* GRAN TORINO * on blu-ray. "Teaser".

[Lordoftherings]

Just to let everyone know that I went to my movie store this afternoon, and rented "Gran Torino" on blu-ray. A film starring, produced and directed by Clint Eastwood.

I should have the full review by tomorrow, because tonight is "Gran Torino" night on blu-ray.
So, please, be seated, and I'll keep you posted in less than 12 hours.

Bob

 

[GlocksRock]

I have this blu ray on the way to me from Blockbuster online, hopefully I will get it tonight and be able to watch it soon... I've been waiting for this one for a while.

 

[Now Slappy]

I watched this last night on BR. As usual with all of Clint Eastwood's flicks it is a very well told story. From reading reviews I went into it with the expectation of a little more action because of all the comparisons to his earlier days as Dirty Harry, and I felt that it dragged in a few spots but that was my own fault. I really liked the way he explored and portrayed the Hmong culture. In my opinion, had this just been glossed over the movie would have lost a lot of it's appeal.

Overall this is a solid movie and I would not hesitate to recommend it to anyone. You may not want to buy it, but it is definitely worth the rental.

 

[Lordoftherings]

"Gran Torino" blu-ray mini review.

All right, last night I watched "Gran Torino" on blu-ray on my 50" display.

First, right from the bat, I have to tell you that this blu-ray title is not the kind to demo the picture quality or audio reference soundtrack.

Now, with this out of the way, this film is all about Clint and his aura as a performer and intelligent humor character. His one-line phrases delivery are something to behold and to graciously laugh about. This is pure Clint, unaltered and straight to the point.

Don't look for much action here or mayhem, this is a character driven movie with some good lessons in life as an extra dose of reassurance.

Picture wise, the film is drab into a kind of sepia tone with greenish accents in his color palette that is kind of mute. It looks a bit dull and lack details at times with an out of focus bacground on several occasions.
But you still have enough details to see all the wrinkles on Clint's face.
And the black level is good.

Audio wise, this is a subdue soundtrack that is quite reserved. But this is fine, as it does not take you out of the major aspect of this film, which is the characters of people with their dialogs, in particular Clint. Still, the soundtrack complement the story well, and is well recorded with some nice piano and a clear dialog.
May I suggest that you turn the volume up more than usual.
It is a Dolby TrueHD soundtrack that is automatically defaulted to (thanks finally to WB for that one).

I really enjoyed this film and I have some good heart laughs as well, from Clint one-liners. Highly recommended for the superb performance of Clint and also for the interraction with the other young actors, which were quite good too in their performance.

Picture: 3.5/5
Audio: 3.5/5
Story: 4/5
Acting: 5/5 [Top score for top-notch performance.]
Special features: n/a (I'll be watching these probably later on tonight).*
Overall: 4.5/5

So, overall, this is a 4.5/5 for the major performance of Clint on the screen.
For this alone, this film is a must see and a true gem to cherish.

* I'll be commenting on the Special features later on after watching them.

Bob

* Special Note: I don't usually comment on the story or plot, as I found this to take away from the pleasure of watching the film in a fresh new look with total surprise for the benefit of the full enjoyment from the viewer. That's my own opinion and take on this.

 

[GlocksRock]

I watched the blu ray last night and thought it was a very well done movie. Not a whole lot of action, but great acting by Clint Eastwood. I found the PQ to be pretty good, while the AQ was lacking a bit, but still not too bad overall. This isn't one I would buy, but definitely makes for a great rental.

 

[valvesnvinylfan]

GRAN TORINO * on blu-ray. "Teaser".

Man, can't wait to see this one, next up on the rental list...

 

[Lordoftherings]

Special Features: Gran Torino.

All right, here's the last score on the Special features that I just watched last night from the blu-ray of Gran Torino.

Well, there isn't many of them, that's for sure. But for what there is, about the quality value of them?
I'll say that the Exclusive one: "The Eastwood Way" with subsections is the best one by far. We learn some interesting stuff about Clint and the young actors, as well as the Hmong people. I enjoy that one. It's almost 20 minutes long and it's in HD.

The other ones, about cars ("Manning the Wheel" and "Gran Torino"), I found them deja vu and boring. I did not care for these. They are both quite short and are in HD.

And last, for the Exclusive Features Via BD-Live, I can't comment, as I'm not connected to the Internet. And before I decide to do so, they better come up with interesting stuff and without screwing the operation of our blu-ray players.

Comes also with a Digital Copy.

So final score,
Special Features: 2/5 *

* And because of this, I deducted half point from the Overall Score.
Overall Score: 4/5

LOTR

 

[MatthewB.]

I'm still ticked that Clint was cheated out of the Oscars by his performance which was better than anyone elses.

 

[billy p]

Your review was spot on....thanks. BTW I watched it the other night with my better half after hearing both postive and negative reviews prior to the rental...lets just say we really enjoyed it. However Clint's character made Archie Bunker look like a Saint lol.

Regards, Bill

 

[Lordoftherings]

Your review was spot on....thanks. BTW I watched it the other night with my better half after hearing both postive and negative reviews prior to the rental...lets just say we really enjoyed it. However Clint's character made Archie Bunker look like a Saint lol.

Regards, Bill

Hi Bill,

My guess is that you were referring to my mini review, right?
I would believe so, because after rechecking this short thread, it seems like it.

Well, thanks Bill, that really encourage me to write some more. And it's fun to write about a guy you like, Clint.

Bests to you too and your better half,

Bob

 

[jamie2112]

I watched it last night on PPV. I like it myself,Clint is as good as ever and it has a powerful ending. I recommend this one even if you don't have Blu Ray..

 

[chas_w]

Watched the blu ray last night. Very good movie. Clint gave an excellent performance and the rookie actors added authenticity to the movie.

As noted - watch this one for the movie...not for demo material. And I'll second the suggestion to turn the volume up a bit more than usual - the soundtrack is one of the softest I've heard in a while.

 

[XEagleDriver]

. . . And I'll second the suggestion to turn the volume up a bit more than usual - the soundtrack is one of the softest I've heard in a while.

Thanks for the heads up on the soundtrack.

Watching GT on a new Data Wall recently installed at my work to ring out any bugs in the system and I was beginning to think the data wall's sound system might be jacked up.

The data wall is comprised of eight projectors in a 2 high by 4 across array (kind of like on CNN) with each individual PJ filling a 57" diagonal screen. All combined it is approximately a 10' tall by 20' wide display driven by a Spyder system to integrate all the projectors into one display, or up to five smaller individual windows--not too bad a set up for work--although the sound system is not nearly as good as my home rig

XEagleDriver

 

[j_garcia]

Watched this last night and enjoyed it very much. The ending was almost expected, but I was still very satisfied with the whole story and portrayal. I can't believe Clint (Eastwood, not DeBoer ) is actually that old, but he's still got it. I did note that the sound was very low as well. I was at -14, which would otherwise be quite high on my system.