Gran Torino

Randall_Oelerich

Randall_Oelerich

Veteran
Just watched Gran Torino -- using Amazon VOD (Video On Demand) for the first time (I had a free $5 credit) and with my Roku box; streamed DVD quality, no interruptions, and with only 1.5Mbps bandwidth coming through my router. Impressive VOD from Amazon I have to say, but I won't be renting another until they get their rental price down from $4 to maybe $1 (until then i will enjoy flicks with Netflix). But I digress as usual.

As to the story, I thought it had great examples of character arcs, personal conflict, and showed how great drama can be written to use very simple locations. Good theme, turning points, and even a talisman or two thrown in for good measure. If I had one criticism it was that the scene involving a body in a position mimicking a crucified Christ was a bit over the top; I won't say more than that so as not to spoil the plot for others that have not seen it.

Just curious what others thought of the story. (written by a fellow Minnesotan, btw)
~randall
 
I liked it, but I saw it some time ago, so I'm not sure how much analysis I can provide. I liked the mentor / youth dynamic, especially when paired with Eastwood's cynicism, etc. I also liked the reluctant hero dynamic. Unfortunately, I might be forgetting the structure. SPOILERS BELOW!

Inciting: the neighbors move in.
A1C: kid tries to steal the car
Midpoint: ?
A2C: sister is raped
A3C: Eastwood sacrifices himself

The plot itself wasn't necessarily that fascinating, it was just the interaction between Eastwood and the neighbors that kept my interest. Their arcs and the ever-present gang threat. Not to knock the priest subplot, but the priest's acting didn't really appeal to me and those scenes fell rather flat to my taste.

Still, the bildungsroman is something I'd like to tackle. But in this case, I suppose it's not so much a coming-of-age story (since Eastwood is our protagonist), but more a losing-of-age story.

See what I did there? :2vrolijk_08:

But, I liked it, and it grossed huge bucks for its modest budget.
 
I too thought the priest character was poorly cast, and poorly acted. And the story could have involved the priest getting confronted by gang members, maybe even in his church, a confession, or stealing/vandalism of church property. And I kept waiting for a payoff scene after the encounter between Clint's character and the three black men, but the payoff never came.
 
My impression from the trailer was Dirty Harry: The Golden Years, so I was expecting a lot more ass-kicking. Very disappointed. The priest was painful to watch. So were those two siblings. Sometimes even Eastwood came off as clunky. I expected better from him as a director. You're slippin' Clint.
 
I really enjoyed this film. He reminds me of my dad and several of his friends.

Agree with drunknbear: the acting of the siblings was TERRIBLE.
 
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