Gran Torino

Starring: Clint Eastwood, Christopher Carley, Bee Vang, Ahney Her, Brian Haley, John Carroll Lynch
Directed by: Clint Eastwood
Rating: R
Genre: Drama
2008

Times Seen:
Tim: 1

Summary: Walt Kowalski (Clint Eastwood) is an old Korean War vet who struggles after the death of his wife. He can't connect to his selfish family, he dismisses a kindly priest (Christopher Carley) determined to help him, and he is unable to get past his racist ways, especially when confronting two neighbors (Bee Vang, Ahney Her) who represent the same people he spent time killing in Korea. However, a series of events change his life in ways he never imagined, as he begins to rethink some of his long-held beliefs.

Review:

Tim: In many ways, this is a movie that received and deserved a great deal of love and praise from critics and audiences alike. At an age when most have long since retired, Clint Eastwood continues to deliver emotionally powerful, memorable movies the likes of which simply aren't often made today. Here, he directs and stars in such a movie. I absolutely loved parts of this movie, but there are a few unlikely flaws which prevent it from achieving the greatness it sought and so easily could have achieved. Still, this is a very good movie from one of our greatest talents.

What I loved about this movie is chiefly, Clint Eastwood. Behind the camera, he gives us an intelligent, entertaining, thought-provoking, powerful story. Our protagonist is a crusty old racist, at odds and war with everything and everyone around him. And yet, Eastwood in front of the camera makes him one of the most likeable, funny, endearing characters you will ever see on screen. His racism may be ugly, but it comes across in a funny, shake-your-head kind of way- and yet, it is never easily dismissable, either. We do have to confront his racism (as he does, in quiet, small ways) and our own ugly assumptions that we all sometimes make. Eastwood gives one of the great performances- he evokes so many emotions, all with such brilliant acting that you can only nod and smile, acknowledging that you are watching one of the all time greats. I've always appreciated Eastwood and his contribution to motion pictures, but I gained a newfound respect for him after this film.

This movie is really about those major aspects of life- redemption, forgiveness, greater awareness of our dark sides, friendship, love, and sacrifice. And yet, it never comes across as preachy, because these are buried in a powerful, entertaining story. Eastwood is a master director and lets his story unfold slowly- almost too slowly- as it builds, almost imperceptibly towards its eventual conclusion.

While there are so many parts of this movie that I love, I do have a few issues with this film. I believe these few problems wreck havoc for the movie, stopping it from achieving that greatness which it should have attained. The first involves Bee Vang and Ahney Her. I go back and forth on this, because I honestly do not believe they were miscast. They both perfectly embody the characters they were portraying. I believed them in the role, which was so crucial to the success of this film. They both have stunning moments on screen. However, they likewise have some scenes where their acting is incredibly questionable, and occasionally, quite bad. Vang and Her were both very young, first time actors in this movie, and that showed- it showed even more when they shared scenes with Eastwood, one of the most experienced and terrific actors of all time. Compared to him, they just seem ineffective and silly. This greatly hurt the movie, because their poor acting took me completely out of the movie at various points. I am not trying to be overly harsh on either of them, because they have some great moments as well- I believe they could have good Hollywood careers, it's just that they too often didn't work well here.

The second problem I have with this film is with a few moments throughout the movie. I believe the movie took too long to pick up speed- the beginning was far too slow, and I felt a bit bored. This obviously goes away as the movie reaches it stride, but the first twenty minutes could have been a bit more effective. Secondly, while in some aspects, I loved the film's conclusion- it would be impossible to give a more powerful, memorable, touching end; it was a bit difficult to believe. It seems like Eastwood's character jumped to the most shocking, controversal action possible, without considering less severe, but more conventional and possibly effective actions. It was powerful, but a bit unrealistic. This didn't hurt the movie greatly, but it did hold it back a bit.

I almost hate that I didn't think Gran Torino was a great movie- an instant classic. I certainly enjoyed it thoroughly and thought it was an extremely good movie. The film does have a few small flaws though, and these hold it back. I am not trying to take anything away from Eastwood, because he is a legend and continues to churn out remarkably good movies. I just don't think this film quite lives up to some of his best movies. I would recommend this film in a heartbeat, but I wish I loved it more. Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating- 7.5



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