Gran Torino (2008)

From Yahoo! Movies:

Walt Kowalski is a widower, grumpy, tough-minded, borderline-hateful, unhappy old man who can't get along with either his kids or his neighbors, a Korean War veteran whose prize possession is a 1973 Gran Torino he keeps in cherry condition. When his neighbor Tao, a young Hmong teenager, tries to steal his Gran Torino, Kowalski sets out to reform the youth. Drawn against his will into the life of Tao's family, Kowalski is soon taking steps to protect them form the gangs that foul their neighborhood.

There's very few actors I'd bother to walk across the street to see nowadays, and Clint Eastwood is one of them. I met him in 1980 at Ronald Reagan's presidential victory party and had him sign my ticket (gonna have to get that framed one of these days).

Gran Torino (2008) is supposedly Clint Eastwood's swan song as an actor. At least, that's what he says. But if a script should come along to spark his acting bug, he'd probably jump back in again. At 78, he manages to carry off with credibility being an "action star" despite his age.

I first saw this movie about a year ago and I was in a mood to watch it again last night. So, I shuffled off to the local CD/DVD store and picked it up (along with the DVD, Jimi Plays Berkeley).

After a year in-beteen viewings, I found myself enjoying Gran Torino all over again. I found it interesting to see the ex-DC Comics publisher Jenette Kahn's name listed as an executive producer during the end credits.

This movie was a bit of a family affair as two of Eastwood's sons were also involved. Eastwood, besides acting in the lead role, also directed.

There's a couple of nice featurettes on the American car culture. The Ford Gran Torino used in the move was a 1972 model. My family once had a 1975 Gran Torino (fire engine red with a black vinyl roof). That was a great car to drive and I was disappointed when my dad traded it in for a new 1980 Mercury Bobcat station wagon.

If you haven't seen Gran Torino, I highly recommend it. My grade: A.

Starring: Clint Eastwood, Christopher Carley, Bee Vang, Ahney Her, Geraldine Hughes, Dreama Walker, Brian Howe, John Carroll Lynch, Scott Reeves

Director: Clint Eastwood

UPDATE (2/27//10): My daughter Amber (age 23) said this about Gran Torino and Clint Eastwood:

I really liked Gran Torino. Clint Eastwood may be ancient, but he's still awesome.