Great acting, powerful story but "What did he say?"

Rating: 9/10 (6 August 2005)

Acting: Overall, the acting is superb. Morgan Freeman and Hillary Swanks were brilliant, and Clint was good but not great. How difficult is it to play a crusty old man that grouches at everyone? Clint's acting could have been a bit more nuanced at those times in the story when he is supposed to feel sad or uncertain or frustrated. Most supporting characters were also tremendous - totally convincing and they did a lot with their characters. A priest and a family lawyer were the two characters that did not work for me.
Cinematography was good with an effective gritty realism to the first 70% of the movie. There were some some noticeable lapses in story-telling and continuity.
Worst problem with the film was the sound. Much of the narration and dialog early in the movie were hard to make out, Morgan Freeman is occasionally unintelligible. And in a climatic scene, Clint Eastwood chooses to deliver the most memorable line in the movie in a whisper that left my wife and I asking "what did he say? What did you hear?"