‘Green Book’ Takes On Racism With Humor And Heart

Moviegoers love their true stories. From First Man to BlacKKKlansman, from Bohemian Rhapsody to Operation Finale, nothing gets audiences to the theater quite like the words “based on actual events.” Green Book is another of these real-life adaptations.

Set in the early sixties right in the midst of the American civil rights movement, Green Book is about an Italian-American bar bouncer in The Bronx named Tony “Lip” Vallelonga (Viggo Mortensen from A Dangerous Method and Captain Fantastic) who, finding himself in need of work for a few months while his club is being remodeled, takes a job driving a world-class African-American pianist named Dr. Don Shirley (Moonlight’s Mahershala Ali) on a concert tour of the deep south. Tony is hand-picked by the doctor due to his knack for handling “trouble,” and the pair will need every bit of his skill – as well as the printed guide to travel for the black motorist known as “The Green Book” – as they encounter racism and bigotry during their trip through “enemy territory.”

Director Peter Farrelly (Hall Pass) may seem like a weird choice to direct Green Book, considering that he is mostly known for being one half of the brother’s team that came up with Dumb and Dumber and There’s Something About Mary, but he does a great job at telling the compelling story. Farrelly wrote the script along with the real Tony’s son, Nick Vallelonga (Choker), as well as Brian Hayes Currie (Two Tickets to Paradise). On the surface, it’s a typical unlikely buddy movie mixed up with a fish-out-of-water scenario. It’s only when played against the backdrop of the deep south that what could be a madcap setup turns deadly serious.

Although they pretend to be comfortable with their situation, both Tony and Dr. Shirley wind up out of their element a bit, although it’s a bit more obvious with Tony. It’s no accident that Dr. Shirley takes his tour through the deep south, playing music for white people who otherwise wouldn’t (and sometimes don’t) give him the time of day.

His music appeals to the audience, even if his skin color doesn’t; in his own words, he’s “not black enough to be black but not white enough to be white.” And then there’s Tony, who, when told the tour would go through the south, asked “you mean Atlantic City?”, having no idea about the wonders of the world outside of his little neighborhood. The polar opposite men find common ground when they realize that all they have to depend on is each other.

Although there’s no industrial-strength hair gel or dog-disguised car in Green Book, Peter Farrelly doesn’t completely leave his comedic roots behind. There are a handful of humorous tidbits in the movie, mostly uncomfortable humor that is softly based on implied racism, such as when Tony is surprised that the Doc has never listened to the music of Little Richard, or when Tony has to teach his boss how to eat fried chicken. These moments are not meant to completely crack the audience up, however. They exist more to add levity and heart to the otherwise tense situation, and they are, of course, very effective at accomplishing this mission.

In many ways, Green Book is predictable, even stereotypical. It’s not hard to see where it’s going most of the time, but that’s all right. Farrelly keeps it from being an obvious movie about racism by using that aspect of the plot as a backdrop, putting the budding friendship between Tony and Dr. Shirley at the forefront. And that’s perfect. His point is made, both socially and emotionally.