Green Book

Heart wrenching and a perfect movie to watch with a friend.

I would recommend to anybody who enjoys a good drama with a little comedy in it. I never knew the backstory or heard of the musician until this movie. And I never knew that his bodyguard was the man who would eventually go on to play Carmine on The Sopranos. Its amazing that the two men died within months of each other after long lives. Anyway I would describe this film as a tour de force. I would suggest it for anyone who is into a movie you have to pay attention to.

Others have discussed the plot, so I will confine my review to impressions and what I came away with after watching the movie. First: this is a study of contrasting characters. The beginning of the movie portrays two main characters who, on the surface, are polar opposites. As the movie unfolds you begin to see how alike both are in certain ways. To be sure, they are still worlds apart, but one striking similarity that I observed is Dr. Shirley exhibited both high intelligence and education. He imparts some of his knowledge to Tony who proves to be intelligent enough to grow (to a point) intellectually. Both also have strong personal codes and integrity. Dr. Shirley comes across as refined; Tony comes across as profane, unpolished and streetwise - but unyielding in his commitment to keeping his word and other matters of honor. True, they are still worlds apart, but the core similarities are there if you observe closely enough. Second: there are a number of themes, some subtle, some not so much. Both men came to not only respect each other by the end of the movie, but also lifelong friends. Tony was literally educated by Dr. Shirley, and came away with a different way of seeing the world (although there were moments of interaction between the two that portrayed Tony as having a wider and deeper view of things than his crude character would otherwise indicate.) Dr. Shirley was affected by Tonys views and actions, but from what I gleaned from the film, not nearly as dramatically. Tony actually grew as a human being, as well as intellectually; Dr. Shirley changed in outlook, but maintained his core strengths and impeccable manners and standards. Third: I loved the cinematography. I was fourteen when the events in the movie happened and the colors and feel were not only authentic; I felt as though I was transported back in time. To be honest, I was ignorant of the layers of racism that permeated American society during that time. In that respect I could empathize with Tonys oblivious notions and beliefs expressed during the film. Perhaps empathize is the wrong word - I understood Tonys frame of reference because I was equally oblivious back then. Both the writing and the acting were some of the best Ive seen in recent movies. It is a deep and nuanced character study, drawn from real life events and people, and things move at real life speed. Slow. Deep. If you love action, romance, humor - you probably will NOT like this movie. On the other hand, if you like excellent story telling with layers of nuance, with the added bonus of being based on actual events, you will probably love this film.

I am from the South, so this movie was very interesting for me to watch. I have watched it a few times and always recommend to friends and family.

This movie gives you a point of view we all need to see and learn from. We all bleed red. We are all one

Loved watching this movie

Green Book will be notable in movie history if for no other reason than being the 2018 Best Picture winner at the Oscars. I stopped watching the Oscars years ago because they seem to delight in choosing the obscure or films that kowtow to popular fads, but Green Book is one of the rare exceptions that the Oscars got right. This film is the shared story of two disparate characters. The first is Don Shirley, an gifted African-American pianist, trained in Russia, connoisseur of languages, with an apartment above Carnegie Hall. The other was Tony Vallelonga, a rough-and-tumble Italian-American bouncer with connections to organized crime and a tremendous capacity to eat. When Shirley decides to undertake a tour of the Deep South in the early 1960s, he knows he will need protection. On the other hand, the nightclub Tony works at is closed for repairs and he needs a job for the next few months. After interviewing multiple people for the position of chauffeur, bodyguard, and bagman, Don eventually decides to hire Tony. At the beginning of their journey, there is a significant amount of friction between the two. Don is highly cultured, while Tony is salt of the earth; more notably, being of two different races leads Tony to make some insensitive, albeit not malicious, comments. Soon enough, however, Tony helps Don get out of tough situations and they bond. Some of the best scenes in the film are when Don performs. The piano work was actually done by Kris Bowers, but Mahershala Ali carries himself with confidence as he mimics the movements. Despite his obvious talent, Don is never fully accepted by white society. As Don himself notes, he feels too white to fit into black society and too black to join white society. This internal conflict reaches an emotional resolution in one of the final scenes of the film. There has been some criticism from Don Shirleys family that the film whitewashes aspects of his life. Leaving aside the question of whether Shirley was estranged from his kin (I get the impression he was), no story is able to incorporate every single perspective. Tony Vallelonga clearly held Don Shirley in high regard and viewed him as a friend, an attitude many white people fifty years ago were incapable of. More importantly, even if the story were entirely fictional, I think it offers a valuable lesson that we as human beings can learn from others whose experiences (and hence their perspectives) are different from our own. If nothing else, the film acquainted me with Don Shirley, who I had never heard of before, but whose music I now own on vinyl. The moments of levity, drama, and musical virtuosity in this film make it a great way to pass an evening. I highly recommend that everyone take the time to enjoy the performances of Mahershala Ali and Viggo Mortensen.

Based on a true life story will pull me in every time. Real people can change, if they want to, for the betterment of all!

Amazing movie

An inspiring true story Shares a period in US history well worth being aware of. Accomplished with exceptional acting and story line.