Not Eastwoods Best but still good

Rating: 7/10 (4 March 2009)

There have been rumours rife that Clint Eastwood has hung up his acting gloves. The great man himself has hinted that Grand Torino might be the last time we see him in front of the camera and if that is correct it will herald the end of an era. Some have suggested that his performance as Walt Kowalski is his best ever but that is ridiculous thing to say. While this film and his performance is good it can't compare to likes of Bill Muny in The Unforgiven , Harry Callahan in the Dirty Harry series , Philo Beddoe in the Every which way comedies or his best character Blondie in the Good the Bad and The ugly.
A racist Korean War veteran living in a crime-ridden Detroit neighbourhood is forced to confront his own lingering prejudice when a troubled Hmong teen from his neighbourhood attempts to steal his prized Gran Torino. Decades after the Korean War has ended, ageing veteran Walt Kowalski (Clint Eastwood) is still haunted by the horrors he witnessed on the battlefield. The two objects that matter most to Kowalski in life are the classic Gran Torino that represents his happier days working in a Ford assembly plant, and the M-1 rifle that saved his life countless times during combat. When Kowalski's teenage neighbour (Bee Vang) attempts to steal his Gran Torino as part of a gang initiation rite, the old man manages to catch the aspiring thief at the business end of his well-maintained semi-automatic rifle. Later, due to the pride of the Asian group, the boy is forced to return to Kowalski's house and perform an act of penance.
In an effort to set the teen on the right path in life and toughen him up, the reluctant vet sets him up with an old crony who now works in construction. In the process, Kowalski discovers that the only way to lay his many painful memories to rest is to finally face his own blinding prejudice head-on....
I think my expectation were probably too high before watching Grand Torino. I had read so many high praising reviews so i couldn't wait to get my hands on it. while i enjoyed it i found it a little disjointed. There were so many improbables and unanswered questions that came out of this film. Questions like " Why did his neighbours put up with the constant racist name calling and not say anything to him or just walk away? Why did the gangster cousins machine gun the house of their Family and not Walts?
I also thought the racist overtones went a little over the top. I wasn't offended but i got the point in the first half hour what type of man Kowalski so i didn't think it did his character any favours by him continuously insulting people,or perhaps i missed the point?
Don't get me wrong Grand Torino is very entertaining but it has too many flaws to be classed a great movie. Clint Eastwood apart , the acting is pretty average and that's being kind. Bee Vang who plays Thao is very wooden. It felt like he is reading from a prompt card. I feel mean for saying that because i know he is an amateur actor but i have to say it as i see it
Some of the faces that Eastwood Pulls remind me a lot of Harry Callaghan and that scowl made me smile. It also made me feel sad that it's unlikely we will see it again. There is one scene in Particular where he says "Ever notice how you come across somebody once in a while you shouldn't have f****d with? That's me. " He could quite easily have been that young man again.
I obviously didn't enjoy this as much as many others but it's still entertaining in it's own right and i really do hope that it's not the last time we see the great man acting.
7 out of 10