Million Dollar Baby: Re-edited
Published January 30, 2005
As both an actor and director, Eastwood has always explored the darker side of human nature- even when he was the hero. In his most recent movie, Million Dollar Baby, Eastwood plays a boxing trainer, Frankie Dunn, who reluctantly agrees to train a female boxer Maggie Fitzgerald played by Hillary Swank.
Morgan Freeman, who plays an old retired fighter Scrap, is the narrator and as we find out in the end; his narration is a letter being sent to Dunn's estranged daughter. Boxing is one sport that can be used as metaphor for life for boxing is a rough and tumble businesses where wealth, riches and fame only comes to the very few. Scrap is more typical of a fighter's life as oppose to Oscar De La Hoya. He has spent all his money and he lives at Dunn's gym, rent free. As for Dunn, he is a brilliant trainer but he is a reluctant warrior when it comes to managing his fighters. He is over cautious and rarely takes chances with his fighter- only looking for the perfect fight, which never seems to come. In the beginning of the movie, he loses his top prospect to another manager when the young fighter realizes that he may never get his chance for a title while training with Dunn.
Maggie Fitzgerald is a struggling waitress who wants to be a fighter and views this as her chance for glory, wealth and fame. As Scrap notes, boxing is the one sport where the fighter is the one with the dreams that no one else shares or believes. Maggie believes that under Dunn, she can be a champ. Dunn views women boxers as sideshow but after losing his top prizefighter and prodding by Scrap, decides to train Maggie.
What we see is a relationship that bonds into a father-daughter relationship. Maggie's own family uses her as their meal ticket but really don't care for her beyond that. Maggie loves her family but the love is not returned . The only family member that appeared to care about Maggie was her deceased father. Dunn is estranged from his daughter and while we don't know why, we feel Dunn's lost over his daughter love. As his Priest tells him in a crucial scene at the end of the movie, the fact that he showed up for Church for 23 years details a man whose pain is too much for him to bear alone. A pain related to a daughter that he never hears from or see.
- Million Dollar Baby: Re-edited
- Published: January 30, 2005
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- Section: Video
- Writer: Tom Donelson
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Comments on this articleComments
Have you ever heard of the phrase SPOILER ALERT????
Luckily, I came across your "review" AFTER I returned from the theater, because you reveal major details of this stellar film, including a devastating plot twist that should've remained a secret for those who haven't had a chance to see the movie yet.
Judging by the tone of your writing, you obviously liked the film. Was your intention to keep other people from feeling the same way? If so, it worked, because any poor soul who has happened upon your review doesn't need to see this movie. You've told them the ENTIRE story.
Thank God you weren't around when I saw "The Usual Suspects." I'm sure you would've managed to ruin that, too.
Color me in the spoiled category.
I guess this is my comeuppance for my telling my sister that Darth Vader was Luke's father...
I will admit it, I screwed up. Million dollar baby was great movie [edited]
So please forgive me. I have learned a valuable lesson. Enjoy the movie inspite of yours truly. Right now I am watching the last days of Pompeii on Discovery- oh yea, nearly everyone dies.
Tom, you could edit your post to remove the spoiler aspect...
Piece been re-edited.
Maybe edit comment #5 too where you let us know what Frank's ultimate decision was. You've succeeded in leaving nothing for the theater. Kudos.
You're a regular Pauline Kael, Tom. Thanks!
I love how, after you admit you screwed up, you manage to reveal YET ANOTHER major plot point in your comment. Maybe it would best if you left the movie reviews to the professionals, huh?
sounds like One Flew Over .. oops
Its the kind of thing you can get away with on Passion of the Christ, or Titanic. We can pretty well figure out how those end.
Trust me when I tell, even the pros screw up. (I know from personal experience,since I have been panel discussion with many professionals or experts on various issues and more than held my own.) So I will keep plugging away and there will be more reviews in the future. Besides some of you are hard to please.
People, what is wrong with you? You complain about spoilers and then what do you do? You give away more spoilers with your comments!
Please have comment #1 edited, too - it gives away what must be a pretty major issue in the plot.
Tom: talk about the acting, talk about the story, but don't ever, EVER talk about the ending or any aspect of the ending, especially when there is a "twist" of some kind. You've edited this review but still left in clues about things that happen in the ending. As a potential viewer of this movie, even your edited review contains enough spoilers that I have a pretty good idea of some of the events of the end of the film. Not to mention Matt Egan's completely unnecessary, very specific detail about what happens to a major character (see how I did that? Not a clue as to what happens, nor to whom it happens.) The result? One less ticket sold to see this movie, because a good part of the tension of finding out what and why things are happening has already been relieved for me. Thanks a whole lot.
Tom J--You obviously didn't read the original post before it was edited. Tom D gave away the whole movie before he decided to edit out the spoiler. My comment #1 was not a spolier--it was form the original review! I didn't see the movie yet, so how would I know this?
Since you were a Johnny Come Lately on this, your opinion is worth nothing.
yes, but your comment about the comment about the review has revealed ...
I think I spared everyone more plot points, since I'll need to get them from Tom D. I'm relying on people who have seen the movie.
It sure sounds Oscar worthy. I cried when I read the ending. Imagine what would have happened if I had seen it!
Actually, as a "Johnny Come Lately," my opinion is actually worth more since I was still able to figure out what happens at the end, even after the editing. My "Johnny Come Lately"-ness just makes even more obvious that the review still reveals critical details. But, thanks for minimizing me, dude. And my name's not Johnny.
this movie sucks anyway...formulaic crap
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Tom--This would be a nice review, if you hadn't given away the most important plot points. You've effectively ruined the experience for anyone who hasn't seen the movie yet. Now the reader already knows that [edited]? Read Ebert's review of the movie, which speak to the same themes as your review, without giving me a book report style that tells us everything. Christ.