Review: Gran Torino

Inside the first half hour of Clint Eastwood's latest movie, I was convinced that Gran Torino was, perhaps, an unofficial entry in the Dirty Harry series. Could it be that Eastwood was pulling a Rocky Balboa and showing us where Harry Callahan might be some twenty years following The Dead Pool? As it turns out, this isn't really the continuing adventures of the iconic super cop, but Eastwood's intense growl, kick ass attitude, and tough guy persona might have you thinking otherwise.

In Gran Torino, Eastwood plays Walt Kowalski, a grizzled, bitter old man who must endure the recent passing of his loving wife. When an Asian family moves in next door, this crotchety old timer is unable to keep a lid on his somewhat racist attitude. You see, Walt served in Korea and his acceptance is rather limited when it comes to the Asian persuasion. In fact, Walt doesn't have much tolerance for any of the folks who live in his neighborhood. What Walt really loves, is to place his vintage Gran Torino at the foot of the driveway and watch onlookers admire his cherry ride as he sits on his porch drinking beer.

One night, Walt does the unthinkable. He breaks up an altercation between a group of street thugs and his new neighbors. Actually, he only really gets involved because the altercation ends up passing over on to his property. This prompts a disgruntled Walt to utter one of the most hilarious lines of the year. Shortly thereafter, Walt forms a most unlikely bond with the family, and soon, this seemingly cold hearted man finds himself engaging in an even more surprising friendship.

Gran Torino certainly offers a mixed bag of shifting tones. Eastwood the director seems to be going for humor early on, and much of it is successful because Eastwood the actor appears to be having such a good time. He winces and snarls suggesting that perhaps this really is what Harry Callahan might have been like in his later years. As for his blatant racial slurs? Well, he's more Archie Bunker than anything else. There's a kind of softness at this misunderstood guy's center and it's clear that his hard exterior is just a front. No matter what awful things are coming out of Walt's mouth, it's near impossible to have contempt for this guy. That's simply a testament to Eastwood's iconic status as a performer. I don't know that any other actor could have pulled this stuff off.

Where Gran Torino really falters is in it's tired thug life sub plot. It's all incredibly generic and I really didn't buy any of it. The gangsters in Gran Torino are laughable stereotypes and we've seen far more effective versions of them in much better movies.

Furthermore, save for Eastwood, Gran Torino isn't particularly well acted. There are a couple of noteworthy supporting turns – John Carroll Lynch is amusing as Walt's tough talking barber – but the majority of the cast members – including newcomers Bee Vang and Ahney Her – are unable to bring any sort of emotional depth to the table. Christopher Carley's performance as a priest is positively wooden, and Doua Moua's turn as street thug Spider is dull, one note, and completely un-convincing as a menace to society.

Gran Torino marks Eastwood's second effort as a director in the last four months, and oddly enough, whereas The Changeling suffered from a relatively unaffecting turn from it's lead player, this movie's saving grace is it's lead player. It is Eastwood's weathered presence, charisma, and star appeal that really give Gran Torino a much needed kick. As an actor, Eastwood still has it. As a director, he's gotta get it back. This is a far cry from the masterworks he's truly capable of (i.e. Unforgiven, Mystic River, Letters From Iwo Jima, Million Dollar Baby, etc.), but then a lot of the misgivings I have with this heavy handed movie fall into the lap of screenwriter Nick Schenk. Whatever the case may be, Eastwood's Walt is a funny old fart, and Gran Torino is worth watching to see this iconic veteran do his thing.