Posted on 01/27/2009 4:15:37 PM PST by Free ThinkerNY
This year's Oscar story lines have already been etched in stone — Mickey Rourke as the comeback kid, Slumdog Millionaire as the art-house wunderkind, Milk as the timely social commentary (released three weeks after Proposition 8 passed in California).
Yet while the critics have been fussing over wrestlers and Mumbai quiz shows, audiences have been flocking to Gran Torino — an Oscar outcast that's been doing laps around the competition at the box office.
At some point this week, the Clint Eastwood drama will pass the $100 million mark, easily surpassing the box-office receipts brought in by not only some of the Oscar front-runners (Slumdog Millionaire now totals $56 million, Milk $21 million) but also Eastwood's last Oscar winner, Million Dollar Baby.
"It's an amazing story that no one's really talking about," says Paul Dergarabedian, box-office analyst with Hollywood.com. "For a movie starring a 78-year-old to have a $29 million opening weekend in wide release, and in the process to beat out the likes of Anne Hathaway in Bride Wars, I don't know if I've seen that before ... It's a testament to how people still feel about Clint Eastwood."
(Excerpt) Read more at time.com ...
Good movie. Although the asian kid and the asian chick were kind of bad actors.
My son (20) saw Gran Torino last Friday. First Eastwood movie. He is now a slavishly devoted fan. So I DVR’d Dirty Harry and Magnum Force for him. He’s hooked on Clint.
Future NRA member, right here......
79? Clint is 79??? Holy Cow! And they say Sean Connery is sexy! Move over, 007!
This is a great great movie that should have gotten awards nominations, but was passed over by the snooty awards people, I think, because Eastwood uses unknown actors and actresses in his movies. This steps on the toes of the Hollyweird elite, who rightly consider such activities a threat to their economic well-being. Mel Gibson does the same thing in movies he directs.
If studios learn they can produce profitable movies without paying A-list celebs big bucks, then maybe they will.
“....Yet while the critics have been fussing over wrestlers and Mumbai quiz shows, audiences have been flocking to Gran Torino — an Oscar outcast that’s been doing laps around the competition at the box office....”
My rule of thumb for years:
Hollywood likes movie = Not worth seeing
Hollywood ignores or trashes movie = Probably a pretty good flick.
Works 90% of the time.
A Fistful of Dollars and For a Few Dollars More were the best filsm he ever made.
Oh, and Unforgiven.
My husband and I very much enjoyed Gran Tarino. Love, love Clint!
“Unforgiven”
“...then he shoulda armed himself if he’s gonna decorate his saloon with my friend.”
Priceless.
I saw it over the weekend. I loved it.
“you just shot an unarmed man!”
“he should have armed himself.”
Great film. Interesting meditation on the decline of MANHOOD and the narcissism of the younger generations, and the embrace of thuggery by those who have no models of what it means to be “a man.”
This film’s success is a testament to Eastwood’s great career, and the fact that audiences still love him after his almost 60 years in show business. Audiences also still respond very favorablly to attractive, strong, masculine lead actors of the type that dominated box offices during Hollywood’s golden age.
It was released on January 9th. That makes it ineligible for the upcoming Oscars doesn’t it?
That was especially true of that horrible “Steel Magnolias”, what an awful movie, the whole movie was a bunch of women sitting around complaining about everything under the sun. But the critics gave it rave reviews, they made it seem like the greatest movie ever made. What tripe!
Heartbreak Ridge and Dirty Harry. I liked the Spaghetti Westerns, but those two are my favorite Eastwood films, along with Unforgiven.
45 years ago I thought Rowdy Yates was the coolest guy in the world.
No, Jose Wales.
What about Lee Marvin and Clint Eastwood singing, in Paint Your Wagon? A fine, non-homo musical.
Hollywood likes movie = Not worth seeing
Hollywood ignores or trashes movie = Probably a pretty good flick.
Works 90% of the time.
Works for me, too.
Back when Gene Shalit was on the Today show, ANY movie he thought was good (usually something nobody ever heard of), I avoided, while any movie he panned, was a very good movie.
Works GREAT for Roger Ebert, too....
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