GRAN TORINO (2008)

Find me an actor-producer-director who still rock the screen with his smashing performance at the age of 78 & I will left watching the movies forever.
Clint Eastwood never retires. He is Hollywood’s paragon of a tough man with all his groaning, growling, gunning, spitting expressions. He is still ‘Dirty Harry’ in his 80’s. It’s not loads of his attitude only; he is refining actor true to the salt. So the old man is back with bang again. This is his second offering of this year as a director & first as an actor. He is in a role perfectly made for him at this age. Walter Kowalski (Eastwood) is an old retired army man living in his lone home with his proud possession 1972 model Gran Torino car. His sons & grand children are living their own American lives. Old man is unhappy with all of them since they lost discipline & moral conduct of right & wrong as he is the man of honor & atonement with rough justice & man of family. A boy named Thabo(Bee Wang) belong to next door Chinese neighbor family once tried to steal his car under the pressure from his community hoodlums. Once Walter saved Chinese family from this goons & second he saves Thabo’s sister on road. He became an admirable neighbor to Chinese family. Thabo became friend & Walter became a role model for him. But the hoodlums are back & they created turmoil to Thabo’s sweet young sister. Thabo is in rage & he gets what is expected from Walter- the revenge. But the revenge is not easy & it attained with the deliberate self sacrifice of Walter.
Eastwood rocks the screen as star again & watch him in every frame of this film & you believe that all adjectives are just futile to express a legend like this. This one is again an Oscar worthy performance. Locked. With this film he proved once again that why he is an ‘American Icon’.
Look at his range representing a huge dichotomy of two facial expressions- Expression of firing rage when he saved a neighborhood Chinese girl on the road from junkies & the expression of helplessness when he called his son to inform about his diagnosis result. Both are way over the top.
Technically also the movie is first grade with Eastwood’s loyal cinematographer Tom Stern, one of the tailor-made script-screenplay for him by Dave Johannson & Nick Schenk & fine editing work.
Bravo Clint!!! You made me speechless again with your act & direction & I must say one thing only-“Standing strong you belong to your skin throughout your life.”

One of the best & mandatory watch of this year.

Ratings-10/10