Hammerman Ikon

Hammerman Ikon Film Guide

Million Dollar Baby
2004
*****
Director: Clint Eastwood
Cast: Clint Eastwood, Hilary Swank, Morgan Freeman, Jay Baruchel, Mike Colter, Lucia Rijker, Brían F. O'Byrne, Anthony Mackie, Margo Martindale, Riki Lindhome, Michael Peña, Bruce MacVittie, Ned Eisenberg

A grumpy old boxing coach is initially reluctant to train a determined young white trash woman into a fighter, but the two slowly develop a deep surrogate father/daughter relationship. The screenplay by Paul Haggis (from the stories by F.X. Toole) starts as a funny and seemingly trivial boxing drama, but in the last third it takes an unexpected turn into something deeper and darker, which leads to a heart-rending finale. An Academy Award winner for best film and director, and for the terrific performances of Hilary Swank and Morgan Freeman.