Green Book Movie Reflection Literature & Language Essay (Essay Sample)

Green Book Movie Reflection
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Green Book Movie Reflection
Green Book is a comedy-drama film that features an African American pianist, Don Shirley, and an Italian American bodyguard and driver, Tony Lip, as they go through a number of experiences during their musical tour of the south in where Shirley performs on a number of occasions (Farrelly, 2018). The film is set in 1962 when racial segregation and discrimination is at its peak. Shirley becomes a victim of racial discrimination on a number of occasions, even in restaurants where he has been awarded performance contracts (Farrelly, 2018). The film draws its title from The Negro Motorist Green Book, a guide that was used by African American drivers then to locate restaurants and hotels where blacks in segregated America were able to get much more favorable treatment as they travelled (Wilkinson, 2019).
The film depicts racism on a number of occasions. Tony has to make use of the Green Book so as to find favorable hotels where Don can be accommodated as he tours the south for his musical performance. Tony himself is initially depicted as a racist as he is reported to have thrown away glasses that some African American contractors had used (Farrelly, 2018). He also assumes that Don likes fried chicken when he says ‘You people like fried chicken’ (Farrelly, 2018), among other things that he alludes about African American culture. A number of inconsistencies exist in the racial awareness, especially with regards to Don. He doesn’t seem to be aware of certain music that African Americans listen to or the delicacies that they prefer and it is ironical that Tony is the one pointing them out to him, a phenomenon that downplays racism at the time to a larger extent (Macnab, 2019). This film leaves out some of the specifics of racism that it might have covered better hence may not be a good film that illustrates racism as it was then for that matter.
The Green Book film was motivated by a true story.