Luck of the Draw
As I've said before, Clint Eastwood's Gran Torino has the stuffings of a Best Picture contender because it appears to be a story about change and redemption, which is what most Best Picture nominees are about. But it also seems to have a little built-in momentum because it deals with racism, which has been been a bigger hot-button issue this year than any time since the Civil Rights era of '64 and '65.
Barack Obama's presidential campaign has obviously brought the issue to the fore. Everyone has been talking about it, particularly with those YouTube videos showing the ignorance and ugliness of rural Americans and people wondering about the Bradley Effect at the polls, etc.
And now a month and a half after the election will come a movie, directed by America's most esteemed, long-running filmmaker, that will address this subject (if I know Eastwood) in plain, regular-guy, no-bunk terms. In short, Gran Torino may luck out. Just as The Road may not fit the cultural-political mood at the end of the year, it could be that Eastwood's film will. Maybe. I obviously don't know anything, but I'm feeling a certain current.
Eastwood was quoted about the plot particulars last week. Nick Schenk's screenplay is the story of snarly blue-collar racist, a Korean War bet named Kowalski (Eastwood), gradually working through dark and dismissive feelings about his neighbor, a Hmong teenager who early on tries to steal Kowalski's '72 Gran Torino.
As I wrote earlier, a drama of this sort is "right out of the change-redemption playbook." The only thing that might work against Gran Torino are Academy members scratching their heads about Eastwood's alleged admiration for Sarah Palin.
In Contention's Kris Tapley recently reviewed the Gran Torino script. He's also posted a couple of Eastwood pieces about the film's ensemble cast -- article #1 and article #2.
The script "has some silly stuff in it," he writes, "but according to those two pieces, Eastwood improvised on the set somewhat. That's helpful."
Posted by Jeffrey Wells on October 17, 2008 at 10:52 AM
comment #1
Mark
says ...
Trailer playing with The Changeling?
Posted by Mark
at October 17, 2008 12:20 PM
comment #2
p.Vice
says ...
This makes me wonder if you've ever watched an Eastwood movie before, Jeff. Eastwood deals with everything in Hollywood cliche terms, the exact opposite of plain & no-bunk.
If you're saying Eastwood will contend for some Oscars for squinting a lot and grumbling a few grizzled racial epithets before the halo appears over his head and his stock character learns him and that damn chink aren't so different after all, you're probably on the right track.
Posted by p.Vice
at October 17, 2008 12:32 PM
comment #3
Mjs
says ...
Does anybody actually take p.vice seriously? The guy has never had a positive word to say about anything or anyone on HE.
Posted by Mjs
at October 17, 2008 1:16 PM
comment #4
lazarus
says ...
Well put, p.Vice. If Clint portrays racism as he did the white trash in Million Dollar Baby, this is going to be awful.
And if I have to watch that overrated Oscar whore trot up on stage one more time, or see pictures of his fistfuls of statues I'm going to puke.
Posted by lazarus
at October 17, 2008 1:20 PM
comment #5
lazarus
says ...
Mjs, p.Vice IS negative about everything, but that would still make him/her right like half the time, no?
Posted by lazarus
at October 17, 2008 1:22 PM
comment #6
actionman
says ...
It's best just to ignore p.Vice...he seems to go away for decent periods of time.
And what was wrong with the treatment of Swanks' mom in MDB? She was white trash. So what? That was her character. Sheesh.
Posted by actionman
at October 17, 2008 1:52 PM
comment #7
Rev. Slappy
says ...
I live in LA and I am from a small rural town in Missouri. I grew up with people like Swank's family in MDB. It was a very cartoonish rendering of white trash folk, particularly the scene where they show up at the hospital in Universal Studios garb. . Billy Bob Thornton nailed rural white trash right on the head in Sling Blade.
Posted by Rev. Slappy
at October 17, 2008 2:50 PM
comment #8
lazarus
says ...
actionman, most people who love M$B at least acknowledge the caricatures of Swank's family. You aren't that blind, are you?
Posted by lazarus
at October 17, 2008 3:42 PM
comment #9
Deathtongue_Groupie
says ...
Eastwood is a mixed bag lately. Together, the two Iwo Jima films are commendable. But there have been some real head-scratchers. Especially after UNFORGIVEN. I understand that maybe the Hog's Breath needed a new walk-in, so he had to do SPACE COWBOYS, BLOOD WORK and ABSOLUTE POWER, but did he have direct them?
The other thing is, Eastwood puts some pretty terrible actors in his films in smaller roles. I think he inspires good to great performances out of the pros, but he has no chops as an acting coach to help the less accomplished. Go watch BRIDGES OF MADISON COUNTY and tell me that the guy playing the grown son in present day is not shockingly bad. I had to wonder "Did some kid in film school win a contest - 'Direct An Entire Scene in a Clint Eastwood movie!'"
I think its pretty telling that those of us with Southern roots think MILLION DOLLAR BABY is a pretty mediocre to bad film.
Posted by Deathtongue_Groupie
at October 17, 2008 5:38 PM
comment #10
CitizenKanedforChewingGum
says ...
Why can't actionman disappear for a decent period of time? There has to be an action-figure movie marathon going on somewhere, right? Capped by Bay's prescient masterwork, TRANSFORMERS, coming to Criterion in 2009.
Eastwood's one of the most overrated directors in Hollywood today. What is it, the fact that he's old? Used to play badasses? I guess everyone loves a comeback. I like Unforgiven and Iwo Jima just fine, and some of his earlier Leone-esque work is decent (Outlaw Josey Wales). But almost everything else strikes me as overwrought, cliched garbage.
Nice point on the characterization of portraying rural white trash, Rev. Slappy. Spot-on. At first blush, you would never think "understated" is a word that would describe a movie with such an eccentric lead performance, but all those supporting performances truly do feel lived-in. That film has aged very well.
I understand All the Pretty Horses flopped something awful (unseen by me), but can we ever expect BBT to direct again? I think he has something. Not sure what, exactly, but something.
Posted by CitizenKanedforChewingGum
at October 17, 2008 8:47 PM
comment #11
janee
says ...
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Best regards,Jane, CEO of high availability cluster
Posted by janee
at May 18, 2011 5:56 AM