Description:
Eastwood stars as an iron-willed and inflexible Korean War veteran, living in a changing world, who is forced by his immigrant neighbors to confront his own long-held prejudices. Retired auto worker Walt Kowalski fills his days with home repair, beer, and monthly trips to the barber. Though his late wife's final wish was for him to take confession, for Walt--an embittered veteran of the Korean War who keeps his M-1 rifle cleaned and ready--there's nothing to confess. And no one he trusts enough to confess to other than his dog, Daisy. The people he once called his neighbors have all moved or passed away, replaced by the Hmong immigrants he despises. Resentful of virtually everything he sees--the drooping eaves, overgrown lawns and the foreign faces surrounding him; the aimless gangs of Hmong, Latino and African American teenagers who all think the neighborhood belongs to them; the callow strangers his children have grown up to be--Walt is just waiting out the rest of his life. Until the night someone tries to steal his Gran Torino. Still gleaming as it did the day Walt himself helped roll it off the assembly line decades ago, the Gran Torino brings his shy teenaged neighbor Thao (Bee Vang) into his life when Hmong gang-bangers pressure the boy into trying to steal it. But Walt stands in the way of both the heist and the gang, making him the reluctant hero of the neighborhood--especially to Thao's mother and older sister, Sue (Ahney Her), who insist that Thao work for Walt as a way to make amends. Though he initially wants nothing to do with these people, Walt eventually gives in and puts the boy to work fixing up the neighborhood, setting into motion an unlikely friendship that will change both their lives. Through Thao and his family's unrelenting kindness, Walt eventually comes to understand certain truths about the people next door. And about himself. These people--provincial refugees from a cruel past--have more in common with Walt than he has with his own family, and reveal to him parts of his soul that have been walled off since the war...like the Gran Torino preserved in the shadows of his garage.
The Beauty:
The movie starts off seem sad cause this old man (Walt) is at his wife’s funeral, but he is a grumpy old man that seems to want to be by himself. Even though he wants to be alone he seems to find himself helping out his neighbors and the neighborhood from the good-for-nothing teens and gangs.
You should have seen when the man, Walt beats up the big guy in the gang. He beat him up pretty bad and then pointed a gun to his head. After Walt beats up the guy the gang does a drive by on the Thao’s house and they beat the poor girl, Sue up so bad. Wow I felt so bad I think I would have got crazy like the old man did, wow that poor girl. What would you have done?
Out of all the things that happened I would have never expected him to have planned to have the entire neighborhood watch him get shot like a million times because he was reaching for a lighter, of course who really knew that he didn’t have a gun I know I didn’t. (Very surprised) But it was genius because Walt always said that no one was going to be a peace until those kids were gone and then he comes up with this plan and all of those stupid kids shot him. I felt bad that Walt died but at least he died knowing he did a good thing to help Sue, Thao, and kids like them. And seriously those guys are going away for a long ass time. Over all I liked the movie; my feelings sad, angry, and laughing/happy were all expressed in this movie. I give it a high 7.
The Geek:
Sure, the script is an obvious ball with no corners for a surprise to hide in, but it still refuses to give in at a few key moments of pandering. The mentioned confessional scene being one comes to mind. Sure, we know he'll end up there, but there is no huge confession, no suppressed war story to lather it on. I enjoyed the performance so much because it is a delight to see Eastwood play it 'naughty', but I understand that Walt's character is indeed three-dimensional. Sure, he's a live action, R-rated King of the Hill character, but I've encountered several like 'em in the real world. Are those the complex sort? Course not. Dead on, though. The film is stocked with moments of predestination, yet still avoids harping on any overwrought sense of irony. Walt's journey is Walt's journey to death, not to sappy redemption. He doesn't change. He slings the slurs with only marginally less grit by film's end. He may not hate his neighbors next door anymore, but he still despises the departure the world has taken. I thought Gran Torino was a pretty good movie, but not fantastic. It might barely make my top 10 of the year. I have to disagree with your point above that "Gran Torino is a curdled mess, politically -- it carries the ultimate message that you should get to know individuals in an ethnic group before beating the bad ones to a pulp with your bare hands." I give it a solid 8 and would recommend this to any Clint Eastwood fans out there.
