Elderism #30

December 8th, 2008

A lot of my gay friends hate Clint Eastwood because of his treatment of same-sexers in Mystic River. Indeed, some of Eastwood’s post-Unforgiven career moves have seemed a little…reckless, as Gail Sheehy points out in her interview with Eastwood in Parade this past weekend. Eastwood corroborates:

“When you’re young, you’re very reckless. Then you get conservative. Then you get reckless again.”

Sheehy tries to pinpoint the cause of this recklessness, asking the 78 year-old twice if he’s afraid of dying. (Eastwood punts both times, opting to talk about the death of his mother two years ago.) But Sheehy finally gets at the heart of the matter when she asks the screen legend if he’s worried that audiences may take offense at the racist character he plays in the upcoming Gran Torino. Eastwood responds,

“What can they do to you after 70?”