Get Off My Lawn

I am very cautious when it comes to award winning and critically acclaimed movies. I am still bitter at checking out Crash after it garnered an Academy Award for best movie only for it to be the worst thing I have ever seen on film (naturally it ended winning the top honors that year). So I wasn’t quick to check out one of the most critically acclaimed movies of last year, Gran Torino. If fact the only reason why I did was because I had a free rental for Redbox, but there was some slim pickings, it was either that or An American Carol.

What the pretentious critics failed to mention in their reviews was how Gran Torino basically was the feel good racist movie, possibly not of just last years, but for all of the 00’s. Basically the movie was a hundred minutes of Clint Eastwood (Space Cowboys) spouting every racial slur you could think of, and even some I have never even heard before. I am not sure it was the intent of the movie to be so funny, but I laughed throughout.

Certainly the critics didn’t enjoy the movie for its possible humor but how the movie depicted urban plight and the artsy ending. As for the urban plight, the movie centers around Eastwood after the death of his wife stuck in Detroit with just his dog to keep him company after the middle class moved out of the city, including his sons who currently reside in McMansions with their disrespectful offspring, with minorities replacing them.

It is the Hmong neighbors that take a liking to him after standing up to local gang members that are harassing them. It is the daughter of the family (Ahneh Her in her first ever role and steals every scene she is in) that despite getting called ever name Eastwood can think of invites him over for a family cookout. Luckily for the viewers, he is out of beer and is promised that dog isn’t on the menu so he decides to take her up on the offer.

For anyone who gets upsets at getting called named, pay close attention to the scene where Eastwood takes the Hmong boy to his barber (played by Drew Carey’s cross-dressing brother). For those that don’t just sit back and enjoy the feel good racist movie of the decade.

Gran Torino gets a on my Terror Alert Scale.