Don Shirley was a great man and underappreciated genius who couldn’t play the music he wanted to play, simply because of the color of his skin.

This is a story of the trip that Don Shirley took in the pre-Civil Rights era of the 1960s. Green Book is a story of a trip that - please, no, turn that off. When Farrelly took the stage to accept the Golden Globe for Best Comedy or Musical, he used the opportunity to reiterate the film’s themes (and demand that the orchestra not play him off): Indeed, we typically see it only when Tony quietly picks it up to find motels in which Shirley can safely stay. Universal Picturesīut after that, the book is not mentioned by name, even as the pair encounter the full gamut of racism during the trip - ranging from casual remarks to “genteel” discrimination to violent hostility from civilians, bar patrons, and police. Viggo Mortensen and Mahershala Ali in Green Book. He’ll need to refer to it to do his job, getting Shirley from gig to gig safely throughout the musician’s eight-week tour. Early on, he briefly explains its purpose to his wife Delores (Linda Cardellini): to provide black travelers with information about “safe” places to stay and to eat while they travel. Mortensen’s character, Tony, takes it on the trip and leafs through it several times. Yet curiously, the Green Book itself doesn’t play much of a role in the film. It’s often funny, with some poignant moments and a heart that feels like it’s in the right place.

It’s “inspired” by the true friendship of Tony Vallelonga, an Italian-American chauffeur/bodyguard from the Bronx, and Don Shirley, the black pianist Vallelonga is hired to drive and protect on a concert tour through the deep South in 1962. The film, directed by comedy veteran Peter Farrelly, stars Viggo Mortensen and Ali. A period piece that’s also a road trip movie and a buddy dramedy? Based on a true story? With two strong performances and a heartwarming message about overcoming prejudice? That ends at a Christmas celebration? Sign America up (or at least the Hollywood Foreign Press Association). Green Book took home three Golden Globe Awards on Sunday for Best Comedy, Best Screenplay, and supporting actor Mahershala Ali - and that’s hardly a surprise.

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