Gran Torino

Last night was pretty quiet. I was reading the novel American Gods by Neil Gaiman. It's a really good book, and I have nearly finished it.

Today has been pretty quiet so far. I went along and posted a letter, and had a haircut for my trip away. After that I went along to the Cineworld cinema to see Gran Torino, directed by Clint Eastwood. The film tells the story of a retired car assembley worker and Korean war veteran, Walter Kowalski (played by Clint Eastwood), who is prejudiced against pretty much all races and more or less hates everyone who is not like him, including his own, spoilt grandchildren. Estranged from his two sons, after the death of his wife the only two things that he cares about are his dog and his classic 1972 Ford Gran Torino car. When Thao (Bee Vang), the teenage son of Kowalski's Hmong neighbours, is pressured by the local gang to attempt to steal the Gran Torino, he is stopped by Kowalski. The following night the gang return to pressure Thao into trying to steal the car again, but he refuses and a fight ensues. However, Kowalski appears and scares the gang away with his gun. This makes him a reluctant hero to his neighbours, depite the fact he only wanted to get the gang off his lawn. However, with the help of Thao's talkative sister, Sue (Ahney Her), he gradually starts to warm towards the family, and when Thao is ordered to do chores for him as a way of making amends for trying to steal the car, Kowalski takes the boy under his wing and teaches him some lessons about life. However, the gang are determined to take revenge on both the family and Kowalski. Tense, moving, exciting and sometimes very funny it was a really good movie about race relations in modern day America. Clint Eastwood manages to evoke memories of his most famous roles, in what, apparently, might be his last screen role. On my way back I got a fish supper for my dinner.