| Overall Grade: |
A+ |
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| Story: |
A |
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| Acting: |
A- |
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| Direction: |
A+ |
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| Visuals: |
A |
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"Because you're American"
by Wouldinya (movies profile)
Dec 13, 2008
107
of
142 people found this review helpful
Clint Eastwood proves yet again that he is the best living director west of Martin Scorsese. "Gran Torino," his latest meditation on violence and America, packs an emotional punch more devastating than a hundred thousand bullets combined.
The movie is about violence, of course. It is about America, of course. It is also about friendship and, unlike Eastwood's "Unforgiven," refuses to give in to the temptation, as American films so often do, to come to a climax with a big bad shoot out. The heroism presented here is, dare I say it, intellectual. Beyond myths, beyond the church, beyond the gun. Eastwood gets a bit too cute when he presents his character as a Christ figure in the end. It is one of the film's few weak points. I believe the sacrifice his character makes does not need to hinge on the Catholic culture that lingers around the story like a light breeze just outside the window. The character's sacrifice is real. The gesture itself IS religious. A friend giving up his life for another friend. No institution can top it, not even one 2000 years old.
The only other weak point is a few of the performances are not on par with the others. The kid who played the priest was pretty pathetic. The neighbor, "Thao," looks like this is one of his first acting gigs. The girl who plays his sister, however, is fantastic. When she is victimized by a local gang, no one with a soul doesn't want to see anything less than Clint Eastwood bring Dirty Harry back to life and make 'those punks' pay with gallons of their own blood. I believe her performance contributes to this emotional connection. I hate awards shows, but maybe one of the thousand evenings Hollywood congratulates itself, why not give one to her?
Clint Eastwood has made some jaw-dropping films over the last twenty years. "Bird" is fantastic. "Unforgiven" walks a, excuse the reference, tightrope, between being a great thesis about violence while still engaging in it to satisfy a blood-thirsty audience. "Mystic River" absolutely knocked me out. I was never a fan of "Million Dollar Baby," only because I thought the script was too manipulative. If he got one of those awards for that one, there is no reason Hollywood should overlook "Gran Torino." It is, without question, the best film of the year. |
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