Clint Eastwoodstars in and directs Gran Torino (Warner Brothers)
By Janeane White
Gran Torino (opening January 16 throughout San Diego) is about a grumpy old Vietnam veteran named Walter (Clint Eastwood) whose wife passed away. He is now alone in his house in a neighborhood that once was good but now has become an Asian ghetto. & He hates the fact that his neighbors are now starting to get involved in gang activities and are messing around with his property. His neighbors have two children. Tau (also known as Toad) is in love with a girl who Walter calls Yum Yum. The other teen is named Sue and she can't keep her mouth shut when it comes to sarcastic remarks. Tau's cousin (a.k.a. Spider) is involved in a gang and rescues his little cousin from the harassment of a Mexican gang. Because of this act they now think that Tau owes them and they want him to join the gang as well. It turns into a fight and this is when Walter gets involved. Tau's cousin forced him to steal Walter's Gran Torino as an initiation into the gang and Walter holds that against him throughout the entire movie.
Gran Torino is definitely inspiring. This old man that is racist and grumpy overcomes his prejudices to help this family in need. I also thought it was funny because the remarks that Walter says to everyone are just hilarious. Not only is he rude to everyone but they let him go on saying these things. No one challenges him. He gets mad and everyone backs off. Not only does he have a cruel tongue but he loves to talk about the old days when he was in the war killing people and how he knows about life and death. Basically he is the typical senile old man.
Gran Torino (rated R for language throughout, and some violence) was really good. I enjoyed it quite a bit. It was funny, it had good messages, and definitely can teach you something. I recommend this movie for all to see. I think just about anyone can get a kick out of this film and I hope you get chance to see it.
& --Janeane White is a senior at Mount Miguel High School. She enjoys movies and spends all her time at the theater. She is also interested in special effects makeup done in the movies. She is an honors student and is currently working towards early graduation. Some of her favorite movies include Queen of the Damned, Hellboy, The Descent, the Underworld series, and the Saw series.
