Clint Eastwood At His Best

Rating: 9/10 (22 March 2009)

It may seem strange to say this about a well-known actor such as Clint Eastwood who's had a lot of successful movies in his career, but I don't think I've ever enjoyed an Eastwood movie as much as I enjoyed this one. Eastwood (who also directed) was perfectly cast as Walt Kowalski, an aging Korean War veteran whose wife has just died as the movie opens, whose family wants little to do with him except to get their hands on his house and his prized 1972 Gran Torino, and who is tormented by the fact that his neighbourhood has been taken over by Asians. Kowalski's racist nature was actually comical (in an Archie Bunker sort of way) but the most impressive thing about Eastwood's performance was how well he portrayed Kowalski's gradual change of heart toward his neighbours, beginning with his unexpected friendship with young Sue (a great performance by Ahney Her) and developing into his role as the neighbourhood's protector against the violent Asian gangs that continually invade the area. In that sense, Eastwood began to resemble an elderly Dirty Harry, with "get off my lawn" becoming Kowalski's version of "make my day." As Kowalski growls his way through his various encounters, first with his neighbours and then with the gangs, you are both appalled and amused by the character. You root for him in his battles with the gang, and finally end up applauding his ingenious and selfless way of getting the bums off the street and protecting his Asian neighbours who, as the last scenes of the movie demonstrate, have become far more his family than his real family had ever been. This is funny, action-packed, emotional at times (especially after Sue is attacked) and, in a strange sort of way for a very violent movie, even uplifting at the end. It's truly a superb piece of work by Eastwood.