3/10
Everything that was good about Gran Torino is turned upside down in this sub-Dirty Harry revenge movie.
I'm amazed that so many critics have been enthusiastic about this tawdry torn-from-the-headlines-of-The-Sun version of Death Wish crossed with Dirty Harry (see name of main character). It may be because the film is better made than the usual gangster movie; but that doesn't justify the crude characterisation, the cliched stereotypes and the justification of violence in the face of manufactured provocation. Harry Brown is a retired marine recently widowed, who lives on a rough housing estate. There are scumbag hoodies in every hallway and underpass, some of whom kill his best friend. So naturally, when the police enquiries are getting nowhere, Mr Brown takes it upon himself to exact revenge. Every other character in the film is either weak, useless or pond life, which makes for dull and predictable viewing, and it reinforces my low opinion of Michael Caine.
