Green Book

We chose to screen this as our AGM. I'd missed it at the cinema and was keen to see it as in terms of awards it had proved to be a bit of a sleeper. Having seen it I can report that I enjoyed it, but felt that there were other films that were more deserving of the Oscars for Best Film and Best Original Screenplay.

Here are my notes:

Green Book

USA 2019        130 minutes

Director:          Peter Farrelly

Starring:            Viggo Mortensen, Mahershala Ali and Linda Cardellini

“It’s easy to discount the simplicity of Green Book in a way that many similarly and unfairly did when Hidden Figures broke out in 2016, sighing at the broad strokes used to tell a vital true story. But there’s a necessity in using a film of this scale to recreate a time not too long ago when black people were being regularly dehumanised and devalued in ways that were upheld by the law. Yes, this is entertainment pitched at a wide audience and is constructed in the most easily digestible way possible but it still serves a significant purpose to remind white audiences of the difficulties faced by those of colour.”

Benjamin Lee

Award and Nominations:

• Won Oscars for Best Film, Best Original Screenplay and Best Supporting Actor (Mahershala Ali) plus Oscar nominations for Best Actor (Viggo Mortensen) and Best Editing
• Won BAFTA for Best Supporting Actor (Mahershala Ali) plus nominations for Best Film, Best Original Screenplay and Best Actor (Viggo Mortensen)
• A further 49 wins and 85 nominations

In 1962 the African American classical and jazz pianist Don Shirley (Mahershala Ali) toured the Deep South of the USA with Italian American bouncer Frank “Tony Lip” Vallelonga (Viggo Mortensen) as his bodyguard and driver. In view of the segregation and discrimination policies still in force at that time the pair use The Negro Motorist Green Book which details services and places relatively friendly to African Americans.

The screenplay for the film is co-written by Nick Vallelonga, son of Frank Vallelonga and is based on his interviews with his father and Shirley as well as letters that his father wrote to his mother. Nick Vallelonga did not speak to surviving members of Shirley’s family who were critical of Shirley’s portrayal in the film although Shirley himself had told him not to speak to members of his family and had himself approved both what Vallelonga included and excluded in terms of his life. Similarly some critics had an issue with the film’s depiction of race in that it seemed to propose a “white saviour” narrative, although director Peter Farrelly countered this by explaining that the film was:

"about two guys who were complete opposites and found a common ground, and it's not one guy saving the other. It's both saving each other and pulling each other into some place where they could bond and form a lifetime friendship.

In real life Vallelonga and Shirley remained friends until they both died within months of each other in 2013.

Director Peter Farrelly made his name by working with his brother Bobby to direct quirky comedies such as Dumb and Dumber (1994), There’s Something About Mary (1998), Me, Myself and Irene (2000) and Shallow Hal (2001). In addition to the films he has co-directed for cinema he has also written extensively for television and published two novels.

Green Book was initially given a limited release in the USA but following its Oscar nominations and other success during the awards season it was given a far wider screening which led into a significant increase in it takings, although Farrelly himself did not receive an Oscar nomination for Best Director. The film was also a surprise hit in China where its takings meant that it was the second highest grossing Oscar winner for best film after Titanic (1997). It was also recognised as one of the top ten films of the year by the American Film Institute.

Here is the trailer: