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____Clint
Eastwood is outstanding. This movie
will linger in your head long after
you leave the theater and you've forgotten
what else you've seen in the past year.
____There
are those who accuse the movies Eastwood
directs as being too long, too obvious,
and too over-dramatic, but, in the end,
fairly well-done. But if the past is
prologue, let us consider "Million
Dollar Baby" the perfection that
follows intense trial and error. It's
that one "okay" dish your
Mom made differently each time, and
when she finally mastered the recipe,
you were too afraid to tell her in fear
that she would stop improving it.
____Casual
movie-goers be warned: "Million..."
is not Just Another Dramatic Sports
Flick. If I have to see another rough-neck
coach teach the value of winning through
heart and courage to an underdog, I'll
give up on Hollywood completely. Not
only will this story move you, mentally
and emotionally, the lead actors are
all worthy of the highest acclaim.
____The
story begins when amateur boxer Maggie
Fitzgerald (Hillary Swank) makes all
attempts to have veteran trainer and
boxing gym operator Frankie Dunn (Clint
Eastwood) train her. Looking in, and
acting as the film's narrater, is Eddie
"Scrap-Iron" Dupris (Morgan
Freeman), Frankie's right-hand man and
the gym's caretaker. Beyond that, the
story unfolds to reveal a deeper, more
intense, multi-layered drama. A few
reviews circulating around the internet,
along with the help of fanatical radio
personalities, have blatantly spoiled
the movie because of the reviewers'
opinions about some key issues on which
the plot revolves. I can reveal this
much: "Million..." is not
your typical linear sports movie. It
is cleverly put together; every detail
added (and every detail left out) contributes
to the film's final moments.
____It's
all the fashion these days to hype an
actor or actress who undergoes "such
a physical transformation" for
their role. Let not the fact that Hillary
Swank impressively beefed up for her
character distract from her Oscar-deserving
performance as a determined, independent
protagonist. Eastwood (who I must also
say looks damn fit for his age) tackles
the role of rough-neck-with-a-heart
like true artist. The two play as surrogates
to one another, with all the chemistry
a father-daughter relationship could
go through crammed into two hours.
____Morgan
Freeman has taken the best of his career
and compressed it all together as the
warm-hearted, strong-willed former-boxer-turned-custodian.
The dialogue between he and Eastwood
begs for future collaboration, and at
times acts as the film's comic relief.
____The
dynamic aspects of the three main characters
are amplified by the static appeal of
the supporting cast. The focus on the
trio's world is so involved that the
other characters at times seem alien,
and I believe done so with calculated
deliberation. Notable too, in "Million
Dollar Baby", is the refreshing
use of audience imagination. Much of
what happened before the film's temporal
setting is hidden, leaving the inner
demons of Frankie and Maggie a puzzle
not meant to be solved, but felt.
____If
you want to see the one movie that draws
you in, keeps you, and spits you out
laughing and crying, go one round with
"Million Dollar Baby". Or
go two. It's that good.
Photos
by Warner Bros.
-K. Tanaka
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