Eastwood as Frankie proves what a great actor he is – he’s never been the most expressive performer – here he shows you that less is more.
Swank earned her second Oscar for Best Actress – she’s tough, intense and fragile at the same time. “I got no one but you Frankie,” she says.Īll the performances are superlative. Watch for a scene that takes place in a car between Frankie and Maggie, and notice the play with light and shadows on their faces. There are two scenes that take place in two different diners that could come out of an Edward Hopper painting. It’s all very evocative – as if the past and the choices we make or do not make – are always hanging round the corner. Working with director of photography Tom Stern – Eastwood’s lighting highlights shadows and dark spaces. Eastwood’s pacing allows us to relish in their relationships.
If I’m too old for this, then I got nothing.” The scope of the film will remain on these three individuals – their connections and the effect they have on one another will have deep repercussions and emotional resonance. This the only thing I ever felt good doing. She explains, “I’m 32 and I’m here celebrating the fact that I spent another year scraping dishes and waitressing, and according to you, I’ll be 37 before I can even throw a decent punch. He refuses for she’s a girl and too old – yet she won’t take no for an answer. Maggie (Hilary Swank) walks in their lives and is determined to be trained by Frankie. The only person comes to church that much is the kind who can’t forgive himself for something.” His assistant is someone he trained, Scrap (Morgan Freeman) who lost his eye on his last fight and Eastwood blames himself for it. His priest tells him, “Frankie I’ve seen you at mass almost every day for 23 years. It continues where other inspiring sports movies stop – with a narrative progress that some may consider dark or sad – yet it’s real and elegiac – and honest, and it only enriches the experience and enriches our soul by doing it.Įastwood plays Frankie – an old trainer who owns and runs “The Hit Pit.” He goes to mass every day and is estranged from his daughter and writes to her often yet all the letters are returned. Where it does the unexpected – is where it goes.
It uses the conventions of a sports movie – in particular a boxing movie – and turns it inside out – including the fact that our pugilist is female. This deceptively simple movie upends our expectations. The importance of latching on to your dreams and the risk they entail – the search for family and connectivity – the constant questioning of faith – and seeking some form of renewal are all thoughts that have swirled in my mind in the past few months and are the themes that Clint Eastwood tackles directly in his masterpiece – “Million Dollar Baby” – the depressingly uplifting and inspiring 2004 film that justifiably won him his second best director and best picture Oscar awards. It’s the magic of risking everything for a dream nobody sees but you.” Those words are uttered by Scrap in “Million Dollar Baby,” and resound deeply in me – especially these days where I find myself in a state that combines isolation and desperation.
“If there’s magic in boxing, it’s the magic of fighting battles beyond endurance, beyond cracked ribs, ruptured kidneys and detached retinas.