A lot of people say John Wayne can't act, but who else can do what John Wayne does?
Clint Eastwood in an interview promoting Thunderbolt and Lightfoot, 1974
Gran Torino has done very very well at the box office. Its estimated $35 M cost, cheap by today's standards, has already returned several times that with $147M gross so far, and it just now got released to DVD. Clint says it is his acting farewell but then he said that about Million Dollar Baby and how many times do singers do their last tour?
Eastwood is one of the movie industry's premier producers for two simple reasons. His movies come in at a low budget on budget, and he has his finger on the social pulse of what moviegoers want to see.
Gran Torino is part The Shootist (John Wayne's last film), part Karate Kid, Josey Wales, Gunny Highway from Heartbreak Ridge, and finally draws on the civic involvement theme of High Noon and Open Range. In researching this piece I note that Don Siegel directed The Shootist, he also did, Dirty Harry and appeared in a cameo in Eastwood's Play Misty for Me.
I understand that on all his movie projects, Eastwood's most spoken phrase is, Next! Asked about the higher cost of movies in the 1980s he remarked that for $35 M he could invade a third world country. It was no accident that he would use many of the same stock players in subsequent movies, they knew each other and they worked for reasonable salaries. He really came to the industry attention with Any Which Way but Loose which at the time was Universal's second biggest gross picture, after Jaws, gee.
Wayne featured Hollywood stars in his last film and what a cast. Jimmy Stewart, Richard Boone, Lauren Bacall, Ron Howard, Harry Morgan, and even Bill McKinney who featured in many Eastwood films.
The casting for Gran took place in Michigan and featured folks who had not acted before, well that will help with budget! In fact I daresay the only person you will recognize is Eastwood. He is in for a piece of the gross I understand. Notice the contrast with Wayne's approach. The topic is immigration, Viet Namese are moving into the old neighborhood. Eastwood moves from gruff Gunny Highway to benevolent Josey Wales as he ends up helping the neighbors he at first seems to disdain. His Walt Kowalski is pure Archie Bunker in his description of immigrants, nothing really intolerant, just his point of view. Eastwood has become a Hollywood darling after being ignored for decades, no wonder as his films have taken a decided leftward tilt. His protege teenager grouses that he has been had on a transmission repair and is a foot to which the job interviewer sympathizes. Victimhood pure and simple, the liberal playbook. It would have been just as easy to brag on a mechanic friend, but no…
At any rate, low cost, on budget, touching on social trends, that's the ticket. I won't spoil the ending but it is straight from Open Range and High Noon with a considerable different twist.
Not many of us have that actor director gene still going strong at 79, next project, directing Morgan Freeman as Nelson Mandela, now that will definitely be a winner…..my guess, and the Oscar goes to…….
PS one more thing, as I mentioned the plot is pulled from several other movies, what plot isn't, but
the character of the involved priest is right out of On the Waterfront,l played by Karl Malden who nags on Marlon Brando;s conscience right to the last scene, by the way great line by Brando on that subject
To Brando – whatsa matter, don't you have a conscience?
Brando- I thought I'd live longer without one…..
I will be adding this one to my list of movies with ethical themes
Professor Elam 
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