Beautiful depiction of human bond.

Rating: 8/10 (13 May 2019)

When I first found out about this film I was hyped, mainly because of the pairing of Mahershala Ali and Viggo Mortensen. I mean, they are both such fantastic actors and come from very different filmic backgrounds so I was definitely interested. Also what caught my attention was Peter Farrelly's shift towards a drama picture. The fact that it involved a character being a classical pianist was a plus. It seemed like a recipe for a perfect film, yet it lacked some ingredients. I actually liked the fact that the racism came from a different place, it had different shades to it. Most of Dr. Don Shirley's audience were of upper class, people with refined tastes such as opera, art and classical music. So naturally, they highly respected him but nevertheless discriminated him because of the colour of his skin. That subtle treatment was done to a great extent in my opinion, rather than
showing merciless violence. Because it reminds us that racism can come in different, more fine-drawn ways that are still quite offensive because of its subtlety, and sometimes non-direct fashion. A lot of people feel that racism was treated quite lightly, to which I believe it was necessary to succesfully capture different nuances of the situation I stated earlier, regarding Dr. Shirley's profession and his target audience.
Viggo and Mahershala give exceptional performances for two very different characters; they depicted Tony and Don's relationship quite well, it was a joy watching pure talent in the screen. Does it have a feel-good tone to it? Yes, this is a story about how two characters were able to look Don Shirley for what he truly is, a wonderful, gifted, highly intelligent human being; no matter the colour of his skin or his sexual orientation; let's not forget this happened in America's darkest decade, that is why their relationship takes a higher meaning.
I deeply enjoyed this film, it was greatly written, beautifully acted and well directed. It's enough for me.