I saw Gran Torino opening weekend and after hearing rave reviews, I was looking forward to it. After seeing it, I realized what people were excited about, it was Clint's performance, this is a man you do not want to mess with. He's the perfect good guy with a bad guy's lust for vengeance. I love his growls, he sounds like a great guard dog, I would love to just have him by my door if a salesman comes by to make that noise. I can't believe what a triple threat Clint is: he's a writer, director, and an actor, not to mention that he's great at all three of them. He presents Gran Torino with grace and style of an old man that society has forgotten about because of his bad mood not realizing that deep down, he's truly a good man.

Walt Kowalski, a retired Polish American Ford automobile assembly line worker and a Korean War veteran, lives with his dog Daisy in a changing neighborhood which is dominated by immigrants. At the start of the movie, Walt is attending his wife's funeral, bristling at the shallow eulogy of young Father Janovich. Similarly, he has little patience with his two sons, Mitch and Steve, and their families, who show little regard for Walt's grief or the memory of their dead mother. Walt's sons see him as "always disappointed" with them and their families, unaware of their obnoxiousness. Walt's teenage Hmong neighbors, a shy Thao Vang Lor and his feisty sister Sue, live with their widowed mother and grandmother. The Hmong gang, at that point, tries to persuade Thao to join them. Thao's initiation is to steal Walt's prized car, a 1972 Gran Torino Sport. Walt interrupts the robbery, pointing a rifle in Thao's face and forcing him to flee. After a few days, Spider and his gang return. With Sue at his side, Thao manages to verbally confront them to no avail. The gang drags Thao off his porch in an attempt to assault him. His family tries desperately to fend off Spider and his cohorts. The conflict ends when Walt, who fought in the United States Army's 1st Cavalry Division, threatens the gang members with his M1 Garand rifle and orders them to get off his lawn. They leave the neighborhood, telling Walt to watch his back.

After seeing Sue being harassed by three black teenagers, while her "date" cannot help her, Walt steps in to rescue her, confronting the teenagers and threatening them with a pistol. Sue gets to know Walt, and invites him to a family barbecue on his birthday, bringing him closer to her family, explaining Hmong culture and that during the Vietnam War they fought on "his" side. Sue, Thao, and their mother visit Walt the next day, with Thao's family forcing him to work for Walt for a week to atone for his attempted theft of the Gran Torino. Walt has Thao clean up the neighborhood until his debt is paid and shows Thao the ways of American men. Meanwhile, the Hmong gang keeps pressuring Thao to join them. But when he refuses, the Hmong gang goes too far in getting their revenge leading to Walt wanting more than punishment, he wants justice.

I highly recommend Gran Torino if you get the chance to see it, it has terrific performances and a touching story. I'm really surprised that Clint didn't get more recognition for his strength in Walt, he became that character and I loved how he protected the family that he once hated. It was wonderful to see all these characters develop and grow together, they had great chemistry and made this movie into a great one. I think down the line, Gran Torino is going to be considered a classic, this is a terrific movie and deserves it's praise.

9/10

Clint Eastwood is simply great both in front of and behind the camera.

Eastwood is as great as Walt Kowalski, a man who, behind his rough exterior, deeply feels the world around him. Through humor and deep emotions, this film shows us that people are complicated and life is unpredictable.

Such films are rare, and nowadays they are almost non-existent. The development of the main character and the depiction of his emotions and internal conflict are interesting, which is exactly the basis of the film. There is also a bit of humor in the film, located exactly where it should be and thus creates that necessary balance against the cruel reality.

The script is brilliant, and Clint Eastwood turned it into a great film, managing to evoke tension and feelings, as well as the inner struggle of the characters. The film is superbly directed and easily guides the viewer through the story. The cinematography is excellent, as is the photography. The soundtrack fits perfectly into the atmosphere of the film.

This is an old-fashioned drama with interesting characters that are not one-dimensional but complicated and layered. Unfortunately, the actor who plays the character of Thao is simply not a good actor, but the rest of the cast played their parts excellently. I was particularly impressed by Ahney Her in the role of Sue, and Clint Eastwood is equally excellent in the role of Walt Kowalski. Also, Christopher Carley excellently portrayed the character of Father Janovich, a young and somewhat naive priest, whose character is also interesting and develops throughout the film.

A great, powerful and inspiring film.

The movie begins with Clint Eastwood's wife dying. You can immediately see that he's a nasty old man who has little, if any, connection with his kids and grandkids (some of which ARE pretty unlikable). He also lives in a community that is now filled with Asians and Chicanos (and gangs) and he hates them—and they don't particularly like him either. At this point, it's hard to like the crusty old guy. He's nasty to the well-meaning priest that's trying to help him cope with the wife's death and he just wants everyone to leave him alone.

Later, despite Eastwood's character wanting his privacy, he is forced to get involved—though it's NOT for altruistic reasons. An Asian gang is trying to force a neighbor kid to join them…by kidnapping him. Unfortunately for Eastwood, the gang is loud and come on his property and he responds by holding them at gunpoint---telling them to leave or die! Unexpectedly, the next day, his Asian neighbors begins bringing him food, flowers and other gifts. Why? Because they, too, have been terrorized by the gangs and they wanted to thank him. In addition, the teen he saved from kidnapping thanks him.…and admits that he'd tried to steal Eastwood's prize old car (a Gran Torino in mint condition) the prior night. Eastwood graciously responds that if he ever sees the kid again on his property, he'll "blow his head off"! This Eastwood character talks a lot like Archie Bunker combined with Dirty Harry---and he just wants to be left alone!! Where the film goes next is somewhat predictable, but how it all ends is simply amazing--and practically impossible to predict. I'd say more, but I really don't want to spoil the film.

The film excels with its witty and very gritty dialog. However, be forewarned that the film has very, very rough language. Not only is there a lot of cursing, but the film has tons of racial epithets--so many that the strongly politically correct out there might just have a stroke if they watch it! While it is vulgar and gross, it was fitting for the story--as gang life is not pretty and sanitizing it too much would have severely impacted the film's realism.

Overall, a great film with expert direction, story and acting. It's clearly one of the best films I've seen of the last decade.