The Reel Rejects - GRAN TORINO (2008) MOVIE REVIEW!! FIRST TIME WATCHING!!

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Starting point is 00:01:00 Don't worry, though. Sierra also has yoga gear. It might be a good place to find your zen. Discover top brands at unexpectedly low prices. Sierra, let's get moving. This week's videos are sponsored by an app that I've been using since before we even partner with them, and that app is rocket money. More on them after the reaction people. Get your fistful of reactions today. Aaron, you got anything else to tell the people before we jump in? I'm feeling good, feeling bad, feeling ugly. Oh, but you're looking good in that Rejectnation shop.com t-shirt. I'll tell you that much. Thank you, baby.

Starting point is 00:01:34 That's a million-dollar baby right there. Let's do this thing. I'm ready to chair this experience with you, John. The Obama chair. Good. That's a good one. Good. We got it.

Starting point is 00:01:46 We got every reference possible. There are no other references. Let's do this thing. Of many colorful insults, Mr. Clint Eastwood wrote up himself and used in his film. You can hear all of those on Apple or Spotify. That's a good segue. Rape five stars for each one. Oh, goodness.

Starting point is 00:02:17 Well, what did you think, sir? I thought this was a very good movie. Yeah, this is my, as far as I can remember. remember Kyle Eastwood on the music Kyle Eastwood there's another Eastwood I want to say this is my first Clint Eastwood movie and you know what it didn't disappoint it was slower paced it was character driven you know and I like the fact that this movie didn't feel a need to sanitize its characters but perpetrate them in a very authentic light with Clint Eastwood you know he didn't just become automatically not a racist anymore and just like the void of his 50 years of experience and

Starting point is 00:02:57 in traumas and you know war conditioning that kind of formed who he is in this elder age but the fact that he was able to be somebody that found a sense of you know belonging or community amongst these people who he once viewed as as other or or as some form of you know enemy because of his own experiences but was able to find camaraderie in that I think that's like the crux of the story you know and I think that's there's a beauty in that being able to find a sense of peace in the end of your life and being able to find love or you know a sense of of kinship within that and watching him and both uh tau kind of bond was very much like inspiring it was very you know it was it was unique it was it was dirty and like i don't agree with everything that happened but you know that's not the point of it The point is he took this kid that was isolated and alone and he mentored him into maturity. Yeah. And then watching this sister of his who just had such this open heart and a lot of patience for this guy who was just like throwing insults at her like a thousand miles a minute.

Starting point is 00:04:16 And her being the gateway to open his heart up to a life or the experience of the end of his life where he's able. to allow people in. I feel like that's ultimately what it's about. Finding peace at the end of your life in dealing with the fact or coming to terms with the death you've caused

Starting point is 00:04:39 in the face of your own death and recovering or experiencing that leg of life after you've lost someone so close and intimate to you. And yeah, it was I had no expectations

Starting point is 00:04:54 for the movie. Wow, that's cool. I had no expectations for the movie, but I do like how authentic it is in its way that it, yeah, just let this story unfold and just, it's obviously Clintis Woods, the main character of the movie. And, you know, we see everybody there. But, yeah, that's ultimately what I got to say for now until we, like, kind of dive in deeper. But, yeah, what about you, man? Yeah, no, I mean, I remember when this came out and, and, you know, it's, I can't remember where we are in terms of, like, the shift where Clint really starts to direct a bunch of the movies. I feel like there's, you know, a phase where Clint is mostly the actor and then after a certain point, you know, he's acting and stuff that he's directing at least. And, yeah, I was really pulled into this.

Starting point is 00:05:48 And it is an interesting character study in a sense because, you know, you do spend so much time just observing this guy's life and observing, you know, the sort of isolation and loneliness he forces on himself sometimes very overtly due to his like, you know, direct attitude about things. But a lot, you know, having to do with just, yeah, things he doesn't quite know how to confront or address or articulate or even probably fully. feel in a way where you can connect that to other people and it's you know nobody has to put up with racism in their life nobody has to you know extend sympathy that isn't

Starting point is 00:06:30 being extended them however I do think it's interesting to watch a movie like this that has a character who yes certainly holds a lot of prejudice seemingly kind of across the board for everybody which I guess you know when you're

