brilliantly written and directed movie

Rating: Null/10 (28 July 2010)

Clint Eastwood stars in and directs Gran Torino. The fact that there are no other well known actors/actresses in this film does not take away from this brilliantly written and directed movie. The movie takes place in Highland Park, Michigan in what used to be a predominantly white neighborhood but in recent years has become a predominantly Asian neighborhood. Walt Kowalski was a retired union autoworker and a Korean War veteran who had occasional flashbacks of his war days. He was very patriotic, meticulous in his thoughts, and in most instances harsh with his words. Although Walt was a good financial provider he was emotionally detached from his children,grandchildren, and neighbors. Walt's most recent neighbors are a Hmong family with two children that he becomes bothered by almost instantly . . . . . Sue and Thao. Sue and Thao are constantly being harassed by gang members. Thao is pressured daily to prove himself to the gang (who happen to be family members) by stealing Walt's prized Gran Torino. Walt's emotional complexity worked both ends of the spectrum which is depicted in the following scene clips: The film starts as Walt is returning home from his wife's funeral. It is obvious his relationship with his children and grandchildren are strained, yet he subconsciously realizes the importance of these relationships, especially since his wife has passed. His children are concerned with the changes that have taken place in the neighborhood and try to encourage Walt to move. Walt too is concerned with the crime, violence, and racial ethnicity that has taken over his once "white" neighborhood. He does not make any effort to associate with or understand his neighbors and is in fact disturbed by their lack of care and sense of pride in their homes and yards. In the final scene, Walt reveals an array of emotions as he decides to take care of the gang that has bullied Thao and his family since they moved into the neighborhood. The dialogue in this movie was relevant to Walt's time with racial slurs being exchanged between Walt and his buddies as well as undertones of racial tension between he and his ethnic neighbors. The overall lighting was set appropriately for the scenes, when in dark places like the basement the lighting reflected the darkness of the room yet zoned in on Walt and what he planned to do. The lighing in the final scene captured the suspense of the climax by focusing in on Walt standing alone in the dark, a "one man show" with the dimming lights that followed the poetic justice of the final scene. The irony in this movie is that Walt Kowalski served in the Korean war against Asians and at the end of his life he was fighting for them. By Lori Hubble