Monster's Ball
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Movie Reviews of Monster's Ball
Movie Review: A Need To Love And Be Loved
Summary: 5 Stars
This story really got to me. It made me see that when you come right down to it, no matter what your race, creed or color, we all have the capacity to want to be loved and to give love.
Here you have two people. The man is somewhat a bigot from a very bigotted family, he is in law enforcement and he has learned over the years to shut himself off from the world. You have the woman, a black woman. Her life has been a struggle from the time she was concieved in the womb. Her husband dies on death row (unknown to her is that the man was his prison guard), she drinks too much, tries to do good by her son but fails and he too dies.
These two come together in their loss. Sharing themselves with each other, they are unable to not need and want each other.
This movie was fantastic! Halle Berry did the performance of her life. She shows the pain and struggle of every pretty but poor young black woman in this country. Billy Bob Thornton made us hate him and then care for him despite all his shortcomings. Also Peter Boyle was one of the ugliest representations of white racism I've seen in a long time. Boyle's racist wasn't any tobacco chewing, moonshine swilling, Klansmen. He was worse. He was a sickly, old granddaddy who raised a family and made a career out of guarding people whose skin color he hated. This is the face of white racism in America nowadays, not hooded Klansmen and blackbooted Nazis.
Heath Ledger is a doll baby and is making a great career for himself ("Ned Kelly"/"Four Feathers") in this movie he plays Billy Bob Thornton's negelected, emotionally battered only son. His life was tragic and so much a shame.
Movie Review: A Timeless Masterpiece
Summary: 5 Stars
Monster's Ball is a controversial film based around the lives of Hank Grotowski (Billy Bob Thornton), and Leticia Musgrove (Halle Berry). Grotowski is introduced as a Caucasian male working for the Department of Corrections, in Georgia. For Hank, the only life he knows is that of his work. This is shown through his relationships with his father, Buck (Peter Boyle), and his son, Sonny (Heath Ledger), who is also a corrections officer for the state of Georgia. However, as the story progresses, Leticia Musgrove is forcefully thrown into Hank's life. Leticia is a widowed, African-American female struggling to keep her house, her car, and most importantly to keep her life together. As Hank's and Leticia's relationship explores areas neither of them expected, their views and ways of life take that same unexpected turn.Monster's Ball touches all sorts of social issues. The most prominent issue throughout the whole picture is racism. It is clearly shown how racial prejudices are passed to the next generation, and also how they are broken between generations. Although this is the major issue throughout the film, Monster's Ball also touches base with issues such as capital punishment, family issues, and the complexities of relationships--especially those involving different races.
Overall, this film left me with a great feeling. It has been a long time since I have seen a movie with such character development as this. I was simply amazed at how radically the characters developed within the duration of the film. I have definately found a new favorite movie, and it is one I can truely call a timeless masterpiece.
Movie Review: Superb Independent Film
Summary: 5 Stars
The success of this film provides even more evidence of the vibrancy and vitality of independent filmmakers in the face of the stultifying vapidity of current mainstream efforts. Made for a paltry 4 or 5 million dollars, the movie shines with rare performances and heart-wrenching emotional situations too often avoided in the more demographically correct films produced by Hollywood insiders. Seems like all the best work has most recently been done outside official movie-making channels.As with other recent independent films, the cast in this film is both star-studded and superb. From Peter Boyle to Billy Bob Thornton to Halle Berry, not a bad word can be uttered. All of their performances are outstanding, and the film develops into an incredible tour-de-force for Berry as she gives us a veritable busman's tour of a whole panoply of human passions and emotions, ranging from oozing and undulating sexuality on the one extreme to abject despondency on the other. This is a role virtually guaranteed to showcase her acting abilities, as it certainly did. Her raw talent to emote and take the camera hostage to her incredible acting powers is breathtaking to observe, and she shows us the stuff that won her the Oscar hands down.
The subject matter makes this film more appropriate for more mature viewers, as it is a bit too real and too candid about more adult mattes to be bandied about with younger viewers. Moreover, its rather cynical and depressing look at the more serious side of life makes it a must see film, one that shows us the treasure we now have in actors like Halle Berry and Billy Bob Thornton. Enjoy!
Movie Review: Halle Earned Her Oscar, but This Movie Is Unsettling
Summary: 5 Stars
"Monster's Ball" is about two people who are united through circumstance and tragedy. Billy Bob Thornton plays Hank, a prison guard who has an adult son (an impressive Heath Ledger) and takes care of his boorish, redneck father. Halle Berry is Leticia, a woman whose husband (a very good Sean Combs) is on death row, can't seem to hold down a job, and vents her frustrations on her obese young son. Neither Hank nor Leticia is a very good parent, and they come from two entirely different backgrounds. But on one rainy evening, they cross paths with each other, and from there a relationship begins. However, what Leticia doesn't know is that Hank was one of the people who assisted her husband's execution. And, as with almost all interracial relationships, tension rises between them, and Hank is forced to confront his racist demons. This is a very upsetting movie, and the material deals with some very volatile issues. But it soars on the strength of the performances. The spotlight is clearly Halle's, who rightfully earned her Oscar. An actress known for her beauty, she de-glamed herself in this gritty performance, and she pulled it off without faking a single move. But props also has to go to Billy Bob Thornton, who gives a dynamite performance as well. Following "The Man Who Wasn't There," Thornton is on a roll, and is becoming one of the finest actors in the last ten years. And let's not forget rapper Mos Def, who makes a brief, but compelling appearance as Hank's neighbor. "Monster's Ball" may be a tough movie to sit through, but it's easily one of the best films of 2001 and warrants a purchase.
Movie Review: When your life feels like its ending, it may be just beginning...
Summary: 5 Stars
Thats how you feel when you watch this powerful film about a black woman (Berry) who loses everything, her husband, her son...just to find love in the eyes of a stranger. Not just any stranger...but a racist white man who helped execute her husband. Leticia (Berry) is struggling to keep her family alive, with no help from her inmate husband on death row. She works a dead end job to feed her obese son and in her eyes, it all seems pointless...like her life is going nowhere. When her husband is executed and a freak accident causes her the loss of her son she's thrown into an almost unwilling relationship with Hank (Thorton) a racist warden at the prison her husband was killed in. Their relationship is strange to each other, and they want it almost as much as they're afraid of it, and it's the fear that I feel makes them want it even more. This film has strong performances with an even stronger life lesson tagged on. Sometimes we think we know ourselves, but with the snap of your fingers your can find that you never knew yourself at all. I was so happy to see Halle take home the oscar and I hope to see her tackle more roles that challenge her and prove that this was not a fluke. Look for strong performances by Heath Ledger (this is the film that persuaded Ang Lee to cast Heath in Brokeback Mountain) as well as Peter Boil who is so evil you loathe him long after the credits are done rolling. This film touches upon raw human emotion coupled with real issues we still face today. Brilliantly acted and scripted and well worth all the praise.