Gran Torino

A curmudgeonly, recently widowed war veteran (Clint Eastwood) finds himself involved with a violent Detroit gang after befriending a neighbouring family.

Korean War veteran Walt (Clint Eastwood) is made to confront his prejudices when his neighbour, shy teenager Thao (Bee Vang), is pressured by a local gang into trying to steal the prized Gran Torino car that sits in Walt's garage. After Walt stands up to the gang, Thao, at the insistence of his mother and sister, sets out to work for Walt as a way of making amends. At Walt's suggestion, Thao endeavours to make improvements in the neighbourhood, whilst Walt learns more both about himself and the neighbours he used to resent.

While the spirit of some of Eastwood’s iconic anti-hero roles can be detected throughout the film, its message of never being too old to learn new ways also resonates. With a cast made up largely of Hmong Americans, and Eastwood impressing as a 78-year-old action hero, Gran Torino has moral substance lurking beneath its gun-toting veneer.