His housing area has become populated with poor, immigrant families and gang violence has become. The big short 6 jared vennetts pitch to front point partners jenga blocks scene duration. Angry at how the gang beat and raped sue ahney her, thao wants revenge, but walt tells him to remain calm while they figure out a plan of action. Gran torino, directed by and starring clint eastwood, is a dramatic film touching the subjects of racism, gangs, friendship, and death. Oscars best picture winners best picture winners golden globes emmys san diego comiccon new york comiccon sundance film festival toronto intl film festival awards central festival central all events. Louisa schein, author of hmong actors making history part 2. Eastwood the director, eastwood the actor, eastwood the invincible, eastwood the old man. I discussed examples of popular culture in the film and alternative methods of resolving cultural conflicts besides the ending presented in the film. Sue, gran torino deftly addresses the issues of racism, life and death, the meaning of family, and redemption in a riveting manner. The ending of no country for old men finally makes sense. Of course, the reality that there really is no helping some people, no matter how generous one is with them, is too frustrating for the movies to acknowledge, because it does not make for happy endings.
But gran torino includes a few too many dramatic coincidences to be truly satisfying, and the films dramatic tone and tenor means that those who come to it looking for a straightforward action drama may be bored by the talky parts and those who come to it looking for a highminded drama may be put off by the gritty violence and blunt language. But his is a reluctant faith, if its really there at all. Gran torino is a recent melodrama directed and starring clint eastwood about a man befriending a hmong family and saving them from the gang life ahead of the teenage hmong boy. Angry at how the gang beat and raped sue ahney her, thao wants. In the film the centre piece is walts gran torino, which symbolizes his greatness and masculinity. No wonder gran torino became eastwoods biggest grossing movie ever.
The storytelling style is old fashioned in what it does and unsubtle in the way it goes about doing it, and eastwood doesnt plumb any new depths in his stereotyped portrayal of the films central character. Disgruntled korean war veteran walt kowalski sets out to reform his neighbor, thao lor, a hmong teenager who tried to steal kowalskis prized possession. A group of hmong gang members rape and assaults thaos sister, then shoots up his home in retaliation of walters attack on one of the gang members. Eastwood does this through narrative, genre and miseenscene. Gran torino is a cultural landmark in the grand and glorious career of an american master clint eastwood. An essay exploring how the beginning and end showed a change in a character for gran torino by clint eastwood. With clint eastwood, bee vang, christopher carley, ahney her. Walt kowalski clint eastwood is a widower who holds onto his prejudices despite the changes in his michigan neighborhood and the world around him. We shot men, stabbed them with bayonets, chopped up 17 year olds with shovels.
The movie centers around walt, a korean war veteran whose wife has recently passed away leaving him unhappy, angry, and disappointed in the behaviors of his family and country. Disgruntled korean war veteran walt kowalski clint eastwood sets out to reform his neighbor, thao lor bee vang, a hmong teenager who tried to steal kowalskis prized possession. Everything you need to know about gran torino movie 2008. Humans screwed up essay to thao, the boy walt lends a helping hand to, the car is the one reason why thao and walts life changes because trough thao failing to steal the car, thao gets to. Would someone please explain the ending to gran torino. It appears that hes going to slaughter them all which would be awesome. In the end we find gran torino to be a relatively one dimensional film, anchored by a really great performance from its directorstar. Gran torinos first scene takes place in a church, and walt is a catholic. Gran torino might not be quite the typically sublime clint eastwood directed and acted screenplay most have come to expect, but this only seems to serve the goal of putting humanity unflinchingly on display, flaws and all. This was eastwoods first starring role since 2004s million dollar baby.
The story focuses on walt kowalski, an angry, widowed war veteran, and people from the hmong community. Gran torino is an amazingly overthetop antiracism parable but, despite its obvious shortcomings, it is nevertheless effective and affecting. For the first time in a long time we are treated to a clint. That, we claim, explains why eastwood recently said that gran torino was probably the last film in which he would participate as an actor. Gran torino original theme song from the motion picture film version clint eastwood, jamie cullum. What did you all think of gran torino, with your first time watching it.
Memorable quotes and exchanges from movies, tv series and more. A new tax incentive package offered to film productions by the state of michigan clinched the deal, and gran torino became the first film to benefit. But i just cant get over how he doesnt kill them all. Roger ebert was the film critic of the chicago suntimes from 1967 until his. The faq items below may give away important plot points. Gran torino is a 2008 film that clint eastwood produced and starred in.
And the lack of a happy ending is somethat that, alas, a movie like gran torino cannot countenance. At the funeral, father janovich repeats what walt said to him about being a 27 year old virgin, and that walt always called it as he saw it. Eastwood here achieves the same trick he managed with the superlative million dollar baby which is to say, an ending that is an uplifting tragedy. Honestly, gran torino feels like eastwoods most sam fullery film ever, chiefly in its fetishistic treatment of the korean war and its ethnographic obsession with an obscure ethnic group. Sure, its watereddown fuller, but thats a lot better than no fuller at all, which is what we get in essentially every other movie that exists these days. A phenomenal film, i do not see how anyone else could be as talented as clint for this role. Gran torino 2008 soundtrack complete list of songs. Clint eastwoods gran torino plays like some sort of rrated hallmark madefortv movie where the lead character, a horribly racist korean war veteran named walt kowalski, finally learns firsthand that people are people everywhere, no matter what their background, and. This is defiantly the case in gran torino as the opening scene is his late wifes funeral and in the end of the film he is. Eastwood plays walt, a bitter old man with an ominous voice who is mourning the death of his wife. A critical and commercial success, the movie was entirely filmed in metro detroit, united states. Movie summary gran torino essay example for students.
