please tell me

Rating: 4/10 (29 December 2007)

why Hilary Swank is so highly regarded? She's a good actress but she isn't a great actress. She was very good in Boys Don't Cry but it helps that she looks like an anorexic boy. But other than that she's been very average or less than average. Million Dollar baby was a good movie but neither the direction nor the acting was outstanding. Morgan Freeman was good as the haggard old boxing teacher/custodian/friend. No way Eastwood should have gotten a nod for directing that predictable tripe. No way Swank should have won another Oscar.
Freedom Writers was a good movie but switch Swank out with any other average actress and its still the same movie.
Now this movie is the same thing. The difference between an average actress and a great actress? A great actress makes the role her own, a role that you know cannot be played by another actress to the same ability. Swank can't do that, not now and probably not ever.
So while the movie is OK Swank is once again, average. But you've got to give credit to her agent for getting her roles in movies that have good scripts and decent crews from directors on down because she could no more carry a film on her talent or looks alone than could well, Lisa Kudrow for instance, who should have called it a career the day Friends wrapped (of course that could be said about the entire cast of Friends.)
PS I CAN'T STAND YOU