Now I see what all the fuss is about...

Rating: 10/10 (6 February 2005)

I never doubted this movie was good, but I was eager to find out why it was good. And I was, of course, curious about the "plot twist" everyone was talking about.
This is an incredible little movie. Keep in mind that it is "little," because with all the awards this movie has taken home already, some might be fooled into thinking it is more than that. But hey, little is good.
If you don't know already what the story is about, I'll give you a brief synopsis. Ageing, haunted Frankie Dunn (Clint Eastwood) owns an old boxing gym. He is so full of guilt over his estranged daughter, Katie, whom he hasn't seen in years, and who refuses to read his letters, that he goes to mass every day. It's starting to get on the nerves of his priest. His only friend is Scrap (Morgan Freeman), a former fighter who watches over the place for Frankie, and keeps people in line.
Frankie has a good fighter he's managing, but he doesn't like risks. He's holding him back from a title shot. His fighter likes Frankie, but he wants his shot at the title. He realizes if he's going to get anywhere, he needs to look elsewhere. Simultaneously, Maggie Fitzgerald (Hillary Swank), a white-trash waitress from Missouri, wants to learn how to fight. Frankie won't train her, until he realizes her potential, and is egged on by Scrap. That's as much detail as should probably be revealed.
The movie is almost entirely shot in underexposed film, giving it a dark, washed-out look that complements the boxing theme. It's like the entire movie takes place in a boxing ring, and that's where the lighting and colors are most alive. Eastwood has made a superb follow-up to his masterpiece of scarred Bostonians, "Mystic River." Like that film, this one has a strong undercurrent of Irish heritage and Catholicism. Frankie reads Gallic in his spare time, and even gives Maggie a nickname in the language. The detail given to the environment is also very similar. While in "Mystic River" everything seemed cold and stark, here it's just dark and claustrophobic. This is a smaller movie, but it is just as good.
And everyone in the movie gives first-rate performances. Hilary Swank has tapped into that same great ability that won her the Oscar for "Boys Don't Cry." I have always liked Morgan Freeman, and a lot of other people have, too, I know, but after a number of relative duds, he's reminded me why he's such a good actor. And finally, the real treat is Clint Eastwood. Some people may have written him off as a man who can't really act much. But either way, he's almost always played the same tough, hard-edged characters, people who at some point or other are willing to take a stand. Here, that persona, his persona, is not even there. Here, he is a man who has been falling apart for some time, and has payed the price for holding people back. But he unfolds into a man of compassion, who just wishes he could have the chance to fix his mistakes in life. The fact that he's seventy-four and looks it only helps in conveying his inner demons.
This I know is not a movie for people who don't like to watch boxing movies. I don't like boxing, but movie depictions can be good. There are some bits of dry humor in the movie, and some that even take place inside the ring. The movie is also very heartrending. If you don't care for deeply emotional movies, don't watch it. But I personally give it a 10.