Gran Torino

Well Happy New Year to everyone!! I hope this New Year is a prosperous one for you!! Thanks for tuning in again to the Director's Cut!! 2009 has plenty in store for us and I am excited to see what is on the docket. So I will start out with a good one for you... Gran Torino.

Gran Torino is a 2008 American drama film directed by and starring Clint Eastwood. Eastwood stars as a Korean War veteran who catches a Hmong boy trying to steal his 1972 Gran Torino. The film features a predominantly Hmong cast which shows a great amount of originality.

Walt Kowalski (Eastwood), a Korean War veteran, becomes increasingly unhappy at the influx of Hmong people to his neighborhood. After he catches Thao (Vang), a teenage Hmong neighbor, attempting to steal his 1972 Gran Torino as part of a gang initiation, the boy is forced by his tradition-oriented family to work for Kowalski in penance. Estranged from his children and grandchildren, and having just lost his wife, Kowalski gradually becomes friendly with Thao and his family, learning about Hmong culture.

Gran Torino is about two things, I believe. It's about the belated flowering of a man's better nature. And it's about Americans of different races growing more open to one another in the new century. This doesn't involve some kind of grand transformation. It involves starting to see the "gooks" next door as people you love. And it helps if you live in the kind of neighborhood where they are next door.

Eastwood does an excellent job of showcasing himself. Its almost as though you can see a bit through to his soul. When watching this movie I shed a few tears for laughter and some for saddness. I like the fact that it touches upon the good, bad, and ugly. This movie comes at you from many angles, the serious matters of racism, community/family partnership, and even analyzing the depths that love can take you too.

This is definitely a movie that you will not want to forget. It touches your heart and at the same time makes you think, "what could I do better about my life?"

Grade: B+