anymore. Peter Farrelly's 'Green Book', inspired by true events is a conventional drama, but a pure and heartwarming one. Tony Lip (Viggo Mortensen), the working-class Italian-American bouncer hired to be the driver/bodyguard/assistant to a virtuoso African-American classical pianist with multiple PhD's while he tours throughout the American South during the 1960s is just as you expect it to be.

Both characters are brilliantly acted by two of the best actors working right now, and their personalities, especially Tony's, are somewhat stereotypical--but the genius of Farrelly is how he manages to make them blend in to one another with such ease, such humanity, warmth, that they dissolve into something simple, straight-forward, but beautiful.

Racism in this story its so obvious that its delicate to mention it. When Tony hangs out with the other drivers while Dr. Don Shirley (Mahershala Ali) performs, he is annoyed when Don tells him to behave himself at which Tony argues that he was just having fun. Shirley's reply sparks unease when he says that you had a choice whether to be in or not, they did not--I don't need to tell you that Tony was the only white driver among them. Throughout old-school vibey camera and cinematography, for these entire two hours these two characters have an unmatched chemistry. Their simplicity makes it easy to work with. They are both human, they have flaws, regrets, secrets, memories, rituals, principles--they both sacrificed, they both loved, hated, cried and laughed, and so did we.

In the end, the film ends with a sweet albeit utopic, unreal silver lining. But, for once, I liked that. Racism is still alive, yes we know that. We don't need another film to act all knowledgeable trying to portend something. For once, let's resume to family and friends rather than preaching to the entire society. It all starts there. This film is not as much about racism as it is about people.

In fact, the only thing keeping this film from being a masterpiece is the fact that, in a burst of anger, Dr. Don Shirley screams out all the concepts and insights which should be hidden so that we discover them for ourselves. "Yes, I live in a castle, Tony! Alone! In which white people pay me to play piano for them because it makes them feel cultured. But as soon as I step off that stage I go right back to being just another n***er to them. Coz that is their true culture and I suffer inside alone coz I'm not accepted by my own people coz I'm not like them either! So if I'm not black enough and if I'm not white enough and if I'm not man enough then tell me, Tony, what am I?" The quintessential question. No one could have said it better.