DVD Review: Million Dollar Baby
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::Movie review
Million Dollar Baby is one of those films that works best when its themes are allowed to blindside you, just the way that real life tends to do. This can be a tough trick in today's world of information saturation. Entering into the film completely naïve will be difficult, at best.
I will do what I can to maintain the secrecy of the critical plot twist, although doing so may limit the scope of this review.
What I can tell you is that Million Dollar Baby is a story that tries to tackle the value of life. The film suggests that our dreams and desires are integral to who we are. It questions the true value of life and just when it ends.
The film opens with narration by Eddie “Scrap Iron” Dupris (Morgan Freeman), in which Eddie explains how backwards boxing is compared to life. Eddie is a retired boxer who fought one fight too many, and it cost him the use of an eye. Now he works in the boxing club owned by his old trainer, Frankie Dunn (Clint Eastwood).
Frankie has a true talent for the behind-the-scenes side of boxing. He can keep a fighter on his feet long after common sense has given up. He knows how to read opponents and give his fighters exactly the right advice. He even knows how to protect his fighters, and this is his flaw. Frankie's desire to keep his fighters safe may just cost them opportunities, but since he blames himself for Eddie's permanent injuries, he is unwilling to allow another fighter to suffer the same fate.
Frankie has resigned himself to watching talented boxers leave him for more ambitious managers. Then Maggie Fitzgerald (Hilary Swank) comes into his club. Maggie wants to be a boxer, but she's at a disadvantage. She's had no training, she's in her 30's and, to Frankie's dismay, she's a girl. He doesn't train girls.
Eventually, it becomes clear to Frankie that boxing is no idle fantasy Maggie is indulging. She has a passion for it that is all consuming. Maggie's family is the epitome of trailer trash. Her mother and sister are content to spend their lives in a mobile home park, exploiting the welfare system for every penny they can get. Maggie has been working as a waitress since her early teens and knows that very few opportunities exist for her. She sees her future and despises it. Boxing is a way out.
Reluctantly, Frankie agrees to train Maggie and the girl turns out to be a prodigy. She quickly absorbs Frankie's knowledge and when she gets into the ring, she is explosive, destroying opponents within seconds.
Maggie quickly finds fame and fortune. When she tries to share that wealth with her family, they mock her, while scorning her help. How can they accept her money without jeopardizing their welfare checks? Bitterly, Maggie leaves them and informs Frankie that he is the only family she has. Frankie is willing to accept this. His own daughters, perhaps the same age as Maggie, won't speak to him. In fact, the letters he writes to her each week are returned unopened.
The third act of Million Dollar Baby takes a turn that is astonishing in a way that escapes most other stories. It is this turn that truly defines the characters in this film and elevates the story to greatness. Many films present their characters with difficult decisions and the choices made are as much to serve the contrivances of the plot as anything else. There is a feeling in Million Dollar Baby that the characters have come to their decisions honestly. The film doesn't require the audience to agree with the choices made. It doesn't preach or proselytize – it simply observes. These are characters in the midst of agony and even they may not agree with the actions they take, but they are willing to destroy their souls in order to do what they feel is right.
It is impossible to watch Million Dollar Baby and not be affected by it. I suspect that many will hate the film for no better reason than an inability to expand their own minds wide enough to consider the circumstances involved. That's a shame, because this is a great film that does a rare thing these days: It allows the story to be driven by the motivations of the characters, not the other way around.
::Video
Many films suffer from the problem of looking "too" perfect. Lighting conditions are always ideal, so that even in a darkened room, just the right amount of "kick lights" highlight the actors' faces.
Million Dollar Baby take a different approach. The cinematography is very dark and gritty. The film isn't afraid to put the actors into total shadow. This sort of thing can be a nightmare for DVD. Thankfully, this disc rises to the challange.
Warner chose to devote an entire disc to just the film (and a trailer) rather than waste room with extras. The additional space serves the film well, allowing for the high bit rates necessary for a spectacularly clean transfer.
The color values in this film a slightly muted, giving an almost monochromatic look, leaving the contrasts to carry the look. Black levels are amazingly deep, but retain tons of detail.
I did notice some very slight shimmering in a few scenes, but overall, this transfer is clear of any digital artifacts and edge enhancement is minimal.
::Audio
The audio mix for this film is subtle, but powerful. Good use is made of the surrounds during the boxing scenes to create a real feeling of being surrounded by a crowd. Also, when Maggie boxes, the sounds of her punches are amplified to exaggerate the power of her blows and help to sell her talent for the sport. Overall dynamic range is good.
::Special Features
Considering that publicity (both good and bad) Million Dollar Baby received, and its solid performance at the Oscars, I really expected more out of the special features than what was presented.
Disc 2 of this set offers 3 interview featurettes, Born To Fight, The Producer's Round 15, and James Lipton Takes on 3.
The problem is not that these featurettes are lacking in length (they run 19 minutes, 13 minutes and 24 minutes respectively), or that they lack interest. Rather the problem is that they lack diversity. All 3 featurettes are presented in interview formats, with virtually no actual behind-the-scenes action. Also, any comments and observations are duplicated.
Of these 3, the James Lipton featurette is the most entertaining. The well-known host of Inside The Actor's Studio sits down for an interview with Eastwood, Swank and Freeman. Lipton employs his usual skill in getting the actors to talk candidly about what it was about the script that appealed to them, how they got to this point in their careers, and what their methods of working are.
Ideally, the Lipton featurette would have been kept, and the other two would have been replaced. It would have been nice to see footage of Swank's training, or of the choreography involved in the fight scenes, or even virtually anything that happened on-set.
There are 2 options when buying this DVD: a 2-disc edition and a 3-disc version. They are identical, except that the 3-disc edition includes the film's soundtrack on the 3rd disc.
::Bottom Line
Million Dollar Baby is the sort of film that I would only encourage people to see if they are willing to set aside preconceived notions of "right" and "wrong" being black and white issues. It isn't necessary to agree with the choices made in the film. It's only required to understand that for these characters, at this moment in their lives, their choices were the only ones that made sense to them. I think that is something we will all experience, to some degree or another.
Buy Million Dollar Baby at DVDEmpire.com
| Movie |  |
4.5 / 5 |
| Video | |
4 / 5 |
| Audio | |
4 / 5 |
| Extras | |
2.5 / 5 |
| Family Friendly | |
0.5 / 5 |
| Million Dollar Baby is a harsh and difficult film. The early scenes won't appeal to the kids and the later scenes will be far too intense. Older teens can handle it. | ||
| Overall | |
4.5 / 5 |
- Robert Wurth, ©2005
::Technical Specs
Studio:
Warner Home Entertainment
Year of Theatrical Release:
2004
Disc Format:
1 single-sided, Dual Layer
Image Format:
Anamorphic Widescreen
Aspect Ratio:
2.35:1
Region Encoding:
1 (North America)
Sound Format:
Dolby Digital 5.1, Dolby Digital 2.0 (pro logic)
Running Time:
135 minutes
Director:
Clint Eastwood
Stars:
Clint Eastwood, Hilary Swank, Morgan Freeman
MPAA Rating:
PG-13
Disc Supplements:
- Born To Fight featurette
- The Producer's Round 15 featurette
- James Lipton Takes on 3 featerette
