“Get off my lawn”, snarls Clint Eastwood’s war veteran, Walt, as he aims his firearm at the faces of a clearly disgruntled local gang. From this one crucial line, the entire basis of the plot can be deciphered: Clint is no longer a man seeking a bounty based fortune, and is also no longer gun slinging in the Old West. He’s an elderly, retired man defending his property, his privacy, his… lawn. But does this make him any less badass in Gran Torino, his real final acting performance after his previous retirement turned out a four year hiatus? Hell no, is the answer. Whether it be his trademark snarl, or the clear ideological nod to his macho back catalogue, Clint is very much at his acting (and directorial) peak, even at the age of 79.
Gran Torino follows Walt Kowalski (Eastwood), an ex-Korean War veteran, as he struggles to part with his racial prejudices in spite of residing in a culturally diverse neighbourhood, and a Hmong family moving in next door. Expository details provide a wholly archaic, right-wing representation of him, with racially fuelled insults aplenty, most of which are too scandalous to repeat in a critical analysis of the movie. But this is Walt: an older-generation American who, like every age group, let their era-orientated naivety interfere with their views of a shifting society. Amongst these new neighbours is adolescent male, Thao, who as a result of demands from a local gang, attempts to steal Walt’s cherished possession: a 1970s Gran Torino. Henceforth, the problem and complication cycle kicks in, as Walt finds himself not only reforming Thao, but defending him and his family. Cue much snarling, sneering, and profanities aplenty.
On the topic of acting, Clint puts in a typically solid display, and one that should have been considered for more awards. Perhaps it was a political decision, as he carries a plethora of chauvinistic jokes, or perhaps the movie launched a little too late into the Awards season. Whatever the case, there is no denying just how credible he is in his portrayal of Walt. Quite frankly, after seeing Eastwood in the movie, it’s difficult to even consider anyone else for the role of an ageing conservative traditionalist. A key scene sees Walt tumble over as he attempts to identify the attempted thief of his Gran Torino, coming as a surprise, as it simply isn’t something we expect the once invincible man to do, connoting a frail and vulnerable image of a man who is clearly tackling his own personal issues with his age and health, approaching eighty. Furthermore, Bee Vang succeeds in his portrayal of the coming-of-age kid, Thao, maturing from an initially passive character throughout the film. The hairdresser sequence is a fine example of his blossoming acting, as his attempts to develop his conversational skills with Walt’s barber provides one of the more comical scenes in the film. Unfortunately though, the same sort of praise cannot be awarded to the whole of the cast. Ahney Her as Thao’s sister, Sue, provides the majority of the film’s scripting blunders, often subject to some atrocious lines, which of course isn’t completely her fault, but her perseverance doesn’t help make the best of a bad situation.
Clint wasn’t too happy with Parcelforce…
On the other hand, the narrative, whilst extremely linear, is adequately constructed, with a series of unpredictable twists at the climax, making way for a surprisingly downbeat resolution. Without revealing any spoilers, it’s easy to see why Clint has chosen to put forward the resolution in such a way, providing interesting connotations and a clear metaphor. However, courtesy of a second-act dip, the narrative feels a little too stretched, and could benefit from a good twenty-minutes cut off.
Moreover, in terms of direction, Eastwood has followed up from 2008’s Changeling with another successful job. The editing between night and day is successfully achieved, for example, with the morning being temporally established by a sudden relocation in a kitchen. The lack of establishing shots to infer the change in time is just one of the minor touches that make Gran Torino a very aesthetically gratifying little film to watch, another being the sun-soaked high-key lighting used, saturating the suburban neighbourhood with a consistent summer ambience.
“So tenderly your story”, sings Clint Eastwood as the film comes to a conclusion. And he’s right: if this does turn out his final movie, he’s certainly written his final on-screen chapter as a tender metaphor for his career.
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A strong performance from Eastwood, together with an important ideological message makes Gran Torino a fine conclusion to Clint’s acting career. Not even some uninspiring supporting performances or a bloated narrative can take away the fact that this is a intricately directed film, and one well worth watching, Eastwood fan or not.
4/5