Future korean war fighter and racist walt kowalski is born. Gran torino is a brilliant movie from start to finish, i cant believe i waited so long to watch it, its completely different to what i expected, two thirds of the film had a very light tone at. The meaning behind walts actions at the end of gran torino before going off to confront the gang members, walt tells thao about the korean war. The meaning behind walts actions at the end of gran torino. At the start of the movie, walt is attending his wifes funeral, bristling at the shallow eulogy of. Clint eastwood stars in the drama gran torino, marking his first film role since his oscarwinning million dollar baby.
Gran torino is a 2008 american drama film directed and produced by clint eastwood, who also starred in the film. If not, and youre interested in seeing it soon, then dont. The final shot is of tao driving down the coast while clint eastwood himself sings in the background. If you have already seen this movie, youll know what this ending scene is all about. In spike lees film he uses these stereotypes as a way of not only representing the way certain people think, but also foreshadowing instances of racial problems within our. The film features a large hmong american cast, as well as one of eastwoods younger sons, scott. Programming suggestions this discussion guide is designed to facilitate educational programs after viewing the film gran torino. And to be fair to whomever nominated gran torino, the genre of suchandsuchunusualcharacter retard, alien, hmong teaches a jaded old white cynic. I want you to turn around, go outside, comeback and dont talk about having no job. The film costars christopher carley, bee vang and ahney her. In gran torino this can be seen because is features some aspects from other films of his. In his powerful new film, eastwood says goodbye with a final blast of gunfire and a wry, knowing smile. Listen to and download the music, ost, score, list of songs and trailers. What other figure in the history of the cinema has been an actor for 53 years, a director for 37, won two oscars for direction, two more for best picture, plus the thalberg award, and at 78 can direct himself in his own film and look meaner than hell.
The film is about racism in modern america and how we can combat racism in the face of it. I also leaned a dozen new racial slurs, so it has that going for it as well. It seems as though they somewhat resolve the oppression in gran torino but in do the right thing the ending springs forward a feeling of action that needed to take place. Gran torino original theme song from the motion picture licensed to youtube by.
We described two religious conflicts and two conflicts based in age and race. At the will reading, walt leaves his house to the church and his gran torino to tao. Gran torino stars eastwood as an american icon once again this time as a cantankerous, racist, beerchugging retired detroit autoworker who keeps his shotgun ready to lock and load. Meet the gran torino family, said before the end of production that some of the. Ending spoiler for gran torino 2008, plus mistakes, quotes, trivia and more. The frequent use of shadow lighting is one which is common, as is that most of his films start with a death and end with one too. Gran torino on dvd june 9, 2009 starring clint eastwood, cory hardrict, brian haley, brian howe. Why would they make it so that walt gets killed by the gang. After a few days, spider and his gang return, but with his sister at his side, thao manages to tell them off.
Clint eastwoods gran torino was released in cinemas in 2008. Dirty harry on a pension, were thinking, until we realize that only the autoworker retired. All 9 songs from the gran torino 2008 movie soundtrack, with scene descriptions. As gran torino breaks down the iconic eastwood movie, it recalls the searchers, another timely evocation of collective wrongheadedness and terrible legacies. A quite well received movie, it represents the culmination. When his priest, father janovich, encourages him to go to confession, walt says, i confess i never cared for church much. Walk of life by dire straits is the perfect song to end any movie.
Ultimately, this is an excellent film, with a poignant message often intentionally muddled by its old school grumbling. Meaning of stereotypes in clint eastwoods gran torino. He resides in a neighborhood that was once allwhite, but has since been populated by asian families. Many people say that old people fear change as they have grown so accustomed to their old ways but in clint eastwoods film gran torino we can clearly see that this anyone is capable of change. T he ford gran torino earned its footnote in pop culture history when a ketchupred 75 model with a white racing stripe was featured every week in. Its purpose is to generate discussion based on social issues found. Gran torino is an awardwinning 2008 american drama film, directed and produced by clint eastwood. Walt interrupts the robbery, pointing a rifle in thaos face and forcing him to flee. Gran torino stars eastwood as an american icon once again this time as a. Gran torino is a tale with many facets to it,such as the loss of male identity that was orginally brought about by working in skilled bluecollar employment which eastwoods character didhe was a ford auto worker in the movie and the male characteristics and bonding that this employment developed,and the repercussions regarding the decline and. Gran torino is a 2008 american drama film directed and produced by clint eastwood, who also. As director and leading man, eastwood examines his own iconography to tell a timely tale of crossing cultural boundaries, the enduring legacy of racism and the cost of poverty in our countrys neglected industrial cities.