Over-hyped and Overwrought

Rating: Null/10 (18 February 2005)

"Million Dollar Baby" takes the well worn boxing genre and turns it into so much mawkish manipulation. Though Hillary Swank gives a great performance, the story is painfully transparent. The use of the omniscient voice-over distracts from what is happening on the screen. Clint Eastwood airs out his limited selection of old catchers mitt expressions and Morgan Freeman is his typecast old self as the wizened presence with a hatful of aphorisms. This film covers no new ground and you might be left with a desire to approach the theater manager about a refund. When a film has the Oscar prognosticators panting only ten minutes after the film has opened, you may have seen a great film, or you may have been sold a bill of goods. If you can remove every boxing film cliché' from your brain before sitting down to watch, "Million Dollar Baby" might be the former. If not, carefully fold your money, and go see something with a little more creativity and depth.