Review of Gran Torino (2008) by John B — 27 Jun 2013

Clint Eastwood snarls and growls in Gran Torino like he hasn't snarled or growled in the movies for years. And he hasn't. And let me tell you, that twitch of the upper lip, grinding of the teeth, and animal like noise that proceeds was a much welcomed(and much needed) addition to the good, but flawed Gran Torino.

Clint Eastwood(at 78) plays Walt Kowalski, a World War II vet who finds pleasure in sitting on his porch all day, drinking beer, and calling out all the neighborhood gooks for what they are; gooks. Welcome to the mind of Walt Kowalski. He's pretty much an older version of the Dirty Harry we all remember fondly. Anyway, one day a Korean teen from next door attempts to steal Kowalski's prize possession(his gran torino) as a initiation into his cousin's gang. Kowalski catches the boy and pulls out his old World War II rifle and utters one of the great movie phrases, "Get off my lawn.".

Eventually, the boy's family make him perform random chores for Walt to make up for what he did(much to Walt's dislike). However, over time, Walt begins to sympathize with the oddball kid and the oddball kid begins to look towards Walt as a father figure. Walt begins to become more involved with the family next door and, likewise, becomes more aware of the gang problem influencing and corrupting the young boy and his family.

Before too long, Walt is pointing his finger like a gun at those he deems "pussies" and he's putting the boy to work and teaching him the old conservative work your ass off way(nothing wrong with that).

The movie pretty much becomes a standoff between Walt and the neighborhood gang. One thing needs to be said. Even at 78, Clint Eastwood kicks more ass than any other star today. You actually believe he can kick any gang's asses and eats nails for breakfast(the fromer is probably true).

One of the only true flaws of this film is the performance by Bee Vang as the boy Walt takes under his wing. He's a terrible actor and is incredibly distracting. We begin feeling more for Walt and virtually nothing for the boy(not a bad thing, but the film would have been better if another actor had taken the role). The same cannot be said of Ahney Her. She pulls off a truly engaging performance as the young girl next door who takes a liking to Walt's racist, hateful charm(no, that was not sarcasim).

Gran Torino is also an incredibly funny film. The things that leave Walt's mouth, you probably couldn't even catch Bill Bob Thornton's Bad Santa saying.

Overall, Gran Torino is an incredibly strong film from Eastwood. It's moving and, if you see it for no other reason, see it just to see Eastwood snarl and growl at the prime young age of 78.