Nothing But the Best: "Green Book" (2018)

Scene from Green Book

Welcome to the series Nothing But the Best in which I chronicle all of the Academy Award Best Picture winners as they celebrate their anniversaries. Instead of going in chronological order, this series will be presented on each film's anniversary and will feature personal opinions as well as facts regarding its legacy and behind the scenes information. The goal is to create an in depth essay for each film while looking not only how the medium progressed, but how the film is integral to pop culture. In some cases, it will be easy. Others not so much. Without further ado, let's start the show.

Review: "Green Book" is an Entertaining Ride Towards Empathy

Scene from Green Book

For many people watching director Peter Farrelly's latest Green Book, there's a certain familiarity that comes with the story. Most of us have been in cars, driving long distance with someone who is, to be polite, not seen as pleasant. Yet there is some magic that can be found in those moments, when the hours pass and the comfort set in. It's when the real conversations start as it kills time between the different pit stops. It's also here that the film really succeeds at capturing a chemistry between Viggo Mortensen and Mahershala Ali, who make a car ride through 1960's deep south America into something that is an enjoyable exploration of character. Yes, it's another drama about race relations, but it's also about two men learning to open up and empathize. As rudimentary as the racial politics may come across to some seeking more than saccharine simplicity, it does work thanks to the chemistry of its two leads and the feeling that we're stuck on the road with them with one entertaining conversation after another.

Nothing But the Best: "The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King" (2003)

Elijah Wood in The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King

Welcome to the series Nothing But the Best in which I chronicle all of the Academy Award Best Picture winners as they celebrate their anniversaries. Instead of going in chronological order, this series will be presented on each film's anniversary and will feature personal opinions as well as facts regarding its legacy and behind the scenes information. The goal is to create an in depth essay for each film while looking not only how the medium progressed, but how the film is integral to pop culture. In some cases, it will be easy. Others not so much. Without further ado, let's start the show.