Portal de Periódicos da CAPES

Cultural and Religious Reversals in Clint Eastwood’s Gran Torino

2011; Brill; Volume: 15; Issue: 5 Linguagem: Inglês

10.1163/156852911x596273

1568-5292

Mark W. Roche,

Race, History, and American Society

Abstract Clint Eastwood’s Gran Torino is one of the most fascinating religious films of recent decades. Its portrayal of confession is highly ambiguous and multi-layered, as it both mocks confession and recognizes the enduring importance of its moral core. Equally complex is the film’s imitation and reversal of the Christ story. The religious dimension is interwoven with a complex portrayal and evaluation of multicultural America that does not shy away from unveiling elements of moral ugliness in American history and the American spirit, even as it provides a redemptive image of American potential. The film reflects on the shallowness of a modern culture devoid of tradition and higher meaning without succumbing to an idealization of pre-modern culture. The film is also Eastwood’s deepest and most effective criticism of the relentless logic of violence and so reverses a common conception of Eastwood’s world-view.