MILD SPOILERS
CONTAINED HEREIN: BE WARNED
I don't consider myself a Clint Eastwood
fan...in fact, I usually find myself quite the
contrary. Even when I respect his films, I
seldom find myself emotionally drawn to them or
even simply enjoying them. This started to
change with last year's "Mystic River," though I
found myself incredibly challenged by the
ending. In "Million Dollar Baby," Eastwood pulls
yet another surprise in what may be his most
powerful film yet. Eastwood also offers,
perhaps, his best performance ever as Frankie, a
boxing trainer/manager with 23 years of
unresolved issues holding him and his fighters
back from success.
This story of Maggie, a 32-year-old has been who
never really was, (played by Oscar nominee
Hilary Swank) is mesmerizing in the way it deals
with dreams and aspirations,
family/relationships, gender roles, the
definition of winning AND other issues that
simply must remain nameless until you see the
film yourself.
Much like my attitude with Eastwood, I have
never found myself a Swank fan. This includes
her Oscar winning performance in "Boys Don't
Cry," a performance that I respected but never
really have fully appreciated. Yet, Swank offers
an uncanny combination of vulnerability and
strength here that is achingly beautiful to
behold. She captures nuances of Maggie's spirit
in simple looks, gestures and movements that
continue to stay with me. Her closing scene with
her family was one of powerful simplicity and
yet complete and utter strength.
I find it rather ironic that Eastwood shines
most here when he's accepted Maggie as a
fighter...when he becomes a teacher, a mentor
and someone who truly cares about her. Eastwood
has made a career out of tough guy roles, but
his last scene with the priest is simply one of
the most beautiful and revealing scenes to be
filmed this year. It's a place I wasn't sure
Eastwood could go with a character...while I
remain hostile about Paul Giamatti's absence
from the Oscar nominations, I can't deny that
Eastwood's performance here is so wholly
wonderful and such an obvious acting powerhouse
for him that it would have been nearly
impossible to not nominate him.
Similarly, this is true for supporting actor
Morgan Freeman. Freeman, who plays Scrap,
narrates the film and serves as a sort of
emotional and physical bridge between the
characters. He is friend and advocate and
nurturing guide. It's a tremendous performance
by Freeman, and while it may not have the
emotional variance necessary to capture the
Oscar he most definitely deserved his
nomination.
One of the awesome things about this film is
that even the smaller roles are treated with
great care and the actors commit themselves
fully. For example, the priest is portrayed by
2004 Tony winner Bryan O'Byrne...a bit part that
could have been quite the caricature instead
comes to life to the point that the closing
scene is no surprise...after 23 years of
attending mass and a relationship that borders
on love/hate...when the priest was needed he was
there...deeply present. Thus, a throw-away scene
became a vital scene.
Other strong performances are offered by Jay
Baruchel as "Danger" and Margo Martindale as
Maggie's "trailer trash" mother. (Martindale
also starred with Swank in this year's
award-winning "Iron Jawed Angels").
Eastwood directs, produces, stars in and scored
this film and handles all his tasks wonderfully.
The film is scripted by Paul Haggis based upon
stories by FX Toole.
Perhaps it is the vision of Eastwood that makes
me celebrate this film the most...there's a
mind-boggling attention to detail, especially in
some of the later scenes. Unfortunately, I can't
go into great detail without giving much
away...yet, these details are so minute that
they add tremendous depth to Swank's
performance, in particular.
There are minor issues with "Million Dollar
Baby," and I'd be remiss if I didn't mention
them. First, while I loved the use of lighting
in this film and, especially, the mood-altering
use of darkness, I found myself at times feeling
like it was over-utilized. There were times I
felt disconnected from the characters
(especially Eastwood) because they were speaking
in darkness and I wanted to see and feel their
expressions. Likewise, the occasional camera
angle felt awkward. There would be two
performers speaking and the camera would focus
on the side of one person's face. For me, this
felt awkward and inappropriate.
Additionally, in a film that spent so much time
dealing with reality I found a couple of
occasions too much of a stretch to buy
into...including the ending. While I had no
personal dilemmas with the issues raised, the
resolution undoubtedly would have opened up
legal issues that were left hanging. Likewise,
the final match's resolution just rang a bit
false. While I can accept the end, I can't quite
accept how it happened. Here was a man who was
famous for his attention to detail, skills of
observation and immediate response to his
fighter's needs. In the sort of "slow motion"
way the end of the fight occurred, I just had a
hard time believing that Frankie didn't respond
quicker.
These dilemmas keep this film, for me, from
being absolutely stunning...much like I felt
about last year's "Mystic River." Yet, I can't
deny that these dilemmas are minor AND this is
simply a magnificent film fueled by Oscar
nominated performances from Eastwood, Swank and
Freeman. Eastwood also received a directing
nomination, Best Editing, Best Adapted
Screenplay and Best Picture.
As I was leaving the theater, I heard several
comments along the lines of "I was expecting it
to be more like Rocky." I do, in fact, fault the
marketing a touch for creating some
inappropriate expectations for this film. So
much has been made of the Eastwood/Swank angle,
that virtually every critic has left the ending
alone. While this adds to the dramatic impact of
the film, it may hurt word of mouth box office
as this is CLEARLY not a "Rocky" type picture
despite the obvious correlation in the early
going.
Some will be troubled by the twists and turns of
this film, but while a challenging ride it is a
worthy journey to undertake. "Million Dollar
Baby" raises so many incredibly valuable life
issues and does so surrounded by, perhaps, the
definitive film of Clint Eastwood's already
outstanding career.
©
Written by Richard
Propes
TC Candler's Comment
This somber
story is very well written and contains some
special performances. Clint Eastwood has
clearly become a great director over the years.
I am not sure that this film attains the level
of profundity that Roger Ebert claims it does.
It doesn't pack the punch necessary to make it
to the top of my 2004 list, but it is still one
of the must-see movies of the year.
Jacob
Hall's Comment
N/A
