Million Dollar Baby review

Number 227 on the top 1000 films of all time is Clint Eastwood's 2004 sports drama Million Dollar Baby.

Clint Eastwood plays Frank Dunn, an irascible boxing coach and gymowner. When Maggie Fitzgerald (Hilary Swank) asks him to train her, he refuses as she's a girl. But thanks to some gentle encouragement from his friend and former protege Eddie "Scrap-Iron" Dupris (Morgan Freeman,) he soon changes his mind.

I'm going to say it now. I don't like boxing. It doesn't interest me. And as such, boxing films don't interest me regardless of whether they're Rocky, Raging Bull or Million Dollar Baby. I was bored for much of this film but that was more down to my own personal likes and dislikes rather than the film itself.

But I do have one valid criticism and that is Clint Eastwood's acting. He is great director, but he always acts the same character. In Gran Torino he is a grumpy old war veteran, in Unforgiven, he is a grumpy old bounty hunter and in The Good, the Bad and the Ugly, he is a grumpy, old cowboy. You get the picture. Million Dollar Baby was no exception to this rule. He plays a grumpy, old boxing instructor with a secret heart of gold. How he was nominated for a best acting Oscar, I will never understand.

But I do understand why Hilary Swank won the Best Actress Oscar and Morgan Freeman, the Best Supporting Actor Oscar. Their characters were far more interesting to watch. Maggie has a dysfunctional relationship with her trailer trash, welfare fraud families, while Scrap went blind in one after one fight too many. It was interesting to see how these two characters relate to each other, due to how they both have dark backgrounds.

Seeing Scrap knockout the obnoxious upstart boxer Shawrelle Berry (Anthony Mackie) was one of the best parts of the film.

The ending also surprised me. I thought it would be a cheesy happily ever after, but it was anything but...Dunn arranges for Maggie to fight the German champion Billie "The Blue Bear" Osterman who has a reputation for fighting dirty. In the fight, The Blue Bear sucker punches Maggie and she falls onto her stool and breaks her neck, leaving her as a quadriplegic. To make matters worse, her leg is amputated when her bedsores become infected. She asks Frank to euthanise her which he reluctantly does. I totally thought she would make a miraculous recovery and take down the Blue Bear, but it wasn't to be. And I liked this ending better. It wasn't a fairytale ending, but something more realistic and powerful.

Overall, while Swank and Freeman were great, I just didn't care for this film. But that's just because I don't like boxing.

Invictus review

Number 957 on the top 1000 films of all time is Clint Eastwood's biographical sports-drama Invictus.

Four years after being released from prison, Nelson Mandela (Morgan Freeman) is elected as president of a South Africa still recovering from Apartheid. However, he believes he can unite the country by helping the South African rugby team, 'the Springboks,' captained by Francois Pienaar (Matt Damon) win the 1995 Rugby World Cup. But this will be easier said than done as for many of the black South Africans, the Springboks still represent the Apartheid.

Invictus marks the third collaboration between Freeman and Eastwood after Unforgiven and Million Dollar Baby. I didn't much care for Million Dollar Baby, as I'm not a boxing fan. I'm also not a rugby fan, so I didn't think I would like Invictus, but I did.

Whether I like sport or not, there is no denying that it has the power to unite people across different countries, colours, cultures and creeds. Will this be the case with South Africa? A country that's been ravaged by Apartheid. That's what Invictus explored.

Mandela certainly had a big task on his hands. His goal of uniting his country through rugby is met with cynicism from both his supporters and detractors. And we see this on both the macro and the micro-level, as whites and blacks must work together for the common good. Mandela's black security detail resent having to work with their white counterparts and vice versa. But over time, the the men begin to bond shown through a lovely sequence of the two sides playing a friendly game of rugby each other. 

It certainly helped when you had an actor like Morgan Freeman playing Mandela. He had the same charisma you would expect from any Freeman role. Apparently, he was so convincing that even Mandela's wife had trouble telling the two apart. Freeman was nominated for the Best Actor Oscar ultimately losing to Jeff Bridges in Crazy Heart.

However, I don't think that Matt Damon was anything special. Anybody could have played the role of Francois Pienaar. I'm not entirely sure how he got a Best Supporting Oscar nod where he ultimately lost to Christolph Waltz in Inglorious Basterds. Although I did like the scene where Pienaar and the rest of the team visit where Mandela was imprisoned on Robben Island. I've done this trip myself and it was powerful.

