<P> David Brauer of MinnPost said that some Hmong liked Gran Torino and that many believed that the film was offensive . Actor Bee Vang said "Hmong around the country were furious about its negative stereotypes and cultural distortions" and that they confronted him when he spoke at events . Vang added that he engaged in "explaining my obligation as an actor while also recognizing that, as a Hmong - American, I didn't feel that I could own the lines I was uttering ." Brauer said that in an opinion editorial released in 2011, Vang "isn't kind to the Clint Eastwood film". Krissy Reyes - Ortiz of The Bottom Line of the University of California Santa Barbara said, based on Vang's testimony in a 2011 program, that "Though many of the people who have seen the film may have gotten a sense of satisfaction and joy from seeing that Walt overcame his racism, the people who acted as the Hmong members in the movie did not" and that "They were offended by the traces of racism that were included in the movie and that they experienced themselves on set". Some Hmong on internet message boards had posted criticisms of the film . </P> <P> Philip W. Chung of AsianWeek said that Eastwood, portraying a White man, was the "main weapon" of the film even though screenwriter Nick Schenk "does his best to portray Hmong culture and the main Hmong characters with both depth and cultural sensitivity". Chung argued that "Gran Torino might have been another ""white man saves the day" story" but that "What Eastwood has really created is not a story about the white man saving the minority (though it can be read on that level and I'm sure some will) but a critical examination of an iconic brand of white macho maleness that he played a significant part in creating ." </P> <P> Gran Torino was recognized by the American Film Institute as one of the Ten Best Films of 2008 . Clint Eastwood's performance has also garnered recognition . He won an award for Best Actor from the National Board of Review, he was nominated for the Broadcast Film Critics Association (Critics' Choice Awards) and by the Chicago Film Critics Association Awards for Best Actor . An original song from the film, "Gran Torino", was nominated for the Golden Globe Awards for Best Original Song . The music is Jamie Cullum, Kyle Eastwood, and Michael Stevens, with Cullum penning the lyrics, although Eastwood composed and performed the title track to the film . The Art Directors Guild nominated Gran Torino in the contemporary film category . </P> <P> The film, however, was ignored by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences at the 81st Academy Awards when it was not nominated for a single Oscar, which led to heated criticism from many who felt that the Academy had also deliberately snubbed Revolutionary Road, The Dark Knight, WALL - E and Changeling (which Eastwood also directed) from the five major categories . </P>

Who sings gran torino at the end of the movie