Character is one of the themes of this movie. It comes disguised as a grumpy old man with a smart mouth and no sense of the politically correct. In some ways this is a fitting movie to be the last acting job for Clint Eastwood.( as h e says it is) It is like The Shootist for John Wayne in that it brings together the character of the actor on screen and off. In this movie Clint Eastwood is a recently widowed auto worker and Korean War veteran who reluctantly takes on the role of Hero for his changed neighborhood. It is easy to watch and proves that it is possible to make a good movie with out a lot of explosions if you have a good story, a good actor, and in this case a good director in Clint Eastwood. Excellent movie that I could watch over and over.