Film Review: GREEN BOOK

On the road with Tony and Doc.

After Green Book won the 2018 Golden Globe for "Best Picture, Comedy or Musical," I opted to see it after having chosen not to when I thought it would be a depressing tale of racial discrimination in the 1960s. So imagine my dismay when it turned out to be exactly that, and not funny at all, and not a musical. Still, it's a pleasure to sit through, especially if you are a fan of period pieces. And being based on a true story, it offers an interesting history lesson as well.

The title refers to an actual guide book published back then that listed which hotels, motels and restaurants would accept "colored" guests. It was a necessary tool for any minority traveler in America's southern states, which is where this road trip movie takes its two protagonists. Tony Vallelonga (Viggo Mortensen) a tough, Tony Soprano-type night club bouncer, accepts a job as a driver/bodyguard for an accomplished, refined, world-class black concert pianist, Dr. Don Shirley (Mahershala Ali), on a two-month concert tour.

Quite predictably, the two men start out as polar opposites and end up in a giant bear hug after going through a number of difficult mishaps involving racist cops in the Deep South. Along the way we see the beautiful countryside, hear some fine piano music, and see a lot of vintage cars, vintage clothes and vintage racism. A great soundtrack of old songs from the era plays throughout.

Green Book is quite sad in places, and there's only one funny line in the whole movie. Still, the director (Peter Farrelly) and both of the leads deserve Oscars.