by Allan Fish
(USA 2008 116m)
Get off my lawn!
p Clint Eastwood, Bill Gerber, Robert Lorenz d Clint Eastwood w Nick Schenk story Nick Schenk, Dave Johansson ph Tom Stern ed Joel Cox, Gary Roach m Kyle Eastwood, Michael Stevens art James Murakami
Clint Eastwood (Walt Kowalski), Christopher Carley (Father Janovic), Bee Vang (Thao Vang Lor), Ahney Her (Sue Lor), Brian Haley (Mitch Kowalski), Geraldine Hughes (Karen Kowalski), John Carroll Lynch (Barber Martin),
“It’s a helluva thing, killin’ a man” Clint told us in Unforgiven. Safe to say his message in that respect hasn’t changed much in 16 years. In Gran Torino, his latest offering, Clint returns in front of the camera for the first time since the award-laden but depressingly so Million Dollar Baby. Here’s a man who, 77 when he made the film, still has the charisma, presence and sheer iconic stature to bestride a movie screen like a colossus. To these eyes, his praised efforts of the new millennium, though none of them without merit, none really approach greatness. Gran Torino at least comes within a relativly close proximity.
Walt Kowalski is first glimpsed at the funeral of his much beloved, faithfully devout wife. He’s visibly sickened by the callous attitude of his children and, especially, his stereotypical solar – ie. thinking the world revolves around them – grandchildren. He’s angry about a lot of things, from his experiences over 50 years earlier in the Korean War to his son’s trying to get him into a home so he and his wife can make cash from the old family nest to their all eyeing up Walt’s pride and joy, his 1972 Gran Torino. In addition, if that wasn’t enough to get this old curmudgeon cussing into his beers, he’s surrounded by non WASP immigrant Asians, the youngest brother and sister of whom are trying to break the mould of the gang warfare of their no good cousins.
Let’s not go further into the schematics of the plot; to a degree one can see where this is going. At its heart, this is signposted all the way, film-making by numbers. There’s not one plot twist, if that’s the right word, that surprises you. That this doesn’t really matter as much as perhaps it should is solely down to Eastwood’s mastery of camera control and old-fashioned storytelling. He’s one of the last of the old school, the now ageing pupil of Siegel and Leone. So, amongst the vague thoughts of it being his On Golden Pond – in Walt’s case more like ‘Under Stagnant Swamp’ – in many ways it’s rather the companion piece to his earlier western masterpiece. Like Will Munny, Walt faces up to his past, to his character, and to his enemies. Then, aged barely 60, Eastwood could get away with the march out of the saloon, but Eastwood’s wise enough not to let that happen here. His finale not one of vengeance, but of redemption.
One of the biggest drawbacks to the film is undoubtedly the stereotypical stock nature of the ungrateful family and the rather undigested slice of bread part of the priest. Yet even were this not the case, would one really have remembered anyone but Eastwood. This is surely his valedictory screen appearance, and he is simply wonderful as the cantankerous, grouchy, politically incorrect bigot who comes to find values outside of his narrow blinkered view of the world and slowly but surely finds his anger and his perpetually grumpy face, like a bulldog sucking piss off a cactus, worn away. Hell, he even smiles a bit, and that hasn’t happened for many a long year. He almost, but not quite carries the film single-handedly down that hallowed thoroughfare, but not quite. Yet be grateful for what we have, and sequences involving a three-way session in a barber’s shop and settling a roadside dispute immeditely enter the Eastwood Hall of Fame of iconic screen moments. Forgive the contrivances, taken on its own terms, and especially for those who know and appreciate Unforgiven, it remains essential viewing. Hell, it may even be Clint’s finest ever in front of the camera, and certainly his best non-western behind it.
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Fascinating, Allan. To say the least, you have greatly stoked my own interest in this film. Brilliantly written, this review offers hope for those of us looking forward to Gran Torino.
Enjoy it, Alexander, it’s just great fun.
I completely concur with the four-star rating, and commend Allan on his masterful writing.
Great piece.. hope to check it out soon.. it’s a busy film season with this one, the 4.5 hr Che (!), The Curious Case of Benjamin Button and Valkyrie.