*Spoiler alert* South Africa go on to win the 1995 world Rugby World cup just like they do in real life. As one might expect, the ending becomes incredibly cheesy and silly, as their winning moments are played in slow-motion. I couldn't stop laughing as I heard all the rugby players grunting in slow-motion. It was very stupid.

But that doesn't matter as South Africa won the tournament and have since won three more. Has that resulted in a fully unified South Africa? Maybe not, but it's a damn good start.

Bringing up Baby review

 Number 214 on the top 1000 films of all time is Howard Hawks' 1938 screwball comedy 'Bringing up Baby.'

David Huxley (Cary Grant) is a palaeontologist who is aiming to get a million dollar donation for his museum from wealthy benefactor Elizabeth Ransom (May Robson.) He is also shortly due to be married. However, he then meets the scatter-brained heiress Susan Vance (Katherine Hepburn.) Shenanigans and hi-jinks ensue.

Bringing Up Baby was a box-office bomb upon release. It was so bad that it virtually killed off Hepburn's career before she later rebounded. Nonetheless, critics received it for its absurdist humour and bizarre situations. However, I thought it was all a bit ridiculous and not in a good way either. While it started well, it slowly descending into incredulity, as things become more and more outlandish. The "baby" in the title refers to a leopard that was a gift for Elizabeth. Baby escapes and Huxley and Vance have to track it down. Naturally another leopard has escaped from the nearby circus.

Before Susan's dog steals and buries an important bone that Huxley needs to complete his brontosaurus skeleton. They then have to dig holes all over Susan's garden to find the bones. When Huxley and Vance's antics land them in jail, Huxley realises his cell door has been left unlocked, which he soon points out to the police who promptly lock him up again. It's all a bit silly really. And not very funny either.

The same can't be said for Cary Grant. He put his background in Vaudeville to good use, as he shows off his great physical comedy skills. His jumping in the air declaring that he was feeling gay was complete improvisation.

However, I wasn't as convinced by Katherine Hepburn. It was difficult to believe this was the same actress who had won a record four acting Oscars. But she didn't fared so well in the comedy department. Reportedly, she majorly struggled because she was trying too hard to be funny. It didn't help that Vance was a frustrating character. She wasn't a character that matched up with Hepburn's famous strong feminist character. I think she was miscast.

If anything, the air-headed, man-obsessed, scatter-brained Susan Vance would have been a better fit for the other famous Hepburn - Audrey. Susan Vance was not unlike Holly Golightly. Having said that, her imitation of a gangster at the film's conclusion was very well done.

Cary Grant was a comedic talent and Katherine Hepburn was a great actress in her own right, but I don't think this film did either of them justice. 

The Outlaw Josey Wales review

 Number 395 on the top 1000 films of all time is Clint Eastwood's 1976 Revisionist Western 'The Outlaw Josey Wales.'

Josey Wales (Clint Eastwood) is a Missouri farmer whose family were murdered by the ruthless Union Captain Terrill (Bill Mckinney.) He joins a group of Confederate bushwackers to get revenge, but after the Civil War ends, they surrender to the union. All except for Wales who continues his quest for revenge. He is joined by ageing Cherokee Lone Watie (Chief Dan George) and pilgrim love interest Laura Lee (Sondra Locke.)

I've always been of the opinion that Eastwood is a better director than an actor. He won Oscars for directing both Unforgiven and Million Dollar Baby. He has also directed critically acclaimed films like Invictus, Letters from Iwo Jima, Gran Torino and Changeling. However, the Outlaw Josey Wales was one of his weaker efforts. While by no means terrible, it was strangely structured and badly-paced.

Initially, it seemed like this would be a straight-forward revenge story with Wales exacting vengeance on the killer of his family. Wales is aided by a rag-tag band of rebels. It was all building to an exciting climax, but then the tension dissipated.

In the film's third act, it seemed like Wales had completely forgotten about his quest for revenge and was more interested in setting up house with his new found family - Cherokee Lone Watie, Navajo Little Moonlight (Geraldine Keams) and pilgrim Laura Lee and her grandmother along with a couple of others. It was a sure fire way to stop the pace dead at a time you think it would be heating up. 

There were glimpses of a secondary villain with a Comanche tribe, but our roguish cowboy quickly makes peace in an anti-climatic, and ultimately, inconsequential fashion. The Comanche played little role in the rest of the film.

Just when it looked like Wales might get his happily ever after, he's tracked down by Terrill and his goonies. The battle begins. But this climatic moment felt more like an afterthought, as if Eastwood had just remembered about his villain.