Starting point is 00:06:45 it was an interesting exercise in that thing where like it almost becomes endearing because he is just you know he approaches pretty much everybody this way he hates universally yeah and not that that makes it okay but it does make it interesting in the fact that you can then kind of look at his behavior the things he says but then you can also look at yeah the events of the story and be like okay so this isn't necessarily the most like hateful guy who's just out here you're trying to, you know, wreck people's lives. He mostly just wants to be left alone because he's got a lot of trauma and he doesn't know how to deal with that. And he grew up in a time

Starting point is 00:07:26 where, yeah, things were different. And so like, I thought it was really endearing to, yeah, watch Sue. Like nobody has to take the interest that she took, but watching as, yeah, she kind of sees past this to the lonely guy that he is. She knows that he's, you know, at least, you know, living on his own. He's the last guy. I like that. And you, you know, kind of highlighted that during the reaction, that idea that, yeah, like, instead of being a minority family in a gentrified zone, it's a place where, like, everyone is leaving, you know, and the property values are kind of run down. And I feel like, was that Lake Michigan we're staring at at the end? I remember when the car pulls away, there's a Michigan plate, which would make sense because

Starting point is 00:08:08 that's certainly a part of the country that's had a lot of struggle, you know, and, you know, has been sort of, I don't know, like the glory days I feel like are sort of long behind and rebuilding is struggling to happen. And it's a place that whenever we see it in film, it's always very distinct and it comes with a lot of atmosphere. And I am curious about like the amount of research that went into a script like this because yeah, just again, having, you know, I don't know much of anything about Hmong culture and, you know, the different ethnicities that make that up and, you know, I get the sense

Starting point is 00:08:44 that, yeah, at least as it's encapsulated here, you know, that experience partly is tied to where you're from, but, you know, being that it encapsulates a few different pockets of, you know, Asian people of various Asian communities, basically. And I get the sense that some of that also has to do with them being here, you know, having moved here and are kind of being lumped into this category and, again, living on the skids to, some degree. This is interesting and it seems like it would be something that would have to, yeah, take a good amount of research and then you have, yeah, you'd like this gang that's roving around with Tao's cousins, but you also have like other gangs. Like there's a little

Starting point is 00:09:25 bit of everybody here. And it is interesting that like Clint is sort of like the only white dude besides Scott Eastwood in this environment. Another white lady who lives across the street. Yeah, yeah, yeah, the old lady across the street. But for the most part, yeah, it's like there's so many like when we like we see the rest of his family and they're clearly in a different place like they're clearly in a nicer house in a different part of town and uh and yeah like i i thought the way they again drew this unlikely bond between him and tau and the way they used the car the you know the the titling the movie graham terino and having uh you know that be this motif i thought was interesting because ultimately yeah it wasn't really about the car at all uh other than

Starting point is 00:10:11 than it is this catalyst for this real, for the biggest, you know, arc and change and, you know, sacrifice and redemption and all that stuff. You know, if he hadn't tried to steal the car, who knows where this story would have gone or not, probably just not gone at all. And so, yeah, watching both as Sue breaks down his barriers, watching him be drawn into, you know, reluctantly, but just kind of like, out of exactly. aspiration giving up and just being like yeah you know what fine i'll come to your barbecue i'll come to your you know gathering i'll let your shaman read me whatever you know and and watching yeah as he just sort of acclimates to them and and you recognize the familiarity and so yeah even though he doesn't like shed his uh you know personality there's i still really bought it when he's like you know i'm proud to call you my friend like we are actual friends and like watching him help tau get the

Starting point is 00:11:10 job and watching him sort of mentor him. I thought just the way all that stuff moved was really graceful. And so, yeah, starting out at, you know, the wife's funeral, which ostensibly is sort of like the last thing tethering him to, you know, any kind of lust for life seemingly. And then looking at his family. And it's interesting, too, because, you know, he does confess at the end. And he's like, yeah, I have never really had a great relationship with my sons. And by extension, you know, their kids, their wives, every, you know, my extended family, my immediate extended family. Yeah, and you feel that, you know, from the very first scene without him having even to say it. But, you know, the perspective on why that is is interesting.

