Wow, I just got home from another exciting Hollywood night. My friend Philip invited me to a guild screening of the new Clint Eastwood movie Gran Torino (his second film this season!) at the Writer's Guild Theater in Beverly Hills. The story is about an aging, racist widower who makes unlikely friends with the immigrant Hmong family who live next door. I won't spoil the ending, but there was not a dry eye in the house.
The movie was full of surprises and a great deal of off-color humor, which had the audience both gasping and laughing hysterically at the same time. After the film, Mr. Eastwood entered the theater to a standing ovation and sat on stage for a short Q&A. I was sitting in about the fifth row from the front, so I had a great view for both the movie and Mr. Eastwood's appearance.
He really seemed like a living Hollywood legend. Sharply dressed in tan slacks, brown shoes, a burnt orange shirt and matching tie, and a beautiful black leather jacket on top, Mr. Eastwood looked younger and more virile in person than he did in the movie. It's hard to believe he is 78 years old by his own admission tonight. Also his natural speaking voice is very clear and pleasant, not at all the gravelly mumble most of his characters use.
Occasionally at these events, I will muster up the courage to ask a question, so before the film started I considered what to ask and decided to ask if he planned to retire any time soon. It's extremely ironic that Mr. Eastwood's career has actually gotten busier as he has grown older, and he shows no signs of slowing down. He mentioned during the Q&A that he's already got another project about Nelson Mandela in pre-production and scheduled to start shooting next March.
I didn't ask my question, but I did have a brief exchange with the man. At one point, a person asked about his directing career versus his acting, and Mr. Eastwood explained that he had wanted to quit acting when he directed his first movie back in 1970:
"I was still fairly young at the time," he explained. "Well, I guess 40 didn't seem that young back then, but it seems a lot younger to me now. I was going to be a director and stop acting, but because I hadn't proven myself as a successful director, the only way I could get the movie made was to also act in it. I didn't expect to have to keep doing that, but projects kept coming along and I kept taking acting jobs. People ask me if I will ever quit and I guess I will if the good scripts stop coming."
Suddenly, I saw an opportunity and screamed out, "Don't quit! We love you!" The audience applauded and cheered while Mr. Eastwood (or Clint, as I like to call him now) laughed and looked me straight in the eye and pointed, "Let me guess, you've got a script you'd like to show me?" We all laughed -- it was a wonderful moment.
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