As I said earlier, he is a better director than actor. In his later films, he plays a grumpy old man. In his earlier films, he plays the antihero lone cowboy. Josey Wales was pretty similar to Eastwood's other roles as the Man with No Name in the Dollars trilogy. Not the best range from Eastwood.

During film, Eastwood and Locke began an illicit relationship while both of them were still in nominal marriages. But this off-screen chemistry didn't translate to the screen, as Laura Lee as much use as a wet blanket and had all the charisma of a stale ham sandwich. True, she joined the final fight, but she never felt like a suitable love interest for Eastwood. If anything, I think he would have been better suited to Little Moonlight whom he rescued from some unscrupulous men. She was more fun, interesting and gritty than Lee.

Despite these criticisms, The Outlaw Josey Wales was certainly an enjoyable enough film. It just isn't anywhere near as good as Eastwood's later films. That's a shame, as Eastwood is a great director. He's won two Oscars for a reason.

Cinderella Man review

 Number 334 on the top 1000 films of all time is Ron Howard's 2004 biographical sports-drama 'Cinderella Man.'

Cinderella Man tells the true story of the washed-up boxer James Braddock (Russell Crowe) who recaptured his former glory during the Great Depression. Renee Zellweger and Paul Giamatti co-star.

I've said it before and I will say it again. I've never been a fan of boxing films. Whether it's Rocky. Raging Bull or Million Dollar Baby, they're of little interest to me. Cinderella Man was no exception. I don't think it helped that I don't much like Russell Crowe as an actor. He always seems so serious and gruff - even in roles that might require some levity.

Braddock was a man seriously down on his luck. Like many men during the Great Depression, he was struggling to put food on the table, seeking out a meagre living as a dockworker, due to his failed boxing career.  Yet, I wasn't convinced by Crowe's performance. He didn't properly showcase the vulnerability of the character. Even in the scene where he has to go begging for money, I felt little sympathy. Maybe I'm just heartless.

I don't think he had much chemistry with Renee Zellwegger who played Braddock's wife. She was good, but not good with Crowe. For that reason, I didn't enjoy their scenes together. Weirdly enough, I actually preferred the boxing scenes.

These were all more entertaining to watch than I thought they would be - probably because they used real boxers, most of the time. Although this wasn't great for Crowe who sustained multiple injuries while filming.

The film's redeeming feature was Paul Giamatti who played Braddock's coach and manager Joe Gould. Giamatti bought a terrific energy to the role. There was probably a reason why he was nominated for an Oscar and Crowe wasn't - although, it should also be noted that Crowe actively campaigned for Giamatti rather than himself.

All in all, while Cinderella Man might be a heart-warming rags to riches story, I didn't care for it. Crowe's performance lacked heart and he also lacked chemistry with Renee Zellweger. Giamatti truly earned his Oscar nomination though.

The Fighter review

 Number 408 on the top 1000 films of all time is David O'Russell's biographical sports drama The Fighter.

Micky Eckland (Mark Wahlburg) is an up-and-coming boxer coached by his brother, famed ex-fighter Dicky (Christian Bale) and managed by his mother Alice (Melissa Leo.) With the help of new girlfriend Charlene (Amy Adams) Micky aims to make a name for himself.

Since starting this challenge, I have watched a lot of boxing films: Rocky, Raging Bull and Million Dollar Baby. And I didn't like any of these films, because I don't care for boxing. The Fighter was no exception. As I don't care for boxing, I couldn't get invested in the film. For me, there was no tension or stakes. I couldn't give a damn if Micky won his fights or not and I certainly didn't care if he became the champion of the world. And considering that's what the film was building to but that didn't make it very interesting for me. And I know the film is all about boxing, but the boxing montages were very boring. I know this is a very subjective take - I'm sure boxing fans would love this film, but I didn't.

What's more objective is Mark Wahlburg's performance. I don't particularly like him as an actor or a person. He always takes the same roles, generally as the tough guy hero with the emotional range of a block of wood. Considering the film is called 'The Fighter,' he is weak-spined. Obviously he's a boxer who could quite easily knock me out, but why couldn't he have done the same to his manipulative, conniving mother and seven sisters? They were the very definition of toxic.

Dicky wasn't much better, leeching off of his brother's achievements, because he couldn't quite reach those heights himself. In fact, the only likeable character was Charlene, because she is one of the very few who had Micky's best interests at heart. All credit to Amy Adams for a great performance.

If you're a boxing/Mark Wahlburg fan, you'll probably love this film, but I am neither, so I did not. And, finally, there are lots of strange accents in the US, but Massachussetts has to be one of the strangest.