Gran Torino Page #9

Walt sees a child help an old man out of the bathroom.

Walt coughs hard. He wipes blood from his lips. Sue

comes in and looks at Walt.

SUE:

Are you okay?

Walt brushes past her and goes into the bathroom.

46 INT. BATHROOM -SAME TIME 46

EPIPHANY.

Walt washes his face in the sink and dries his hands.

He’s still pale. He looks long and hard in the mirror.

Walt is stunned, it all adds up. Walt hasn’t really

lived in 50 years, he hasn’t relaxed or exhaled or let

his guard down since he got back from Korea in 1953.

WALT:

(to himself)

Son of a b*tch. I’ve got more in

common with these goddamned gooks

than my own spoiled-rotten family.

(CONTINUED)

51.

46 CONTINUED:
46

Walt looks at himself.

WALT:

Happy birthday.

Walt opens the bathroom door. Sue stands there with a

concerned look on her face.

SUE:

Are you okay?

WALT:

Me? I’m fine.

SUE:

You were bleeding?

Walt smiles disarmingly.

WALT:

I just bit my tongue. I’m fine.

I’m great. Let’s get some of that

gook food, I’m starving.

47 INT. KITCHEN 47

Walt sits amongst several old Hmong Women, who take great

delight in feeding him different Hmong dishes which he’s

obviously never tasted before.

Walt reacts with great enthusiasm to the food,

occasionally making jokes like he’s choking, etc. This

corny stuff goes over like gangbusters with the Hmong

ladies.

Sue comes in and rolls her eyes at Walt.

SUE:

Come on, you glutton, let’s go

downstairs.

WALT:

Why?

SUE:

To mingle.

WALT:

I’m fine right here. I’m

mingling.

SUE:

Come on, you said ‘not to leave

you alone.’

52.

48 INT. BASEMENT -SAME TIME 48

Walt and Sue descend the stairway. Walt is really out of

his element down with all the Hmong teenagers.

And the first person he sees across the room is Tao.

WALT:

Oh great.

SUE:

Well, look who’s over there.

WALT:

What’s-his-name who tried to steal

my Gran Torino.

SUE:

My brother Tao.

WALT:

Yeah, Toad.

Tao is in the corner, he avoids Walt’s gaze. Sue walks

over to a group of boys, leaving Walt alone.

Walt doesn’t know what to do with himself. He leans

against the DRYER. The DRYER wobbles.

Walt gets on his hands and knees. He looks under the

dryer. He adjusts the short leg to balance out the

machine.

He just can’t help it.

All the Hmong kids watch Walt, trying not to laugh at

this strange white man on his hands and knees fixing a

dryer during a party. Walt looks up --deer in the

headlights.

WALT:

It was wobbly, but I fixed it.

It’s fine now, shouldn’t wobble

anymore.

The Hmong kids look away, covering their mouths with

their hands.

Walt glares at Tao, who immediately wipes the smile from

his face. Sue walks over and hands Walt a drink.

WALT:

What’s this?

(CONTINUED)

53.

48 CONTINUED:
48

SUE:

Rice liquor. Try it.

WALT:

Alright.

Sue walks off. Walt sips his rice liquor and watches the

interaction between the boys and girls.

One particularly gorgeous young willow-wisp of a GIRL

stares across the room at Tao. Tao looks back at her,

but then looks away.

The Girl keeps looking at Tao, smiling and twisting her

hair.

Tao doesn’t approach her, but three other young men do.

They do their best to charm her. She’s polite, but not

interested, she keeps looking at Tao.

Walt laughs at Tao’s ineptitude, shakes his head at this

wasted opportunity. Suddenly the Girl steps over to

Walt.

She smiles -

WA XAM (GIRL)

My friends and I were just

wondering what you’re doing here?

WALT:

Good question. What am I doing

here? Anyways, I’m Walt.

WA XAM:

Hi, Walt. I’m Wa Xam.

WALT:

Wa Yum?

WA XAM:

No, Wa Xam. So... what do you do?

WALT:

Me? Not too much... I fix stuff I

guess.

WA XAM:

Like what?

WALT:

Well, I fixed my wife’s friend’s

sink yesterday.

(MORE)

(CONTINUED)

54.

48

CONTINUED:
(2) 48

WALT (CONT'D)

I drove my aunt to the doctor to

straighten out her prescription.

Even fixed my screen door before

it was broke.

WA XAM:

You’re funny.

WALT:

That’s one thing I’ve never been

accused of. A bastard, yes.

Funny, no.

Wa Xam laughs.

WA XAM:

Well, have fun. I’m going to take

off.

WALT:

A pleasure to meet you, Yum Yum.

She laughs at Walt butchering her name and goes upstairs.

The three young suitors follow her up. Tao watches her.

Walt comes over to Tao, who is startled. Walt laughs.

WALT:

Relax, zipper head, whatta you

think I’m gonna do, shoot you?

Tao looks like he wants to run away.

WALT:

I wouldn’t say anything either, if

I was you.

Walt sips his rice liquor. Walt can’t help but rib Tao.

WALT:

You know, I knew you were a

dipshit even before the whole

garage deal, but I have to say

you’re even worse with women than

you are stealing cars, Toad.

TAO:

It’s Tao.

WALT:

What’s that?

TAO:

It’s Tao, not Toad. My name is

Tao.

(CONTINUED)

55.

48 CONTINUED:
(3) 48

WALT:

Good for you. Anyways, you’re

blowing it with that girl. Not

that I give two shits about a Toad

like you.

TAO:

You don’t know what you’re talking

about.

WALT:

Wrong, egg roll. I completely

know what I’m talking about. I

know I’m not always the most

pleasant person to be around, but

I got the greatest woman who ever

lived to marry me. I had to work

at it, but I got her and it was

the best thing that ever happened

to me. Hands down.

Walt points across the room. He sways slightly.

WALT:

But you? You just sit there and

watch as Ding Dong and Click Clack

and Charlie Chan walk away with

what’s-her-face. She likes you,

you know.

TAO:

Who?

WALT:

She was standing over there,

orange dress, twisting her hair

and smiling at you.

TAO:

You mean Wa Xam?

Walt takes a long swig off his drink and nods.

WALT:

Yeah, yeah. Anyways, she likes

you, I know, I talked to her.

Great girl, charming girl. Love

her. I love Yum Yum. But you?

You just watch her walk out the

door with the Three Stooges. Why?

Because you’re a big fat p*ssy!

Walt drains his drink.

(CONTINUED)

56.

48 CONTINUED:
(4) 48

WALT:

I gotta go home. Good luck, puss-

cake. You need it.

49 EXT. WALT’S YARD -DAY 49

Walt empties the lawnmower bag as two elderly Hmong Women

come over, each carrying a FLOWER BOUQUET.

WALT:

No. No thanks. No more flowers.

The elderly Hmong Women nod and speak rapid sentences in

Hmong to Walt. He has no idea what they are saying.

WALT:

No more. Please, keep your

flowers.

The Hmong women nod, smile and chatter away, ignoring

Walt. They walk past him and set the BOUQUETS on his

porch.

WALT:

(defeated)

Okay, just put them on the porch.

But that’s it. No more.

50 INT. WALT’S ENTRYWAY -MORNING 50

The doorbell rings. Walt answers, a Skillsaw in one

hand.

Standing on his doorstep are three Hmong women.

WALT:

What now, Gee?

Gee holds up a plate covered with tinfoil.

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