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Gran Torino (2009) Certificate 15

Gran Torino
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Rated 4.0 stars
Average rating
(81%)
 
Starring: Clint Eastwood | Christopher Carley | Bee Vang | Brian Haley | Geraldine Hughes | Dreama Walker | Brian Howe | John Carroll Lynch | William Hill | Ahney Her
Director: Clint Eastwood
Studio: WARNER HOME VIDEO
Run time: 116 mins
Collections: 100 Most Wanted
Genres: Audio Descriptive | Drama
Languages: English, English Audio Description
Released: June 29, 2009
Also available on: Also Available on: blu_ray

Walt Kowalski, an iron-willed veteran living in a changing world, who is forced by his immigrant neighbors to confront his own long-held prejudices. The people he once called his neighbors have all moved or passed away, replaced by Hmong immigrants, from Southeast Asia, he despises. Resentful of virtually everything and everyone he sees, Walt is just waiting out the rest of his life, until the night his teenage neighbor Thao tries to steal his prized '72 Gran Torino, under pressure from Hmong gang-bangers. But Walt stands in the way of both the heist and the gang, making him the reluctant hero of the neighborhood-especially to Thao's mother and older sister, Sue, who insist that Thao work for Walt as a way to make amends. Though he initially wants nothing to do with these people, Walt eventually gives in and puts the boy to work, setting into motion an unlikely friendship that will change both their lives.

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Rating of 4 stars out of 5
Time Out

When Eastwoods follow-up to Changeling was announced in May, he quickly refuted rumours that he was making,...

Highest rated reviews

201 out of 202 people found the following review helpful:

Rated 5 stars
Clint's last as an actor?

gyl from , 14th February, 2009

This is billed as Clint's last outing in front of the camera and if it is, then it's a great swansong. Admittedly i'm a huge Eastwood fan, so this might not be for everyone but if you liked Dirty Harry, Unforgiven and Heartbreak Ridge then you'll like enjoy this and his character will ring some bells. A brief plot summary: recently widowed, Walt Kowalski (Mr Eastwood) has to adjust to life without his wife who, i'd imagine, kept his vulture kids from the door and his racist views in check. The latter come to the fore when a gang of hmong (oriental immigrants) harass his neighbours but make the mistake of encroaching on his lawn. Without giving much away, the plot (grumpy old man takes lonesome teenage outcast under his wing) treads familiar territory but Eastwoods screen prescence raises the standard a couple of notches. Some of his lines are deliberately hilarious and the banter he strikes up with his young hmong neighbours is a joy. The irony of his initial hatred (of immigrants) due to his surname isn't lost, but isn't shoved down your throat either. To sum up, if you're an Eastwood fan then you'll love this movie. If not, you'll probably still enjoy his performance.

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37 out of 54 people found the following review helpful:

Rated 1 stars
Grandad Torino

mrholmes from , 21st March, 2009

After many good reviews we had high hopes for this film, but ended up leaving after about an hour. Quite simply it was awful. Clint became a caricature of himself, the supporting cast's acting was very poor, the story line predictable, the racist jokes (which many of the audience seemed to enjoy rather too much - 'he said 'gook' again - tee hee') tiresome. The film simply didn't know what it was trying to be, swinging from near slapstick comedy to worthy melodrama. Maybe the last third of the film was better, maybe the ending wasn't as predictable as expected, but somehow I doubt it. And even if it was it would most certainly not have been worth the wait.

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28 out of 29 people found the following review helpful:

*** May contain spoilers ***


Rated 4 stars
Gran Torino

Burtonbach from , 4th March, 2009

Eastwood at almost 79 years old should get the plaudits for just turning up on set these days, however there's no room for sentimentality here, as though it may not be perceived in years to come as his best offering it is pure gold nonetheless. Walt Kowolski (Eastwood) is a recently widowed Korean Veteran and a real hard nose son of a bitch. The neighbourhood he has lived in for years is swamped by a melting pot of nationalities, much to his irritation and the relationship he has with his two sons and their families is almost non existent as his high moral standards and ideals means they never quite match up to his expectations.

