1. Welcome to SportsJournalists.com, a friendly forum for discussing all things sports and journalism.

    Your voice is missing! You will need to register for a free account to get access to the following site features:
    • Reply to discussions and create your own threads.
    • Access to private conversations with other members.
    • Fewer ads.

    We hope to see you as a part of our community soon!

Gran Torino

Discussion in 'Anything goes' started by Simon_Cowbell, Dec 12, 2008.

  1. three_bags_full

    three_bags_full Well-Known Member

    I thought she and the boy were the worst.
     
  2. KevinmH9

    KevinmH9 Active Member

    From the entire movie or of just the neighbors? I can't remember if any of the other family members talked, and, if they did, I don't think they spoke English.
     
  3. mustangj17

    mustangj17 Active Member

    It was the boys first movie. The girl is a high school student in Lansing. That may be why she was chosen.

    I will agree the part was a bit overacted by Eastwood. Specifically the points when he just mumbled. I also think they went a little too far with Eastwood's family. Here you have affluent parents with kids wearing Roy Williams jerseys and halter tops to their grandmother's funeral. I think there could have been better ways to display the rift between Eastwood and his family.
     
  4. Editude

    Editude Active Member

    Acting was inconsistent, and it wasn't subtle in the slightest, but it was a pretty engaging two hours at the movies.
     
  5. Joe Williams

    Joe Williams Well-Known Member

    Damn, I wanted more scenes with the car. Clint never even drove the damn thing in the movie.

    Come to think of it, Clint's never been much of a car guy, has he? Don't remember lot of big chases in his movies or him behind the wheel in a significant way. In "Dirty Harry," he had to run from pay phone to pay phone. In "Magnum Force," he rode on the hood. In "Sudden Impact," he drove a car -- for about three seconds, right into the storefront.

    And look what happened when he devoted a whole movie to a car ("Pink Cadillac").
     
  6. KevinmH9

    KevinmH9 Active Member

    Going back to the acting discussion, I thought he priest actually did very well with his role. I know he wasn't in too many scenes, but when he was, I liked him.
     
  7. STLIrish

    STLIrish Active Member

    I figured that was the point. It was his most prized possession but he couldn't let himself live enough to take it past the driveway.
    Very good movie. A bit corny at times, but that's OK.
     
  8. Simon_Cowbell

    Simon_Cowbell Active Member

    I liked that movie.

    But it contained variations of most other Clint movies I have seen.

    Comparing it to Shawshank is blasphemy in my book.
     
  9. Simon_Cowbell

    Simon_Cowbell Active Member

    Another strenuous disagreement.
     
  10. three_bags_full

    three_bags_full Well-Known Member

    [​IMG]

    "Your Honor. I strenuously object!"
     
  11. Joe Williams

    Joe Williams Well-Known Member

    Didn't bug me as much as the preacher in "There Will Be Blood."

    Didn't bug Clint as much as that other guy bugged Daniel Day Lewis, either. ;)
     
  12. 93Devil

    93Devil Well-Known Member

    I will disagree.

    When you look at Kowalski protecting the Hmong people in Korea, and now in America he feels the need to protect these same people that he disdained his entire life, I think that is wonderful plot development.

    His American troops left these people 50 years ago, but now he is the one person who is not leaving. He was not ordered to stay (It's not what you are ordered to do. It's what you are not ordered to do) 50 years ago, and the Hmong people were brutalized for it.

    Now 50 years later, he decides to stay and not wonder off into a hospital or into an old age home. But what is interesting is that he slowly starts to change his feelings once he sees that the girl is willing to fight back.

    The message in this movie is very strong, also. Fight and protect what you have, but you also need to respect and learn to accept the traditions and beliefs of others. It also addresses the need for male role models in this country which is rotting this country from the core and causing more long term damage than the housing market or falling stock prices.

    Kowalski saw the good in his neighbors, and he saw the good in them. Together they remedied a common problem.

    Yeah, Shawshank was better, but this move is in my HOF. They both are.
     
Draft saved Draft deleted

Share This Page