Everyone Can Learn Something From Everyone

Rating: 7/10 (8 December 2018)

I'm all for crowd pleasing movies. I'm the guy that loves The Intern, Eddie the Eagle, and this year's Instant Family. Green Book falls into a similar category to an extent, but it attempts to be a little more than it may have earned. The crux of Green Book is the bond and chemistry between Tony Lip (Viggo Mortensen) and Dr. Shirley (Mahershala Ali), and in this vein, it succeeds immensely. It's their back and forth that proves to be a powerful viewing experience in the theater. However, what the film tries to save about race, sexuality, & class feels very surface level and cliched. It works consistently but not to the point that other films have in recent years about similar subject matters. And perhaps it's not trying to be anything more than a crowd pleasing movie about friendships and criticisms like mine won't seem fair, but if it's going to be considered for best picture, then it should be brought up. In the end, it's about how everyone in the world has something to learn from somebody, no matter race, gender, nationality, or sexual preference.
7.5/10