Ambiguous Spectatorship and the Biracial Buddy Films in the Post-Race Era: Green Book

Green Book is a biracial buddy film based on the true story between Black pianist Don Shirley and his white driver, Tony Vallelonga. The story focuses on their two-month concert tour in the Deep South of America in the 1960s when the Jim Crow Laws impeded every step of their itinerary. Despite winning the Best Picture Award at the Oscars, the film faced both harsh criticism and praise. Much of the criticism stemmed from concerns that the film repeats the narrative cliches of the “white savior” or “magical negro” formula. However, these familiar narrative structures takes a slightly different path in this film. The film does not provide an anticipated or easy identification for its spectators and ultimately places them in an ambiguous position, offering less visual and emotional pleasure than earlier films with similar formulas. This study suggests that such an ambiguous and un-cathartic spectatorship, structured into Green Book, reflects a crucial aspect of post-racial Hollywood.