Starting point is 00:11:55 And I like that you have moments like the call that he shares when he actually calls his son up and is just like asking him questions and like trying to just have like a chat. And, you know, that scene like played nicely because on the one hand, yeah, you wish the son would like. like drop everything and have a meaningful conversation. But in reality, I feel like it would kind of play out the way it did there where it's like, oh, yeah, you know, whatever, I'm busy and stuff like that. But once the call ends, you can tell that they're both affected in different ways. Clint doing, having done, you know, sort of what he hasn't been able to do for so long, at least in some kind of ritual, you know, gesture.

Starting point is 00:12:33 And then the sun being like, oh, shit, I think something's different. You know, like this is out of the ordinary. And like the priest, I thought he was a great character. I really like their back and forth. And again, just the gradual nature of all the developments. And, yeah, just watching this callous abrasive guy, you know, slowly reveal, you know, a certain level of charm and character, you know. And we don't need a bunch of war flashbacks. Like, we get the point from just his face and his demeanor and the way he talks about death.

Starting point is 00:13:08 right um and i like too that this was like yeah the gears you up to want to have like a big ass revenge movie kind of ending and i really liked the way they chose to go because they really make you think and believe and it's like you know for tau i'm sure he's kind of playing that up because you know i'm sure in the moment that's what's going to make him you know listen the most i suppose but yeah having it ultimately be that his plan is just to go and let them cook themselves because you know he's calm and in control essentially and uh and yeah he just let them you know in their uh angst and just general kind of you know their gang they're they're tough guys but you know in a situation like that i'm sure they're all jittery and trigger happy and

Starting point is 00:13:57 he just lets them take care of the situation himself and it's like a beautiful those like kind of a beautiful thing he's like willing to yeah to to to die for these kids essentially because of, you know, the terrible things they did to sue as well as just the constant, you know, victimization of Tao and the constant effort to try and pull him down to their level. And yeah, like the way Tao even goes from like not talking much at all to, you know, opening up and really revealing personality and, you know, taking on some of that, you know, more abrasive

Starting point is 00:14:29 or sort of, you know, tough, manly kind of exterior is like charming. And yeah, I thought this was really nicely done. And then, yeah, it manages to present this character in Walt who, like, yeah, obviously, you know, there are some things that could be better about the way this guy handles situations and communicates with people and looks at people. However, you know, yeah, it allows you to see who the person is that got this way. and it doesn't make like a bunch of apologies for all that stuff but like yeah you you can see like the character within and it is interesting even if he's you know certainly not like the you know the most upstanding role model or whatever um yeah yeah yeah i just thought this this was nicely handled and graceful and it had a lot of mood and atmosphere and and yeah it just went in a direction that felt very it felt like it felt like it felt it felt like it felt right, but it also subverted what I thought was coming. Reject Nation, as a business owner, I'm actually terrible at tracking finances, believe it or not. It's something I work on a lot because I can be forgetful. I can have terrible

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Starting point is 00:17:23 Once again, that's rocket money.com slash rejects. Help up your game and being financially responsible and reap the dang benefits, people. Yeah, I like that I had a lot of subtlety to it, too. Like, ironically, the fact that this movie did deal with a guy who was very racist and, like, in some capacities, like, not culture, like, I guess in that sense, like, a little immature. I felt like this movie was a very mature, I don't know if I'd call it a coming-of-age story. Maybe, like, partially, but I think that... A little bit for Tao, certainly.

Starting point is 00:17:55 Yeah, for Tao, I would say definitely his coming of age. But obviously, Walt is the... It's like a coming-of-spirit story. movie for Walt. Yeah, I like that. Coming of Spirit. Yeah, it's a very unique movie in that sense. I don't think I've ever seen a movie that's like this.

Starting point is 00:18:09 And the fact that this movie is very mature and subtle is why it works so well. It's the fact that, you know, nothing is overtly said, you know, when the sister comes back and you see that, well, first you think she, she, like, died. Something happened. She didn't make it back. And then you were like, oh, no, like, she was assaulted. They attacked her. And with them illustrating that without having to say that,

Starting point is 00:18:34 I think that was very strong direction from Clint Eastwood. And also a lot of the acting felt very natural, especially from Clint. I think he was just very much in his own. His performances were very subtle. And the fact that you can tell that he was this lonely guy who was like this guy who dealt with a lot of guilt and a lot of anguish without them having to overtly spill it out until like they did say it at the end.

