Can you imagine an old man clenching his teeth and saying “Get off my lawn!” and really showcasing a menacing presence? Only Clint Eastwood can do that. Call this one “Dirty Harry on Social Security.”

Gran Torino gives Eastwood the opportunity to roll out his tough-guy shtick one more time as Walt Kowalski, an elderly Korean War veteran whose wife recently died, and who is battling all the things his world has become.

Kowalski’s kids want him to move into a rest home; his parish priest (Carley) wants him to go to Mass. All Walt wants is to be left alone to drink his beers, smoke his cigarettes and polish his most cherished possession, a 1970 Gran Torino sedan that he’s kept in mint condition.

That plot line alone, of course, would be way too calm for Eastwood’s signature character. Vietnamese immigrants move in next door and try to befriend Kowalski, who’s steeped in the bigotry of his generation. After local gangsters recruit the young son of the Vietnamese family (Vang), then have him try to steal Kowalski’s Gran Torino as an initiation rite, Kowalski gets involved in the kid’s life, becoming an unlikely mentor to the youth.

Kowalski gets the kid a job and tries to steer him away from gang life, but the local gangsters don’t give up that easy, ratcheting up the violence trying to enlist the kid.

You know what’s going to happen from here—the inevitable showdown between Eastwood’s tough guy and the ruthless band of young Vietnamese gangsters.

Without giving too much more of the plot away, suffice it to say that Gran Torino is about a flawed man fighting for what’s right, and at the same time fighting to keep his dignity in old age.

If you’re a fan of Clint Eastwood’s tough-guy pictures, you’ll love this film. Eastwood turns in a fantastic performance as the set-in-his-ways Kowalski, and he proves that even at 78, he can still kick some serious butt.

By Frank Legato

Frank Legato is editor of Casino Connection and also senior editor of Global Gaming Business magazine. He has been writing on gaming topics since 1984, when he launched and served as editor of Casino Gaming magazine. Legato, a nationally recognized expert on slot machines, has served as editor and reporter for a variety of gaming publications, including Public Gaming, IGWB, Casino Journal, Casino Player, Strictly Slots and Atlantic City Insider. He has an B.A. in journalism and an M.A. in communications from Duquesne University in Pittsburgh, PA. He is the author of the recently published book on gaming, How To Win Millions Playing Slot Machines... Or Lose Trying.