Green Book

Rating: 9/10 (9 May 2019)

Green Book directed by Peter Farrelly and staring Vigo Mortenson and Mahershala Ali, which opened in November 2018, describes the relationship between Dr. Don Shirley and Tony Vallalonga in the 1960's. In the beginning of the film, viewers watch Dr. Shirley hire Vallelonga to be his chauffer and body guard as he embarks a two month long musical tour as a pianist. Vallelonga, an Italian American man, became Dr. Shirleys chauffeur. Dr.Shirley, an African American, was a wealthy and very sophisticated man. The two men travel around the Midwest and in the deep South, while Shirley preforms music on his piano at many different places and event. As the film progresses, viewers watch the two men develop a friendship and grow closer to each other through cultural and personality differences. Greenbook is a compelling drama because of the tension between Mortenson and Ali, the cinematography, and the music and sound effects.
The tension between Dr. Don Shirley, played by Mahershala Ali and Tony Vallelonga, played by Vigo Mortenson is truly captivating. In a scene at the start of the film, Vallelonga and Shirley meet to interview about the job. Shirley, sitting superior in his throne wearing a white and gold gown develops a tension between him and Tony. It caught Tony off guard because it wasn't very common for an African American man to be wealthy and sophisticated. Vallelonga was middle class, racist, and extremely rough around the edges, so him and Shirley were very different people. In the middle of the film, the men stopped at a place where Vallelonga had secretly stuffed a rock into his pocket, and Shirley forced him to return the stolen rock, but he didn't. This scene indicated that Shirley was starting to figure out who Tony was, but was expecting more out of him. Toward the end of the film, Vallelonga and Shirley grew closer as they started to see through each other's differences. Eating without utensils was not an option for Shirley, however toward the end of the movie he broke through his pride and sophistication and started eating fried chicken with his hands, just like Tony. That showed that they were stating to mingle together and overcome the differences of each other. Tony stands up for Shirley throughout the movie when he is faced with discrimination along their journey. The two men developed a friendship through hard times, but also the good times too.
The cinematographers created a film that is very eye capturing. The lighting, dull and dim, throughout the movie portrayed the time period that the movie was set in. The scenes that were shot in the bars helped to create a shallow mood throughout the story because the bars were dark, smoky, and dingey. The actors wore clothing that really fit the 1960s because the women dressed in dresses and hats, while the men wore suits. The viewers really got to dive in and feel more a part of the story with small details like the old cars. Specific parts in scenes that are shot around the different towns that they went through had old classical cars, and the car that Tony chauffeured Shirley around in was an old car, but classy to them. At the end of the film, there were old photographs showed of the real people that the story was based off. Those photos helped the film become so much more alive than it already was.
The music and sounds effects are a very important part of a movie to make it more realistic. There was good music throughout the film to create moods for certain scenes. During the film, they were all out at a gathering and there was classical upbeat music while there were shots of people having a good time. When there became racial tension between Dr. Shirley and the white crowd, the music changed to a more serious tone, then stopped. The sounds effects help move along parts of the story because without them, the movie wouldn't feel realistic.
The Green Book is a feel-good movie for families to sit down and watch together as Dr. Shirley and Tonys friendship evolved over the film, to observe the cinematography, and to hear the music and sound effects that the editors placed to make the movie realistic. If you are looking for a film that is going to end with a good underlying story, then you should purchase Green Book.