Director Clint Eastwood's Gran Torino

Ahney Her, Bee Vang, 2008 Best Films

Jan 12, 2009 Margaret Burke

Gran Torino's pace is impeccable as it slowly unfolds from one story to the next. It's full of moments both funny and charming, but a weighty end makes it unforgettable.

The best way to watch Gran Torino is to have no idea what it's about. Even a few plot or story clues may not spoil it, but the less known, the better. The latest film from Clint Eastwood is one of his best. Eastwood plays Walt Kowalski--a character perfectly meshed from Dirty Harry and Million Dollar Baby--flawlessly (as already lauded by many). His performance is both poignant and even funny, but the impact the film leaves on its audience easily outweighs the film's few shortcomings.

Storytelling at its Finest

The film's strength lies in the way the story unfolds. While it may begin and end in a somewhat similar fashion, all that happens in between makes for compelling cinema. When viewed out of context, the plot sounds contrived and forced. But when watching the film's series of events come to pass, however, everything fits--both from a time-line perspective as well as a logical one. The hardened Walt--who wants nothing more than to be left alone with his dog and beer (Pabst Blue Ribbon, to boot) finds himself in an ethnically changing neighborhood and subsequently, against his will, is drawn into their world.

Change and Transformation

Gran Torino is quite realistic with its views on tough justice, vengeance, morality and the fact that people do not readily change. And there is nothing harder than defying the circumstances that beat you down at every turn. A burdened, tough Korean war vet like Walt is brimming over with racism, rudeness and is severely antisocial. He is not disrespectful, but merely bluntly honest to a fault. He is endearing, however, through in his lack of malice and his (reluctant) ability to adapt to the more charismatic characters around him. It's no surprise that a few warm, fiery souls worm their way past his armor. Everything else in the story, however, is.

Minor Weaknesses

It goes without saying that Eastwood's turn in this role is a tour de force--even if his character is a vaguely recycled amalgamation of others past. The other actors, on the other hand, are often times so painful it nearly takes the audience out of the moment. This mainly refers to the young first-timers Bee Vang and Ahney Her. Though it is admirable that they are cast from the same native background as that which the characters are supposed to be, Hmong, the acting is poor. It could also be argued some of this weakness is betrayed by weak dialogue--stilted writing, to be exact. In the end, it results in more than a few choppy scenes but ultimately does not hurt the film's story.

Praise and Longevity

Clint Eastwood has often been at the receiving end of many an award and much enthusiastic critical gushing. This film seems to be somewhat less praised than some of his (less deserving) recent projects, including Million Dollar Baby. Gran Torino is a far more important film, both socially and cinematically. It casts a light on the rarely-mentioned but never-ending vicious cycle that goes on in less affluent neighborhoods. It acknowledges the difficulty of change for people, especially when it comes to character and circumstance. And while so many of the characters in Gran Torino fail, and it is ultimately a fictional story, there is no doubt that it is all too real.

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Clint Eastwood