This Week in the Mercury
Monday, January 12, 2009
Film / Music So Here's a Question: WHEN DID CLINT EASTWOOD GO BATSHIT INSANE?
Posted by Erik Henriksen on Mon, Jan 12, 2009 at 10:00 AM
I finished watching Gran Torino (which Steve reviewed here) like 12 hours ago, and still, the only phrase that comes into my mind whenever I think of it is, "What the shit was that?" As far as I can tell, Gran Torino is a lighthearted, Odd Couple-style comedy wherein a racist, PBR-lovin' old man becomes bosom buddies with a Hmong teenager, a setup which somehow gives Ol' Racist Drunky an excuse to grumble cracks about "zipperheads" and "gooks," but somehow, he still seems gruffly lovable anyway. The weirdly hilarious and cartoony first two-thirds of the film plays like a surreal sitcom—every few minutes, Eastwood curls his lip up and growls, then says something about how he doesn't trust his neighbors not to barbecue his dog—but then the end of the film gets all violent and super-serious and heavy-handed (like the sort of heavy-handed that makes Million Dollar Baby look subtle), and then, over the end credits, Clint Eastwood sings you a lullaby:
Look, I don't even know where this post is going, to be honest. All I know is that ever since I heard that song in the theater last night, nothing seems to make sense. It's like every assumption I had about the world is utterly, completely wrong—like everything is just falling apart. (And it doesn't help that I feel like if I could ask Clint for help, he'd probably just growl that I was part of the "pussy generation.") I just... I don't know what to do anymore. Gentle now, the tender breeze blows, whispers through my Gran Torino....
Showing 1-3 of 3
I concur with Erik's perspective, although I do want an alarm clock, now, with Clint's rendition of Gran Torino playing on it, because that shit will get me out of bed and running quicker than ANY talk radio I've ever heard. Sublimely disturbing.
On the one hand, does the world need yet another movie about a white person helping other-skinned people? How much self-adulation can we endure without it becoming embarrassingly clear we are working off a sense of guilt. Guilt which is often misplaced, anyway. After all, none of us were alive during slavery. My white ancestors arrived here well after slavery was over.
Most of us white folks whose families were here during slavery not only didn't own a plantation or slaves, but had to compete against essentially free labor for work, meaning that they were oppressed by the slave owners, too.
At the same time, it's amusing to hear supposed liberals seemingly bothered by freedom of speech and expression.
The U.S. is a big tent. When it stops being so, we will be diminished as a nation. Don't be hypocritical. The fact that we tolerate so much "diversity" is a positive distinguishing feature of our society. Let's keep it that way.
Is this movie based on "The Two of Us" (1967)? http://www.criterion.com/films/757
Need Scooter Service?
We sell and repair scooters, and have a full service department specializing in Chinese brand scooters; we work on all brands of scooters, however.
Band of the Week
Bombs Into You
About Portland Mercury
RSSGoing to Seattle?
Comments (3) RSS