Green Book

THE GIST: Suddenly unemployed, Tony, a bouncer and tough guy, accepts a temporary engagement as a driver for Don Shirley, a sophisticated and pompous, world famous, Black classical pianist, who is going on tour in the Southern US, armed with the Green Book, a sort of travel guide for Black motorists to help them avoid unwelcoming places. Worlds apart in terms of beliefs and ideologies, witnessing the hardened racism and injustice of society during their travels, ends up bridging the divide and bringing them closer together, each earning a newfound respect from the other.

Winner of the Best Picture Oscar, Green Book tells a charming story that's based on the real friendship that blossomed between these two actual people. Surely the filmmakers took some liberties in dramatizing it (there was some polemic about that), but the end result is informational, charming, and heartwarming.

The film's screenplay also won the Oscar, as well as Mahershala Ali for Best Supporting Actor. Viggo Mortensen was nominated for his performance, but as Lead Actor, which is quite weird given that they spend almost the same amount of time on screen. A nomination also went to the Film Editing.

THE BOTTOM LINE: A feel-good movie is always welcome, and this one showcases some great acting on top of shining a light on some really shameful behaviors on the part of White America that, unfortunately, has not changed all that much in places.

Grade: 8.5