The Promise Of America At The Multiplex

“I've been called a lot of things, but never funny.”

-- Walt Kowalski from Gran Torino

“As times goes by, as times goes by, they say "he's washed up", "he's finished" , "he's a loser", "he's all through". You know what? The only one that's going to tell me when I'm through doing my thing is you people here.”

-- Randy “The Ram” Robinson from The Wrestler

“You don't remember me? We spoke on the phone two days ago. I told you I would find you.”

-- Bryan Mills from Taken

Clint Eastwood’s Gran Torino has staying power.

Eastwood’s portrayal of Walt Kowalski is a metaphor for contemporary America which audiences did not run away from when it was released at the end of last year. If anyone truly understands where America has been, where it is right now and where it has the potential to go, I would have to say that person is Clint Eastwood.



His Walt Kowalski is the logical heir to the iconic characters who populated the films of Sam Peckinpah and Sergio Leone. Kowalski certainly has traces of William Holden’s Pike Bishop from The Wild Bunch and Charles Bronson’s Harmonica from Once Upon A Time In The West. These are men who outlived their times; this is especially true of the characters in The Wild Bunch. Modernity is the equivalent of the death to these men. Change is not an option to these men.

Eastwood’s Kowalski is a suitable heir to them. He is a retired auto worker; he is a dying breed. Kowalski is not the most likable character. He is a racist and his behavior in the film plays as an older, retired Harry Callahan better known as Dirty Harry. Walt’s racism will have to take a backseat as he befriends a Hmong refugee family next door that is being terrorized by street gangs. The film has vivid poignancy as the American Automobile worker is becoming a thing of the past. The automobile industry is in very deep trouble in America today as it teeters near bankruptcy and needs a government bailout. Walk Kowalski is a keeper of the flame. His prized possession is a 1972 Gran Torino fastback.

He takes very good care of the car; it is his pride and joy. The car itself, like Walt, is a metaphor for what made America great.

I think this is why the film hit a chord with audiences this past winter. The film has made well over 147 million dollars at the domestic box office alone. This is Clint Eastwood’s highest grossing film. The film is a chance to see the iconic actor in front of the camera one last time. Is this Clint Eastwood’s The Shootist? Will he only direct films now? I hope not because we need him up there on the screen. He reminds us of what we have the potential to be.

Gran Torino is certainly one of the great character studies of the last decade, but it is only part of the equation.

The other great character study is Darren Aronofsky’s The Wrestler. It is no accident that The Wrestler and Gran Torino were released around the same time. The film is a bleak and moving character study about a washed up wrestler played by Mickey Rourke. Mickey Rourke’s performance as Randy “The Ram” Robinson is one of those great comebacks we hear about every couple of years. It is the ultimate comeback by an actor that many had given up on many years ago.

What adds to the film’s power is that Mickey Rourke and Randy Robinson share the same biography. Randy Robinson’s best days are behind him. His peak was during the Eighties on the independent wrestling circuit. He was somebody back then. In the film’s present, he is a shell of his former self. He is a beaten man, but he has not given up. He still lives to pursue his dream. Even though he is fighting for scraps, he still gets up each day for the chance to revive his career. He is still looking for his big chance.

Like Gran Torino, it is a very American film.

In these two films, we see two characters who used to matter. Each in his own way was the embodiment of the American Dream-- successful men. Both are in the twilight of their lives. They have given it their best shot. Both men find purpose and desire to go back into the game one more time. Robinson has a chance to regain his stardom which has eluded since his heyday by entering a rematch with his arch-nemesis. The match is a chance for him to feel like he matters again. For Kowalski, the chance to feel alive again and matter again resides in the friendship and protection of a Hmong refugee family that lives next door to him. This family gives him a sense of renewal. It is ironic given his deep seated racism that this immigrant family could bring out this side to him.

We have to remember this is what it means to be Dirty Harry in the Obama Era.

It is Liam Neeson in Pierre Morel’s Taken that seems like another variation on the American character study.

Liam Neeson plays Bryan Mills, a retired spy who is trying to repair relations with his ex-wife and daughter. Bryan Mills has a lot in common with Kowalski and Robinson. In one way, his best days are behind him as well. He was a legend back in the day when he was a spy who specialized in hand to hand combat. He reluctantly allows his daughter to vacation in Europe with a friend. What follows is every parent’s nightmare. His daughter and her friend are kidnapped by Albanian gangsters to be sold into the sex trade. The frightening scenario requires Bryan Mills to take immediate action. It is time to use all the skills he learned in the CIA-- he must rescue his daughter.

In many ways, Bryan Mills represents the ugly American who goes into other countries and does things his way. He cannot depend on the authorities at home or in France to help him. He is a cross between Jason Statham’s Frank Martin from The Transporter films and Matt Damon’s Jason Bourne. Bryan Mills does things his way; he will let nothing get between him and his daughter. His methods are an odd variation of the going it alone. He represents unilateral action in the dying days of the Bush Era (the film was originally released overseas in 2008). Despite the film’s unilateral message, the film at its heart is about another broken man who may have outlived his times. Bryan Mills certainly feels like he is in good company with Randy Robinson and Walt Kowalski.

While their outcomes are different, these three men represent what is best in all of us.

These films represent what made America great at one time and the promise of what could make it great again.

Imagine if Sam Peckinpah was alive today! What would he make of our interesting times? What would he make of the Economic Collapse and the Iraq War. Would his characters still have felt like they have outlived their times or would they feel the need to make a difference one last time? The year started off with such a bang with these three great character studies. All three characters are strong representations of what is best and worst in America. Each represents what we are capable of not only when we are on top, but also when we hit bottom.

We still have the ability to get up and reinvent ourselves-- there is no law that says there can be only one “Greatest Generation.”