Million Dollar Baby

Clint Eastwood, USA, 2004, 132 minutes

Based on a short story by former boxer F.X. Tool, the film is endowed with a simple but very realistic plot. Adapted by Paul Haggis, perhaps best known for scripting comedy "Due South", the film, however, seems to be more of a character study than a drama, as other critics would see it.

Frankie Dunn (Clint Eastwood) and Maggie Fitzgerald (Hilary Swank) form a very odd couple, both struggling to overcome the social stigma of underachievement. Due to the its almost non-existent plot, the film is forced to rely on Swank's bid for the championship title.

However, her solid display of raw emotion and struggle to prove herself in a macho world, which is well worth her Academy Award, is credible compensation. One can see the traces of The Unforgiven and Mystic River - indeed, it is Eastwood's latest directorial outing, which also benefits from the expertise of the same production team teams involved in the two above projects.

Even though sports films are not generally known to be inspiring to its audiences depriving them of involvement with the characters, this one manages to break away from this dreadful convention brimming with live energy and tension, which passes no-one by, although as any sports film, it does focus on the events in the gym far too much.

In short, Hilary Swank's performance, Eastwood's impeccable direction; his simple yet penetrating storytelling (seen in the Mystic River and The Unforgiven) as well as Morgan Freeman's solid support provide world class cinematic entertainment making it one the must see films of this season.

Review by Boris Rogatchevski
Written for EUFS Programme Autumn 2005