Starting point is 00:18:59 But even if the course of the movie, you can kind of tell that that's what was happening with him he was just very much um yeah in in his own kind of world you know and he was not living he was there to kind of go through his days until he inevitably died and you know him embracing this family that lived next to him kind of brought a sense of of life and purpose back into it yeah and it's almost this there is this kind of redemptive quality you know because he did have this heaviness for inside of him for years over the fact that he killed an innocent kid and now he's going and multiple i mean you know into another war zone one out of 13 yeah yeah to kind of redeem himself to save another kid like to save a life

Starting point is 00:19:51 to uh make up for the fact that he uh took a life saved innocent life to make it for the fact that he took an innocent life and and he did it without violence as well. Yeah, by only sacrificing his own life. Exactly. Which he doesn't feel worthy of living anymore, certainly. Yeah, but you know, it's done with this sense of purpose because I imagine the guy at the beginning of this movie would never even imagine

Starting point is 00:20:13 he would give his car to the kid who stole it, who attempted to steal it from him. And yeah, even from the conversation that you mentioned earlier with his son and finding out that there was this relationship that was strained probably because all the guilt and shame and repression that he dealt with. He didn't know how to raise his kids because he just was so lost in his own misery that he

Starting point is 00:20:39 kind of withdrawn from his family. And, you know, I don't know what light his wife brought to him. I imagine that the kids were a lot closer to the mom. But because of that relationship and because that lack of closeness or hell even parenting from, from Walt, that kind of. force them to figure out how to have a relationship with him that was distant. And they didn't even want to help him kind of figure out the next step of steps of his life. They just wanted to like alter him off or push him off to someone else that would deal with him.

Starting point is 00:21:10 Like, oh, we don't want to deal with his house. We also don't want to deal with their father. So we're just going to continue to off put that care and off put that relationship into someone who's better equipped to handle that. And that was sad. Someone who wants us here. Yeah. Yeah, and it was sad, but it was also endearing the fact that these people who he had this program disdain for were so welcoming and so loving towards him that he had no choice to submit to that love and that grace from both Tao and his sister and the rest of the family as well. And the fact that he got to a place at the end of the movie that he entrusted them with his closest living connection, which was dating.

Starting point is 00:21:55 to that family is just the sign of how much he's grown and the car that he helped build and the car that he helped build as well and his tools you know i'm sure we didn't see it but i have to imagine like he probably left all the tool yeah all the tools to him as well well that's that's an interesting thing too is i bet that like his wife was probably like with with sue and and tau and everything especially sue like you know i feel like he he almost seems like a character who needs somebody with like that much compassion who can also just see past the veneer so effortlessly, and I bet that's who the wife character was, and I bet she was the glue that held him to the rest of the family. Totally. And so, yeah, it's like as much as they are kind of characterized in a way where it's like,

Starting point is 00:22:36 I get why you don't like them that much. I'm sure that that is that way for mutual reasons, not just because of them. I'm sure it's demonstrated throughout the film that he's not really one to pull them toward him anyway. But yeah, like I thought this had really nice, all around, I thought this was really nicely handled just as an endearing character drama. I thought it was really well-paced and well-drawn and just the atmosphere, the lighting, the cinematography, all that stuff, you know, the way it's captured and the mood that they're able to strike in so much of this and so many of those somber, just quiet moments in big empty rooms and in church and things like that. Just, yeah, yeah, I thought this was really well handled. and great cast across the board for the most part.

Starting point is 00:23:23 Yeah, I really enjoyed this quite a bit. Same. I agree. Well, gang, what did you think of Grand Torino? I don't know what to ask you guys. Make it appropriate, though. Rank your Clint Eastwood films down in the comments. And we'll see what else we might be able to check out from the man's uvra. And leave us your thoughts on this movie.

Starting point is 00:23:43 Anything about any of the cultural elements you want to expound upon? Would love to hear that. Interesting facts. about the culture and his career and I guess the setting that this movie took place in. Yeah, anything you feel worthy of adding, just let us know. Absolutely. And we will catch you on the next one. Much love and we'll see you soon.

Starting point is 00:24:04 Cheers.

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The Reel Rejects - GRAN TORINO (2008) MOVIE REVIEW!! FIRST TIME WATCHING!!

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