"Ever notice how you come across somebody once in a while you shouldn't have fucked with? That's me." A touching, sentimental film, Gran Torino is Clint Eastwood's last film as an actor (unless, of course, he decides to make an unexpected comeback from his director's chair). In the movie, Eastwood plays Walt Kowalski, a bitter, prejudiced old Korean War veteran who lives alone with his dog, his wife just having passed away. When a Hmong family moves in next door, Walt becomes irritated, especially at the attempts of the family's daughter, Sue Lor (Abney Her), to reach out to Walt. After Thao Vang Lor (Bee Vang), Sue's younger brother, attempts to steal Walt's beloved 1972 Gran Torino as part of a gang initiation ritual, Walt reluctantly takes the boy under his wing, teaching him how to be a man (i.e. working, drinking, cursing, etc.) Of course, it then becomes Walt's duty to protect Sue and Thao from danger, particularly from the Hmong street gang run by the family's cousin.
Funny, suspenseful, and very touching, Gran Torino is arguable one of Eastwood's best performances (which is really something, considering Eastwood's reputation as one of the best actors out there). Need proof? Just watch him prepare for his epic showdown with the gang: there can be only one possible interpretation of the sequence, which is enough to bring tears to one's eyes. The ending will leave you openly weeping.
Rating: 4/4
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