In Gran Torino, there are many occasions that the Hmong community experience in the Michigan. Gang activity and violence is one the major conflicts that the Hmong community experience. The Hmong gang harasses and promotes violence and theft towards the community. The Hmong also experience an absence of masculine figures. The absence of masculine figures contributes to the Hmong community being helpless and juvenile. Walt Kowalski becomes the outlet masculine figure of the Hmong Lor family. The Hmong community also experiences cultural events like the Hmong cookout, which involves food and customs in which Walt Kowalski gets introduced to. When it comes to rendering the contemporary immigrant experience, Gran Torino is extremist and stereotypical.
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One masculine figure that did appear was extremely rowdy gang members, that only caused havoc. Another masculine figure was the young and innocent Hmong males, that weren’t respected as men in their family like Tao. Thao would wash dishes and garden around his house which would be meant for women to accomplish. Another masculine figure was the elderly Hmong males, that even though they fought in Japanese War along side the Americans, were now too weak to protect their community. The absence of a masculine figure in the Hmong community left it vulnerable, but when Walt Kowalski protects the community in on a certain occasion against the Hmong gang, he came to fill the roles of a masculine figure. The Hmong community got to experience a protector. And the Lor family’s children got to experience a father figure. The father figure role that Walt Kowalski played earned him the love of both Sue and Tao. Where Tao learned how to accomplish “manly” tasks around the neighborhood and how to talk his way into getting a job. Sue got to experience what it was like to have a father figure in a family of mostly women. The perception of the Hmong community in Gran Torino is an inaccurate portrayal of Asian communities because of the absence of an adult masculine figure throughout the …show more content…
Gran Torino only showed young harmless males, old powerless veterans, and dangerous gang members as the masculine figures in a Hmong community. There was never a well educated, professional male in Hmong community. There was never a Hmong male who served a strong a stable father figure in the household. This is a very inaccurate view of Hmong communities. Most Hmong communities have a head of a household, that serves as a protector and provider of the family. Gran Torino makes Hmong communities seem helpless and portrays the white man as a savior of a racial minority. There is also an inaccurate interpretation of masculinity. Masculinity is characterized as an exert of racist slurs in which Walt Kowalski teaches Tao Vang. The film Gran Torino is definitely inaccurate when comes to rendering the contemporary immigrant experience on masculinity in the Hmong
One masculine figure that did appear was extremely rowdy gang members, that only caused havoc. Another masculine figure was the young and innocent Hmong males, that weren’t respected as men in their family like Tao. Thao would wash dishes and garden around his house which would be meant for women to accomplish. Another masculine figure was the elderly Hmong males, that even though they fought in Japanese War along side the Americans, were now too weak to protect their community. The absence of a masculine figure in the Hmong community left it vulnerable, but when Walt Kowalski protects the community in on a certain occasion against the Hmong gang, he came to fill the roles of a masculine figure. The Hmong community got to experience a protector. And the Lor family’s children got to experience a father figure. The father figure role that Walt Kowalski played earned him the love of both Sue and Tao. Where Tao learned how to accomplish “manly” tasks around the neighborhood and how to talk his way into getting a job. Sue got to experience what it was like to have a father figure in a family of mostly women. The perception of the Hmong community in Gran Torino is an inaccurate portrayal of Asian communities because of the absence of an adult masculine figure throughout the …show more content…
Gran Torino only showed young harmless males, old powerless veterans, and dangerous gang members as the masculine figures in a Hmong community. There was never a well educated, professional male in Hmong community. There was never a Hmong male who served a strong a stable father figure in the household. This is a very inaccurate view of Hmong communities. Most Hmong communities have a head of a household, that serves as a protector and provider of the family. Gran Torino makes Hmong communities seem helpless and portrays the white man as a savior of a racial minority. There is also an inaccurate interpretation of masculinity. Masculinity is characterized as an exert of racist slurs in which Walt Kowalski teaches Tao Vang. The film Gran Torino is definitely inaccurate when comes to rendering the contemporary immigrant experience on masculinity in the Hmong