⭐⭐⭐⭐ (Excellent)

Director: Peter Farrelly 
Starring: Viggo Mortensen, Mahershala Ali, Linda Cardellini 
Certificate: 15
Run Time: 130 mins

After a spotty career with more misses than hits, it seems slightly surreal that Peter Farrelly, one half of the Farrelly Brothers famous for gross-out comedy, is tackling a true story drama. Green Book tells the story of a New York bouncer, Frank ‘Tony Lip’ Vallelonga (Viggo Mortensen) who loses his job at the beginning of a film and needs work. He is portrayed to be an apalling racist, loves to eat pretty much anything and has a close knit relationship with his father. Things take a turn when he takes up a job of escorting an African-American pianist, Doctor Don Shirley (Mahershala Ali) on a musical tour through the Mid-West and Deep South. The two initially clash but are brought together after some instances of racism against Don Shirley and the two form an unlikely friendship.

Despite a somewhat problematic white saviour narrative, on the surface Green Book is a thoroughly enjoyable film with some outstanding performances from both Mortensen and Ali. The script is sharp and provides some fascinating insights into this prejudiced culture. The interplay and relationships between characters is also excellent, who I really got on board with from the start. It is well-directed by Peter Farrelly and fantastically paced.

Green Book provided a controversial win at this year’s Oscars as it ultimately took the coveted Best Picture gong. Whilst I really like it as a film, the controversies surrounding how it represents race and ethnicity are valid. It is unashamedly a white saviour narrative and the film does perpetuate stereotypes. These are questions that come up after watching the film and although it does somewhat tarnish the quality of the film, I’d be lying if I said I didn’t really enjoy Green Book.

⭐⭐⭐⭐ (Excellent)