Jude Anthany Joseph's third feature, after Ohm Shanti Oshana and Oru Muthassi Gadha, released on Prime Video at midnight today. This seemingly feel-good film, also seemingly made in limited spaces and with a shoestring budget, tackles a concept and issue never tested before in Malayalam cinema circles. In Sara'S, we follow the life of Sara Vincent (Anna Ben), a young, bubbly, yet unapologetic filmmaker who struggles to make it big in the industry. She continuously assists male directors and is in the scripting works of her dream film. Sara has decided, from her school days, that she would not bear any kids. This is when she meets Jeevan (Sunny Wayne); her relationship with him subsequently brings her ideology and decision into a confrontation with the established norms of society, family and child-rearing. Anna Ben in Sara'S The best aspect in which Sara'S has excelled, without doubt, is its hard-hitting taut script. Debutant Akshay Hareesh deserves praise for managin...
Note: This film was the recipient of the Best Picture Award at the 91st Academy Awards.
Among the many movies released in 2018 that highlighted the pertinent issue of race relations, Green Book was one small movie that vowed to stand out. Promising a talented duo of Viggo Mortensen and Mahershala Ali in lead roles, the story about the acquaintance between an Italian-American bouncer and an Afro-American pianist in the 1960s, the height of racial violence in the "Land of the Free", became a surprise favorite in the race to the awards season. Here's how Green Book appealed to the critic and moviegoer in me.
The film follows the lives of an Italian American bouncer, Tony Lip (Viggo Mortensen) and an African-American pianist Dr. Shirley (Mahershala Ali). Tony is tasked with the responsibility of escorting Shirley, who gets to perform a series of concerts, through the xenophobic American South. The timing is just perfect. The South has become notorious for it's hostility to black people and is the centerstage for many demonstrations and movements that later become integral moments in America''s racial history. Tony is an ignorant racist, while Shirley is the one with the refined vocabulary and speech with a finesse- a reversal of traits indeed. The road journey they take and the rapport they establish forms the rest of the heartfelt movie.
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| Viggo Mortensen and Mahershala Ali in Green Book |
Apart from the theme it successfully tries to uphold, it is inevitably the stunning performances by the two in the lead that really strikes the chord with the audiences. The two are just exceptional- Mortensen is nonchalant as Tony Lip and Ali, as always is, shines as Shirley. Their chemistry is one of the best things in this film-they share drinks, KFC chicken, laughs and even an emotional exchange of words. For many who have watched this film, Shirley's monologue in the rain to Tony about the identity crisis he faces is undoubtedly one of the best moments in this film.
Many other characters cross paths with the lead duo in many moments in the film- including Linda Cardinelli's as Tony's wife, Dolores; however, our focus stays with Tony and Shirley and the bonhomie they establish- the direction and screenplay takes care of that. Both the characters get the development arcs they rightfully deserve, and when these reach closure, moviegoers will definitely feel satiated and will know that they have had a good cinematic experience.
One would it find it really hard to discredit Green Book as one of those movies that portray race equality just for the sake of depicting it. The makers have done a remarkable job in assuring that.
Stupendous performances backed with an even powerful screenplay makes Green Book one of those rare movies that stays in the audience's heart even after walking out of the theater, and also gives us the space to think about the 'apparent' paradigm shifts in society pertaining to theme this film upholds.
Reviewer© rating : 5 stars
MPAA rating: PG-13 (for thematic content, language including racial epithets, smoking, some violence and suggestive material)
Runtime: 130 minutes
Reviewer-The Blog©
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