‘Gran Torino’

The notion of a 78-year-old action hero may sound like a contradiction in terms, but Clint Eastwood brings it off in “Gran Torino,” even if his toughness is as much verbal as physical. Even after all these years, Eastwood can still make “Get off my lawn” sound as menacing as “Make my day.” With his impeccable directing style and acting presence, Eastwood has turned “Gran Torino” into another in his ongoing series of films that ponder violence, its place and its cost. It combines sentiment and shootouts, the serious and the studio, in a way that has become distinctly Eastwood’s own.