Theme Of Family Relationships In Gran Torino

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Gran Torino
Gran Torino is a suspense film directed by Clint Eastwood, which portrays the relationship between a 78-year-old Koran war veteran and his neighbors who are from Laos. The main character, Walt is a racist who still has memories from the horrors of war and has a dislike for anyone, including his own family. After his young neighbor Thao is coerced by his cousin’s gang into stealing Walt’s prized Gran Torino, a unusual relationship forms between the pair. Walt starts to respect Thao and his culture while fulfilling a fatherly role that Thao is lacking. Eventually, Walt has to confront the gang knowing that the confrontation will end in his death. Apart from the stereotypical, get off my lawn quote, this film depicts the relationship of family concerning the care for older adults, the struggle with despair and meaning later in life, and the morality of a good death. This paper will address each of these themes.
In regards to family relationships, we see that Walt has a great aversion to his own family. The film starts out with the death of Walt’s wife and the viewer learns that he had a great love for her. Instead of trying to comfort the grieving Walt, his family patronizes him by saying he needs to loosen …show more content…

After viewing Gran Torino, the greatest strength comes from the ability to make the viewer care about Walt and his life. We see that Walt has struggled from the horrors of war and his family’s disconnect from him. The viewer wants to care for him as the racist anti-hero but it is that he is relatable. We can see his portrayal of an older adult as a member of our own family. By looking at his struggle with despair, how his family treats him and his choice for a good death, the viewer can reflect on our own interactions with the older adults whom we are close to and have a better understanding of what they are going

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