Green Book

Quick Story Recap: Tony, played by Viggo Mortensen, is a simple man from the Bronx. He works as a grunt and bouncer at the Copacabana nightclub and has a reputation for being able to handle any trouble. The club closes for renovation and Tony is looking for money anywhere he can find it, including food eating contests. Dr. Shirley, played by Mahershala Ali, is a concert pianist who is planning a tour to the deep racist south and needs to find a driver and a body guard of sorts, he hires Tony. The film follows their trip from beginning to finish. Acting wise, I loved every second of both main actors. Viggos Tony was a lovable simple goon who becomes more aware of the world as he experiences it with Dr. Shirley. Every action, facial expression, and his accent seemed spot on every second he got on screen. He wasnt just a committed character which most actors get lauded for - He was a committed character who was real, believable, and lovable. Likewise, Mahershalas Dr. Don Shirley was amazing too. The film is enhanced by their personality push and pull. Mahershaia was able to flesh out his character and use his time on screen both with and without Viggo to convey on powerful moments - as he so often does in his films. A moment that really sticks out as amazing to me was the dialogue where they discuss blackness, and it gets real. They delivered it so well, the truth hits both Tony and the audience and it is magical how you feel it with him. Well done acting team, script team, directors, and editors for how it feels and looks. Overall film wise, I loved it. I watched because it was a nominee. I knew nothing of this film or the story it was based upon coming in so it took a short second to get acclimated to the story and where it was going. But it does have some great moments and the dialogue (and film as well) moves from funny to deep and back again in a perfect way to not go too deep in either direction even as the undertone for the very difficult scenarios they go through together are very serious and upsetting -Jim Crow south. The film kind of makes me think of a reverse Driving Miss Daisy. As I mentioned earlier, I loved Tony and Dr. Shirley. I was glad Tony has a reformation of his own. It made the movie have a great ending. I think I might add this to the home collection.

I usually do not care to watch a movie more than once so I dont have a reason to purchase many DVDs. I have, maybe, a dozen favorites in my collection that I gladly will watch again and again. This one made the list! Funny thing, I almost didnt rent it - it was on my maybe watch list for so long it no long was available from my movie service. Then a friend rented it and highly recommended it. I watched it and knew it was something I could easily watch again - and have it on hand when guests come over and want to watch a good movie. Excellent story - excellent acting - powerful message.

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.

EXCELLENT movie! A personal fav!

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.

This is a heartwarming, informative and motivating story. It can help us all learn that we are more alike than different.

Excellent acting!

Great story. Has all the emotions from happy, sad, funny and angry. Great movie.

Everyone needs to take a step back and bring life, children, women, animals to safety.

It was an ok movie