Gran Torino

Today we watched the movie Gran Torino in class. It was a very good movie that really moved me. The movie is directed by Clint Eastwood, who also played the lead. I think he did a spectacular job in playing the grumpy old Walter Kowalski. The themes in the movie were ethnic relations, immigration, economic changes in America, life in urban America, individual violence and conflict resolution. I think the movie managed to give all these themes the right attention.

The movie is about an old man living in a neighborhood where many immigrants have moved recently. His wife had just died when a Hmong family moved in next door. In the beginning he just think they are annoying swamp rats, but after the son in the family Thao tries to steel his car he eventually gets to know the family. He tries to help Thao out in dealing with the neighborhood gangs, and in return Thao and his family kind of bring him out of his depression. He was fighting in the Korean War and was still carrying a lot of pain with him. In helping Thao and his family, he finds a little peace and happiness again.

What challenges do immigrants face in starting new lives for themselves? This is discussion question we were asked to write something about. I think that the first challenge immigrants’ face in a new country is the cultural difference. Each culture has different traditions and customs, and it can be difficult to assimilate to another culture. It is also important not to lose your own culture in the process. Immigrants can also have a problem with people not accepting them. They don’t understand their culture and develop prejudices against them. This often results in racism. The language can also be difficult for an immigrant new to a country. If you don’t know the language everything else becomes much more difficult. Because of that it is very important that immigrants learn the language as fast as possible.

The movie Gran Torino gives a lot of attention to cultural differences. When Walt joins the Hmong family for a barbecue he learns about some of them. For example you can’t pat a Hmong person on the head because they think that is where the soul resides. Hmong people also find it rude when you look them directly in the eyes and they care a lot about their family’s honor. Walt thinks this is crazy in the beginning of the movie, but he learns to respect it. Also when Walt chases the gang away from the Hmong family’s house, people start showing up at his door with food, flowers and gifts. This is to show their gratitude for that he protects the neighborhood.

All in all I really liked the movie and the message it was sending. It was very enlightening and I learned a lot about the Hmong culture and the difficulties immigrants face in a new country.