The Director’s Chair – Gran Torino

You know who I am…but you don’t know why I’m here!

I go wherever I want…whenever I want!

And with that out of the way, I’d like to introduce you all to The Director’s Chair!

Let’s talk!

Bubbles – I love this film. My favorite scene is Bill kicking English. Bill’s violence was hinted at prior to this scene but then it explodes. His “I guess you think I’m kicking you” speech perfectly sums up all you need to know about Bill’s character.

Man, this was such a movie of slow burns! I remember when I saw this as a younger guy thanks to my step-dad, I HATED Bill, but I also didn’t care too much for Munny either. As I got older, I related more to the dude who is just kind of over it all, but still has the gall to do what’s right. Damn, Bubs…we’re getting old.

AG Awesome – I’m a pretty big fan of westerns and Clint Eastwood as well. So I was very excited for this but I didn’t really enjoy it all that much. I’m going to watch it again down the road when I’ve had some more life experiences and it may affect me differently.

What would you say is your favorite Western? Do you have one? I’d also be interested in what you think after your next go with it! Let us know!

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And now…can I get a drumroll as I introduce this month’s director….

-insert sick ass drum roll here-

Clinton Eastwood Jr. was born May 31, 1930 in San Francisco, CA, which makes him roughly 158 years old. The first half of his career was known mostly for his role in spaghetti westerns where his stoic face and chiseled western masculine look helped catapult both him and Sergio Loene into superstardom with their trilogy of “Man With No Name” led films. Personally, I was never a western guy, so these films alluded me for quite some time. He transitioned into the famous role of Dirty Harry in 71, and at the same time, made his directorial debut with Play Misty For Me.

Since then, Eastwood has directed forty films, has four Oscars under his belt, and has a filmography that is as boisterous as it is varied, with his most recent film being just under a year ago! How is he doing it? Whose famous baby’s bath water did he drink to live this long? Hell if I know, but let’s watch some movies.

<img src=https://i.ibb.co/LX5TmpTP/The-Director-s-Chair-zip-15.pngSpecs:
Runtime – 1 Hour 56 Minutes
Release Date – December 14, 2008
Filming Locations – Royal Oak, Michigan
Budget – $33 Million
Gross US & Canada – $148,095,302
Aspect Ratio – 2.39:1
Trivia: Walt says a total of 53 insults
Rating: 7 out of 10

I wonder, if within the 13 years between now and this film, there has been a significant shift in the tone of the country, or even me as a lover of film. On one hand, there is a distinct appreciate of the film’s Hmong characters, but for whatever reason, the film comes off as only an attempt to respect the culture, and more of an acceptance of heavy-handed racism so long as it’s done in a masculine way with some repentance before death. While I won’t dig too deep into something that only comes up in small scenes, there were times when I felt Clint was simply going through the motions of a stereotypical character that everyone is simply supposed to accept as the old crony next door. This only became a problem when the film wanted us to feel sympathy for said old man.

The one-note level of artifice doesn’t stop there, as the troublesome youth of the film are also very stereotypical in their verbiage and gang-afflicted attitude, but one cannot take away the hilarity and bad-assery of Clint pulling out his finger to frightened the confused younger gun-toting members of the surrounding community. I recall watching this years ago and thinking that Clint was pretty cool, and those dudes had what was coming to ‘em, happy at the sacrifice of Walt’s demise. This most recent visit must have created an unnecessary amount of bloodlust, because I would have much rather had him making quick work of them ala Unforgiven. In true Clint fashion, however, it was not solely about revenge.

This film is up there in terms of ranking Clint’s work, and with good reason. It’s got a good pacing, a simple yet effective story, and a couple of nice little subplots that fill the gaps between bigger scenes.

The first thing I noticed right away – and most likely because I watched this immediately after Unforgiven – was the opening scene of a funeral, and the main character burying his wife. Similar to Unforgiven, we are closing the door on a chapter we are not allowed to see, and it appears that what little peace the main character had is gone. This is encapsulated by the tight-filmed scene in Walt’s home where he is surrounded by family and “loved ones,” yet seems completely out of place and wants everyone out. Clint plays this well, coming off as ornery and just wanting to sit in silence with his grief.

Tonally, there is a hell of a lot of gray, with nary a bright moment. In what seems to be a Eastwood specialty, he depends on the darkness to give a significant mood shift, but when a bulk of the film is covered in the heavy clouds before rain, there is hardly a shift. On the flip side, the rare moments of vibrant color come off as a bit more serene. The abundance of gifts on Clint’s porch from above gave a nice break between a dark ass kicking and an even darker garage scene.

Throughout the movie, we have a priest that is constantly pestering Walt for a confession at the bequest of Walt’s wife. Although I can’t confirm, I believe in every scene he does this, he is in complete reverend garb, looking holy, clean, pure. Before the climax of the film, Walt invites the priest to his home. The priest walks in, collar unbuttoned, hair falling on either side of his face, and sits to await Walt’s inevitable confession: that he wants to kill the people who hurt his newfound friends. The conversation is short, not really groundbreaking in terms of dialogue, but it was the only one I felt wasn’t trying too hard. Back and forth from one guy to the other, both circling around the inevitable, yet never outright saying it only for Walt to head out without a gun for one last battle.

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So it’s Clint’s time! What movie of his we watchin next?!!?

DUECES!