The Cairo International Film Festival (CIFF) has announced the opening film of its 40th edition will be the Middle East premiere of Green Book starring award-winning actors Viggo Mortensen and Mahershala Ali directed and co- written by Peter Farrelly.
The crowd-pleasing heart-warming comedy drama will raise the curtain on the landmark edition at the Cairo Opera House on Tuesday 20th November.
The festival will held from the 20-29 November.
Green Book is based on a true story and is set in the United States of America in the 60’s of the 20th century, a time when segregation and discrimination were the norm.
The film follows Tony Lip (Mortensen), a bouncer from an Italian-American neighborhood in the Bronx, is hired to drive Don Shirley (Ali), a world-class Black pianist, on a concert tour from Manhattan to the Deep South. They must rely on The Green Book, a guide book to the few establishments that were then safe and accessible for African-Americans.
CIFF’s Artistic Director, Youssef Cherif Rizkallah, said “Peter Farrelly is a genius who has found worldwide fame for his extraordinary comedies in collaboration with his brother Bobby Farrelly and I am thrilled to be opening our landmark edition with such an exceptional film. “
CIFF’s President Mohamed Hefzy added “I am delighted to be opening the Festival with one of the most critically acclaimed films of the year. The film is beyond brilliant and we look forward to presenting it to audiences in Cairo”.
