Planning to Retire

Gran Torino Shut Out of Oscars

By Emily Brandon

Posted: January 22, 2009

Last year, a movie about a small-town sheriff (Tommy Lee Jones) contemplating retirement, No Country for Old Men, won an Academy Award for Best Picture. This year’s most famous movie about retirement, Gran Torino, in which Clint Eastwood plays a retired Detroit autoworker, didn’t receive a single nomination in any category.

Both movies have a large macho factor, plenty of shooting, and sometimes lament generational differences and changing times. And the two movies are also touchingly sad at places.

Tell us, why did No Country for Old Men win Best Picture, and then Gran Torino doesn’t even get a nod?

If people are able to see past their own phobias of racism they would see the deeper meaning to this movie. In the beginning the priest hounds Walt about coming to confession because he, the priest, promised the wife. the hmongs moving in next door symbolizes the surgence of asian auto industry's moving to American soil. Walt has his own family problems he deals with, a son raised on american muscle car income who now drives foreign land cruisers. Even the spit contest is won by the hmong granny. The

preist recurs to remind Walt of his sins, which Walt tries to reright by being a standup guy to hoodlums in the neighboorhood. There is a line from the construction scene where Walt asks "why does everyone want my gran torino?". In trying to be a role model, father figure, and mentor to the fatherless kids next door, Walt makes the ultimate sacrifice that symbolizes christ. Walt died so that Thao might live. in peace. This movie touches on almost every subject. Peer pressure, gang violence, rape, racism, religion, bigotry, fatherhood, materialism, and the list goes on. It is done so tastefully and discreetly that most of it goes unnoticed. Maybe this movie is to advanced for its time. I think that when Clint Eastwood passes in this life, this movie will show his true genius of appeal to people's minds and thought provoking analogies of today.

T. Phillips of MS @ Oct 23, 2009 17:41:18 PM

Seriously...

Gran Torino was a brilliant film. "Whiskeyjack" you probably didn't even properly understand the movie, it was great. It wasn't poorly directed, every single shot is significant!

The acting wasn't bad at all! Did you even recognize that the director chose people that weren't common or people that have never acted before? They have never acted before and that was because Clint Eastwood thought it would make the movie better by choosing unknown people. You think about it, for people that have never acted before did a pretty good job.

Taz @ Oct 21, 2009 02:39:32 AM

davarino

I like the part when he kicks the guy in the face with his foot.

David Parker of NC @ Oct 05, 2009 00:00:59 AM

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Planning to Retire

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