Grand Torino

Grand Torino

Introduction

The movie Grand Torino is a mixture, showing different cultures, communication styles, racism, the family structure, and the role of male head in the house. Though, movie received much of critics due to slang languages using the abusive words for other racial groups, and undermining the self respect of other nationalities. It not only showed cultural conflict, but it also had a lot of non-verbal communication in the movie. It showed the value of having a family together, living together, and the problems faced without a male head. The film starts with a death, ends with a death. The neighborhood of Walt (the leading character) is multi-cultural, speaking different languages. It shows the relationship and the building of communication period between a young, Thao and an old man, Walt (Jalao, 2010). It shows the difference, yet the unity and similarity between people with different complexions, black and white.

Discussion

Story & Plot

Elderly Walt Kowalski is lately widowed. Much of Walt's perspectives of life are molded by his period in the Korean War. On tensed relations with his grownup children and not needing the guidance of the priest of the church of his wife, Walt is a bad tempered man who has not many friends. As such, he lives a lonely life with his pet Labrador retriever named Daisy in the same house he has lived in for an extensive time-span, which is situated in Highland Park, Michigan neighborhood. Lately, the neighborhood has endured progressions where it is presently racially blended. The Lor family, of racial Hmong ancestry, moves into the house nearby to Walt's, the family which includes two youngsters, shy Thao and streetwise Sue. At first Walt needs nothing to do with his new strange neighbors.

Gradually, Walt does get involved in Thao and Sue's lives, in spite of Thao having once attempted to steal valued 1972 Grand Torino of Walt. That endeavored robbery was a Hmong mob initiation practice, a mob to which Thao would not like to fit in. Walt sees that as long as that gang exist Thao and Sue can never be able to survive in peace. As his youngster neighbors' informal protector, Walt needs to resolve how best to bring back his feeling of right in the neighborhood.

In Grand Torino the distinction between the story and the plot is promptly visible at the exact first scene: Already Walt is old and his wife passed ...