Gran Torino

Gran Torino is a 2009 film directed by and starring Clint Eastwood. The story takes place in a Detroit neighborhood. It focuses on Walt Kowalski a hardened veteran from The Korean War. He is consequently a notable racist and his temper is sometimes uncontrollable.

He becomes distraught when a Hmong family move next door. He is further distressed when Thao, the neighbor makes an attempt to steal his prized Ford Gran Torino, because of a would be initiation ritual, in which Thao wold be baptized into a Hmong gang, headed by his cousin. Walt puts a halt to the charade when he threatens to shoot his cousin and the other gang members if they don't leave his property.
Thao's sister Su and mother, offer Walt two weeks of labor from Thao, as a traditional form of penance in Hmong culture, and Walt hesitantly agrees to the proposition. Walt eventually befriends Thao and becomes a kind of mentor to him. He gives his life to save Thao and his family in the epic finale.
Some cultural elements featured in the movie include , Hmong food, Hmong religion, and Hmong language. I can't relate in any other way than sharing the Hmong pride for their origins. I have the same respect for my Irish roots and am proud to be Irish, just as Su, Thao and their family are proud to be Hmong. They express their roots in everyday life, unlike me, as I don't speak Irish language at all, while they communicate in traditional language, but it still reminds me of how prideful my family is about being Irish.