Pure, unbridled excellence

Rating: 10/10 (16 January 2005)

I'll cut to the chase -- this movie is flawless.
The direction, cinematography, and writing are all significantly better than "Mystic River," with all three leads (Clint Eastwood, Hilary Swank, and Morgan Freeman) turning in Oscar-worthy performances. "Million Dollar Baby" is an intimate triumph, and could legitimately be called an "instant classic." The specifics of the story are available everywhere, so I'll spare those details. Less often discussed is the skill with which Eastwood treads the razor-thin border between "been there, done that" and perfection.
A look at this film's basic premise might make it appear rife with potential cliché, and the finished product may have lived down to that expectation in the hands of a less insightful director. Watching Eastwood evade the unintentional humor of Hollywood's traditional "underdog-made-good" stories (and soaking up the leads' brilliant performances) comprises much of the appeal of the film's first two acts.
The third act is simply arresting. The acting is one hundred percent flawless throughout the film's last thirty minutes. The pacing remains perfect. To a man, the sold-out audience of which I was a member was utterly, silently transfixed after the beginning of the film's third stanza.
As soon as you possibly can, see this movie. There is good reason for the unilaterally glowing reviews it has received from the "big" critics: "Million Dollar Baby" is a masterpiece.