I just slagged this review from Whit's blog, that you should definitely check out. By the by there's a Major Spoiler in this review so I've only read part of it because I'm not sure when I'll check it out, because I've got The Wrestler, Revolutionary Road and FROST/NIXON on deck, but deeply love and respect Clint:
A Review of Gran Torino:Clint Eastwood stars as Walt Kowalski, a Korea Veteran who has a chip on his shoulder to say the very least. After working hard and raising is children in the suburbs of Michigan, which had become a ghetto, his wife dies and he is left alone. Mostly he sits around drinking PBRs while hating on the asians and mexicans who have moved into his neighborhood. During the film he befriends a Humong Boy from next door, through a series of confrontations with his couzins gang. Eastwood uses a lot of guns and phrases like "get off my lawn". Although one of his symbolic gestures of pointing his fingers like a gun and pretending to shoot is kinda cool but only works to fend off gangsters if your fucking Clint Eastwood. Spoiler Alert: Clint Eastwood finds out he is sick, and then the neighbors ( whom he has become close" with) are beaten, raped and shot at. He knows that they will never be safe until the gang who did this is put down. So in the true fashion of a martyr he goes to the gang house and is killed while reaching for a lighter. Gran Torino is actually a car that Eastwood has in the film, a 72 to be exact. It plays a role of bring Walt and Tao,whom he refers to as Toad, together.My overall review is a 6 out of 10. It was
entertaining, Clint Eastwood was great, not only was he convincing and scary but I felt empathy for him without pity. His gritty hatred of all things asian was off the charts. There were more racial slurs in this movie than I knew existed. Some of that game the film some humor. The Humong characters were not as fine tuned as actors, which I was relieved to read on IMDB that only one had acted before. I guess I had never thought about Asian gangs before, especially in Detroit. The plot presented them well, as far as gangs go. The violence that ensued was enough to be believable without making it look irrational. The cheesy part was watching the relationship evelopment between Tao and Walt. They formed somewhat of a father son bond and Walt was able to move further from his memories of the Korean war and maybe stop hating all asians. This brings Walt from a mean, crotchty old man, to a father looking for someone to share his knowledge with. In the end, he dies for the kid and his sister, which was an appropriate ending for such a film. In the very end he leaves his car to Tao, instead of his spoiled over acting bitch of a grand-daughter.Final Word: If you like Clint Eastwood, or wanna pick up some new insults: See it.
Thanks for letting me jack your shiz Whiz!