I have seen the trailer for this a few times in Edgewater. I really can’t wait to see it, especially after reading this stellar review. I like “Million Dollar Baby” more than you do, though.
I’ll hopefully see this sometime this week, can’t wait!
Thanks for the kind words, fellas, though it didn’t feel masterful written as late at night as it was.
This is one of the holiday season films I hope to check out, but I won’t chance Manhattan traffic. I’ll wait for it to come over here. Nice review.
I’m surprised this film received a **** rating. Most of the review is spent pointing out it’s “many” flaws. Had I not seen the **** rating, I would have thought it was a ** review at best.
I admired both his World War 2 films, and I thought “Mystic River” was exceptional too, so I do look forward to this film. I’ve read nothing but positive notices.
Joe, I pointed out the flaws that prevent it getting a higher rating than ****, but if you think my review reads as a put down then you need to look again.
Take this one of several examples…
“To these eyes, his praised efforts of the new millennium, though none of them without merit, none really approach greatness. Gran Torino at least comes within a relativly close proximity.”
And where do I quote its “many” flaws, pray?
testing.
“To these eyes, his praised efforts of the new millennium, though none of them without merit, none really approach greatness. ”
Thankfully I don’t have your eyes so I shall have to disagree with this rather dismissive summation.
His run from Mystic River to his latest film all surpass that 1992 western. Madison County is at least on the same level, & as for westerns, well The Outlaw Josey Wales gets far more play in my house than Unforgiven.
It’s not just that Eastwood’s technique has improved in the last 16 years (even though he was making great movies in the 1970’s) but it seems to me that never before have Eastwood’s skills as a filmmaker coalesced with such force as they have in this decade.
That he has had the benefit of a run of superb scripts obviously helps but that’s not in itself the key. After all the history of Hollywood is littered with great scripts that made lousy movies. Ultimately it is Eastwood himself, whose fingerprints are all over his movies & whose subtle, unobtrusive style let Million Dollar Baby transcend what could have been a simple boxing melodrama into a profound examination of how we choose to live life, that is primarily responsible for having created a run of great work unparalleled at his age by any other American director.
Likewise his Iwo Jima diptych focuses not on battle scenes but on the ideologies of two warring countries & what that means for the troops. Suffused with compassion for the soldiers, imbued with the rueful, melancholy air that has become Eastwood’s trademark, they are more thoughtful, ambitious & impressive than anything Eastwood had previously done (although Mystic River comes close).
The thematic similarities between so much of Eastwood’s greatest work – & I include in that description the superlative Changeling & his latest Gran Torino – namely the protection of children & the importance of family (though not in the narrow conservative sense of the term) – would make for a fascinating study.
That Eastwood continues to make such restrained yet powerful films – & not ‘old man films’ either, not like the later works of Ford or Hawks, but films with real bite & contemporary resonance (Changeling & GT being perfect examples) makes one optimistic for the future of this great American director.
Thanks for coming to WitD, Harry, but I’ll just have to disagree with you completely. Say hi to Clint when you meet up at Christmas, and wear the Clint Fan Club T shirt with pride. 🙂
And don’t get me wrong, I love Clint, but let’s also not get carried away and call a spade a spade.
Brave of you to dress yourself up as someone speaking ‘truth to power’ & all of that Allan, but I rather doubt your condescension will prove any more persuasive here than what you said in your review.
Of course if you’d care to try again with an actual argument then I’m all ears …
Harry, this is Sam Juliano here, the co-proprietor of the site.
Harry, just want to let you know that I argued vigorously with Allan (who lives in the UK, and is staying here as we speak here until January 1st so visiting US theatres night after night is thrilling to him) for a long time over LETTERS FROM IWO JIMA , which is an American masterpiece and Eastwood’s greatest film ever. I had it at #2 that year behind THE FOUNTAIN on my year-end ten-best list. Similarly Harry, I thought MYSTIC RIVER was a superb film, and it finished as I recall, at #3 on the year-end list of that year. I am not a big fan of MILLION DOLLAR BABY, but I thought highly of FLAGS (though it’s not in a league methinks with LETTERS) so you may not have Allan with you, but you have me. I share your love, buddy.
Needless to say Harry, I also want to thank you for spending some time here at the site. Much appreciated and most insightful from your end.