by Chris Marshall:
For years I had virtually no interest in seeing Million Dollar Baby, and I don’t know
why. It’s (kind of) a boxing movie, it has Clint Eastwood in it, and it was
almost universally beloved by critics. But for whatever reason, I could just
never summon up enough enthusiasm to watch it.
That was a mistake. Like Unforgiven
before it, Clint Eastwood again delivered a magnificent film, buoyed by the
performances of its three stars: Eastwood, Morgan Freeman, and most
importantly, Hilary Swank. Swank was only five years removed from her breakout
performance in Boys Don’t Cry, for
which she won Best Actress. This time, as the up and coming boxer Maggie
Fitzgerald, she would win it again. Freeman, for his role as retired boxer
Scrap Iron Dupris, finally won his first Academy Award.
So yeah, I really liked this movie, even though a great deal
of its last act has been spoiled for me many times over. I won’t reveal it
here, except to say that a sense of dread hung over me the entire time I was
watching. I knew it was going to happen, but I didn’t know when, so every fight
was tinged with anxiety.
