Self-Reliance
One of the foremost themes in Gran Torino is self-reliance—dependence on and trust in oneself. Eastwood explores the theme in several ways, showing the benefits and disadvantages of self-reliance. After his wife dies, Walt isolates from the world and his family, insisting upon his radical self-sufficiency. Rather than go to the church or God for support in his grief, Walt rejects the priest's attempts to get him to go to confession with an atheistic defensiveness. When Thao breaks into Walt's garage and when Spider's gang disturbs the peace at the Vang Lors, Walt doesn't bother calling police, preferring to pick up his own gun to defend his property. Walt imparts his belief in self-reliance during his mentorship with Thao, who Walt succeeds in helping become more confident and well-adjusted. However, the downsides of radical self-sufficiency become clear when Walt speaks of how he is haunted by the deaths he brought about in Korea. He is also in denial about his failing health, shown through his bloody coughing and refusal to accept that he should see a doctor or quit smoking. By the time Walt does seek medical treatment, it is too late. Another failing of self-reliance comes when Walt assaults a member of Spider's gang in retaliation for putting out a cigarette on Thao's cheek. Believing he can handle the situation on his own, Walt fails to predict that the gang will strike back with grave consequences. To redeem himself and correct his mistake, Walt uses his usual trust in himself by sacrificing his life rather than letting Thao or law enforcement be involved in the retribution against the gang. However, just before he dies, Walt says a Hail Mary, suggesting that he may have held out some hope of God's grace in his life.
The Consequences of Violence
Another dominant theme in the film is the consequences of violence. The killings Walt took part in as a soldier in Korea and the assault Walt commits against Spider's gang have their own shadows of consequence. For Walt, his time as a soldier turns into post-traumatic stress disorder, and he cannot live a day without thinking about the thirteen men he killed; this makes him alienated, angry, and repressed. The consequence of Walt's attack against one of Spider's gangsters is a brutal retaliation of the entire gang as they shoot up Thao's house and rape Thao's sister. Thao wants Walt to hit back by shooting up the gang. Having seen that violence against the gang only brought about more violence, Walt considers how to put an end to the cycle and protect Thao and Sue. Knowing that he cannot murder the gang of six armed men, Walt realizes the best thing is to let the gang murder him while he stands unarmed on their lawn. While this action does not guarantee Sue's and Thao's safety, the gang will at least be imprisoned for a significant period of time.
Deindustrialization
Although it is more of an ambient presence than an explicit component of the plot, deindustrialization is nonetheless a major theme in Gran Torino. Set in the Detroit Metro area, the film takes place on the edges of a major American city that has seen significant economic and demographic change in recent decades. Once boasting a population of 1.8 million in 1950, in 2010 the census counted only 700,000 residents in Detroit. This sixty percent loss in population has been attributed largely to factories moving from the inner city to the suburbs alongside a phenomenon known as white flight, when white families moved out of the inner city to buy their own suburban homes and avoid social integration with Black residents moving to the city from the South. With declining population came a significant change in the tax base and economic activity, which precipitated social issues such as unemployment, poverty, and crime. Once an employee at the Ford Motor Company factory, Walt lives in what was once a white working-class neighborhood. The area has become a Hmong community because of the availability of low-cost housing for economically disadvantaged Hmong immigrants. In this way, deindustrialization precipitates Walt's unexpected affection for a family and a culture he might never have encountered otherwise.
Hmong-American Culture
Gran Torino is considered the first mainstream American film to prominently feature Hmong Americans in its cast and story. Because of this, Hmong-American culture—however accurately or inaccurately depicted—is a major theme in the film. Set in Highland Park, a part of the Detroit metro area that was once home to mostly white working-class residents, the film depicts the neighborhood's changing demographics as more Hmong people move in and establish a community. Walt is initially ignorant of the Hmong people's distinct culture, speaking of them as though they are Chinese, Korean, or Vietnamese. Sue helpfully corrects Walt's prejudiced assumptions, explaining that the Hmong are a traditionally mountain- (not jungle-) dwelling people who migrated in significant numbers to the US because of their support for the US and subsequent persecution in Laos during the Vietnam War. The film depicts the Hmong as close-knit and community-minded. However, the film has also been criticized for exaggerations, such as the entire room reacting in horror when Walt touches a child's head, Hmong residents lavishing Walt with gifts when he saves Thao, or the sensationalized depiction of a chicken's head being removed in the Vang Lors' yard. Despite these cultural inaccuracies, Eastwood's attempt to showcase Hmong-American culture remains an important theme.
Masculinity
A staple theme of Clint Eastwood's oeuvre, masculinity is central to Gran Torino. Encapsulated most explicitly in Walt's behavior and attitude, the theme of masculinity comes through in the way Walt represses his emotions, refuses to accept anyone's help, keeps people close to him at a distance that prevents vulnerability, and responds to stressful situations with anger and violence. Masculinity also arises as a theme in Spider and his gang's behavior as they terrorize Thao and Sue, driven to violence because they cannot face their own insecurity. While masculinity is largely depicted in ominous, deleterious ways, the film also shows the lighter side of Walt's investment in manly pursuits, such as his fixation with maintaining his property, his pride in his vehicle, and his affection for crude banter with other men. Some of the film's most memorable instances of comedy come from Thao's attempts to emulate Walt's casually racist, belittling language. In a perhaps unconscious subversion of masculinity itself, these scenes show how masculinity is largely a performed habit that follows a socially constructed script.
Hubris
An enduring concept from ancient Greek tragedy, hubris—an excessive pride and confidence that leads to one's downfall—is a crucial theme in Gran Torino. From the outset of the film, Walt is depicted as an isolated, self-reliant figure who trusts no one and refuses to let anyone get close to him. He even keeps his children at an arm's length, responding to their presence with gruffness and avoidance. As the film progresses, it becomes clear that Walt's defiance of any authority but his own is simultaneously what keeps him going and what is leading to his downfall. Having put off medical attention rather than seek treatment for his bloody cough, Walt receives a bad diagnosis that he finds he cannot bring himself to share with his son over the phone; to do so would require too much vulnerability. Walt's hubris also comes back to hurt him when he tries to sort out Spider's gang's intimidation of Thao with violence against one of the members. The gang retaliates by attempting to kill Thao and by raping Sue. Too proud to have sought outside help, Walt knows he is responsible for what happened to them. To make up for his mistake, he sacrifices his life so that the gang will be locked away. In this way, his excessive pride and confidence in himself prove somewhat justified. However, the success cannot undo the harm done to Sue, Thao, and Walt himself.
The Importance of Community
Another of the key themes in Gran Torino is the importance of community. In contrast to Walt's radically self-reliant way of being, the Hmong people in his neighborhood are close-knit and highly social. While Walt sits alone in his house, the Vang Lors often have a house full of people from the neighborhood coming to share food and engage in conversation. Their local shaman is usually in attendance to provide spiritual guidance to members of the community. The strength of the Hmong community is on display when neighbors come to drop off presents on Walt's porch as thanks for protecting Thao from the gang (although Hmong critics have cited the lavishing of gifts as culturally inaccurate). Although Walt initially shuns the community spirit, he gradually develops an affection for the Hmong, realizing that he has more in common with them than he does with his own family. By the end of the film, Walt gives his life so that the Hmong community who accepted him as one of their own may be safe from Spider and his gang.