During a dust up at his neighbours a young Hmong teenager Thao ( Bee Vang) is 'roughed up' outside his property by a local street gang and Walt takes the law into his own hands and scares them off. Eternally grateful the Hmong community bombard Walt with gifts of food and flowers and an hilarious situation unfolds as the more he pushes them away the more they come back with gifts. However underneath it all there is suspicion on both sides, but slowly and surely through Thao's older sister Sue Lor (Ahney Her) Walt begins to warm to their community, a community that still gives respect to their elders and where family life (something Walt has always found difficult) is of paramount importance. In a crucial episode when Thoa is pressurized into trying to steal Walt's beloved 1972 Ford Gran Turino, despite his anger and outrage, the tide turns and Walt begins to appreciate how difficult it is for kids like Thao to avoid getting sucked into the street gangs.

A real friendship develops between Walt and the family as one by one the barriers come tumbling down, until one night Sue is subjected to a vicious attack, and Walt who is full of rage is forced to make a life changing decision in order to get retribution.There are some geuinely funny moments in this film , but it's also tinged with sadness, and I suppose the cynical among us might just see it as a Geriatric Dirty Harry, but somehow it works , from the verbal tussles Walt has with the young catholic priest Father Janovich (Christopher Carley) to the wise cracking tongue in cheek diatribes he has with his Barber (John Carroll Lynch) it's cinematic dynamite. The younger actors are blown off the screen by Eastwood's seasoned presence, but it really doesn't matter as the main message of this film is how we live side but side on this planet with our fellow human beings. This is not a film for the easily offended political correct brigade, as it pulls no punches with a script that is peppered with racial insults but they are there for a very good reason and speak volumes about our society, in fact I found the whole experience refreshing. It's a gem of a movie .....In a word ........ Dynamite!

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23 out of 24 people found the following review helpful:

Rated 5 stars
you dont mess with the ...eastwood

brian green from scotland, 30th January, 2009

totally superb. it just wouldn,t work with anyone else.the guy can do no wrong.if this is to be his last screen performance then he goes out on a high.go see it now!

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Most recent reviews

Rated 4 stars
Gran Torino

A Customer from London, 3rd November, 2009

Brilliant, down to earth sort of movie. There's a connection with everyday life though the ending is not so.

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Rated 2 stars
Gran Torino

fraufanny from from Hornchurch.Essex., 3rd November, 2009

Not a bad film, watchable but nothing special.

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Rated 5 stars
Wicked

Shytalk from from Selby, 2nd November, 2009

Bloody good film, don't we all wish we could get rid of the scumbags on our streets like this, not the last bit though. Well worth a look at!

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Rated 4 stars
Take 352

russio from , 2nd November, 2009

Where to start? OK, so this is a really interesting reinvention of Clint, this time as a proud, honest (to a fault), slightly racist American. Is the lineage of personae this guy has many things in common with Dirty Harry, although given similar stimulus he comes up with different solutions. Partly this film seems to be about what it is to be American - teased at by Clint's reltionship with his Hmong neighnours. Partly it is about moral decline as represented by the largely disappointing youth in the film. Partly it is about the persona of Clint and about finding a more honest and intelligent narrative than those that have come before. If The Unforgiven was a revisionist Western (or an iunrevisionist one depending on your definitions) then this moves the arguments about life and death one step further. While not in the same class as this predecessor I kept thinking to myself that Clint's constant reinvention of himself marks him out as a very serious film-maker who deserves critical attention at the highest levels. Certainly he is one of the most significant directors working in Hollywood today. The other thing I did was to laugh a lot as his curmudgeonly one-liners made me gasp. I am not sure if this was the standard reaction but it felt fine to me and broke the tension slowly cranked up by Clint throughout the film.

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