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Million Dollar Baby (2004)
Drama, Sport, 132 minutes
Directed by Clint Eastwood
Starring Hilary Swank, Clint Eastwood and Morgan Freeman

Boxing isn't a sport that I find appealing. I did follow the career of Muhummad Ali as a child, but haven't paid much attention since he retired. It's a brutal way to earn a living. I do admire people for the dedication it involves, but it's no longer something that I want to watch.

There have been several good boxing movies over the years, from Rocky and Raging Bull to Cinderella Man and The Fighter. Each of those movies attempted to show the character behind the gloves, and that's where my interest lies when I do watch a boxing movie. As a fan of Clint Eastwood, I was particularly interested to see whether he would bring a fresh perspective as he has done in films showing racism and war from unexpected viewpoints. He didn't disappoint me.

Million Dollar Baby depicts women's boxing and focuses on Maggie Fitzgerald (Swank). She thinks of herself as trash, works as a waitress to pay the bills, and often resorts to eating leftovers from the diner. She shows up at Frankie Dunn's (Eastwood) gym and begs him to train her. He refuses, so Eddie Dupris (Freeman) shows her a few techniques. Frankie eventually agrees to train her after seeing how dedicated she is. Boxing is her only hope of escaping her miserable existence.

Frankie has problems of his own and is trying to get in touch with his estranged daughter, so Maggie becomes an outlet for Frankie's fatherly affection in some ways. He soon sees what amazing character she has. She's not only determined to succeed, but is kind to her ungrateful family when she starts to earn decent money.

Eastwood deviates from the normal formula by showing some of the grim reality of the sport. Not every aspiring fighter succeeds and Freeman's character has to live with the loss of an eye after being injured in his 109th fight. The film shows the dangers of boxing and how cutthroat the business can be. The thing which elevates it is the realism and the delicate way Frankie and Maggie deal with adversity. I cared about these characters.

Million Dollar Baby lifted four Oscars. Eastwood was Best Director, Swank Best Actress and Freeman Best Supporting Actor. The Best Picture award was fully deserved and the final 30 minutes is extremely sad and difficult to watch. That said, I included this in my 100 movies series for a reason. It's another superb project from Eastwood and will be remembered as one of his best creations.

To tell the truth, I had no real desire to see this film, even after it won Best Picture (I tend to be fairly unimpressed with the Oscar-dubbed "best" movies). I also had the impression that it was ultimately a very sad motion picture, and it's hard for me to watch sad movies. But - Morgan Freeman's in it, and (as I've said every time I review a Morgan Freeman movie), I consider Morgan Freeman to be the best actor working today. So I watched the movie. To say I was impressed and moved is an understatement. Million Dollar Baby is a truly magnificent film that does indeed hearken back to the old days when movies touched lives rather than merely entertained.

This movie plants its roots deeply into the human landscape, with the final hour riding a mighty wave of raw emotion. What began as a film suddenly transforms into something much more real. Much of the power of the whole story is subtly rendered, as past regrets lie hidden even as they influence everything that happens. Morgan Freeman is, of course, masterful in his co-starring role, and Hilary Swank more than deserved the Best Actress statuette she claimed at the Oscars. It is Clint Eastwood, though, who shines the brightest in this little universe of amazing stars. As producer and director as well as actor, he once again proves himself to be among the most gifted artists of all time. Much credit must also go the writer of the screenplay. The writing is well-nigh perfect, particularly in the way it brings disparate elements together in the end.

If I were to lay out the whole story, I could do it pretty quickly. It's amazing how the most powerful of movies usually feature the simplest of stories. If you don't know the story already, you really don't need to know what happens before you watch it (and I would recommend this movie to anyone and everyone), so I'll talk about the characters and what they represent (to me, at least). Maggie Fitzgerald (Hilary Swank) is a classic underdog. She has nothing but a dream and only one thing she cares about - and that is boxing. Not only is she trying to penetrate what has always been a man's world, she also has another strike against her in the form of her age. Frankie Dunn (Clint Eastwood), a long-time trainer and manager, is not about to start training a woman, especially a 32-year-old rookie. Maggie has the heart of a champion, though, and she is simply not going to give up. Dunn is a fascinating character - gruff on the outside, a loner, but also a man haunted by his past and obviously searching for something. He attends Mass every single day, for example, and only to get the priest riled up with questions after every service. We don't know much about his life other than what we see in the gym, but we know he has a daughter who returns every one of his weekly letters to her. When he and Maggie finally team up together, their relationship runs deep. Dunn becomes a surrogate father to Maggie, even as she becomes like a daughter to him - this latter point is expressed beautifully at the end. Eddie "Scrap-Iron" Dupris (Morgan Freeman), Dunn's gym manager and only real friend is the bridge that finally brings them together. He's a wonderful character in and of himself (as are several minor characters); we don't plumb his emotional depths the way we do those of Dunn and Maggie, but he is actually the narrator of this truly moving story (plus, we get to see him bring a real punk down a notch or two at one point).

Maybe you're shying away from this film because it's about a female boxer - well, it's really about life itself. Maybe you don't like sad movies - this film's worth the emotional turmoil it might put you through. Maybe you're just biased against Best Picture award-winners. All I can tell you is that I was all three of these things, and now I am here praising Million Dollar Baby in a loud voice. This is filmmaking at its best; it will move even the hardest of hearts, and it will renew your faith in the ability of motion pictures to truly transport the human soul in the most compelling of ways. Million Dollar Baby plays on the level of Greek tragedy, and that's something you can say of only a handful of recent movies.

every once in awhile,a movie comes along that defies description.Clint
Eastwood's Million Dollar Baby is that movie.One of the best movies
ever made by one of the greatest directors,this is a movie that will
not leave you untouched.Paul Haggis(Crash) wrote the screenplay for
this cinematic treasure and the stage was set.with Eastwood as
Director,the next piece of puzzle was the cast.And what a cast.You have
Hilary Swank in a moving,powerhouse performance in the lead role.you
have Eastwood himself in a strong supporting role.and you have the great
Morgan freeman in an understated,but no less superb performance.these
three make it seem so effortless.the rest of the supporting players are
also strong.I don't want to give too much away,for those who haven't
had the pleasure yet.the basics of the film are as follows.Hilary Swank
is Maggie Fitzgerald,a woman who has nothing-but a desire to be a
boxer.Eastwood plays Frankie Dunn,a grizzled boxing trainer,hardened by
life.Morgan freeman is Eddie Dupris aka "Scrap",Frankie's lone friend
and Manager of his boxing club.Maggie walks into Frankie's life one
day,desperate for him to train her.Frankie refuses at first and Maggie
never gives up.Frankie finally relents(with a bit of help from
"scrap".and the stage is set.What follows is the growing relationship
between Maggie,Frankie and "Scrap" and the lessons they learn and teach
each other.until the end,with a closing act you won't soon(if ever)
forget.

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1.0 out of 5 stars Depressing, bad message (if it is the right message.)
OK, so I don't really get this film. Some people say it's inspirational, but I don't believe it is true. Read more

Published on April 10 2006 by RICK

5.0 out of 5 stars Maggie's decision - a zeitgeist-campaign ?
Maggie's decision, her last wish, addressed to her father-like assistant Frankie: to switch off the machines to help her bringing her pains to an end - maybe it's a fight against... Read more

Published on July 19 2005 by FrizzText

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