'Million Dollar Baby' delivers great story, cast

So says actor and director Clint Eastwood. He is, indeed, remembered for his tough guy roles such as Dirty Harry, but his career is deep and richly varied. He’s been praised as a true “feminist” director, has done some quirky comedy (“Bronco Billy”) and was a standout in an early TV series when he played Rowdy Yates on “Rawhide.”

He has directed films as widely varied as the westerns “Unforgiven” and “Pale Rider” to schlock like “The Bridges of Madison County.” Besides acting and directing, Eastwood is a jazz buff (he directed the Charlie Parker bio-pic “Bird”), and he composes the soundtracks for many of his films.

He’s known as a director who always delivers his movies on time and under budget and one who is loved by his cast and crew. Eastwood’s economy of style is somewhat remarkable in this era of razzle-dazzle special effects, quick-cut editing and blaring, histrionic soundtracks.

He reaches a new high with his latest film, “Million Dollar Baby,” which is a tour de force for the triumvirate of lead actors, Eastwood, Morgan Freeman and Hillary Swank.

At 74, Eastwood is in amazing shape both physically and mentally, and his work here ranks with the best of his long career.

He plays Frankie Dunn, the owner of a boxing gym and former legendary “cut man.” A cut man is the guy in a fighter’s corner who stops the flow of blood from any wounds the boxer receives in the course of a bout. His right-hand man at the gym is Eddie “Scrap-Iron” Dupris (Morgan Freeman), an ex-boxer who lost an eye in a fight. Frankie was his cut man but failed to save Scraps’ eye.

The two are like an old married couple. They bicker a lot, but the love and bond is very apparent.

Frankie manages a few fighters, but his stable is dwindling. His good boxers – most notably Willie Little, who’s a contender for the heavyweight title – are seduced away by more aggressive managers. Frankie is a purist and likes to take things at a slow, steady pace.

Into the gym comes Maggie Fitzgerald, a role executed perfectly by Hillary Swank. She wants Frankie to train and manage her, but he says he “doesn’t teach girls.” Maggie is undaunted and trains incessantly on her own. Scraps sees that she has the fire and talent to be a great boxer. He eggs Frankie on, hoping he’ll realize Maggie’s potential.

Frankie finally caves in and begins training Maggie. She’s a natural and wins every one of her (admittedly) small-time bouts. She feels she’s ready for the big time, but Frankie stays true to his slow-and-steady approach. Maggie could get a shot at the welterweight title, held by a notoriously dirty fighter from Germany, but Frankie wants to do things his way.

Maggie becomes a crowd favorite. Frankie gives her the nickname “Mo Guishle,” which is a Gaelic term. Frankie reads Yeats and studies Gaelic in his off time. The crowds in Europe – where Maggie has become a favorite – love the name and chant it at Maggie’s fights. Neither Maggie nor the viewer knows what it means until the end of the film. The revelation of the term’s meaning is an emotional high point.

There is a lot of humor in the first two acts of “Million Dollar Baby.” Eastwood and Freeman – who worked together in Eastwood’s “Unforgiven” – have a great chemistry, and Eastwood’s direction steers the relationship in an entirely natural fashion.

Freeman, as Scraps, narrates the film. While in many films narration seems like a tacked-on afterthought to explain a muddled plot, in “Million Dollar Baby” it serves as a well-executed and integral part of the story.

I’m not what one would call a “sports” guy, but I love and understand two of them: baseball and boxing. Executing boxing on-screen is always a difficult proposition. “Rocky” looked fake, and despite Martin Scorsese’s attention to perspective and detail in “Raging Bull,” some of it looked staged as well. For my money “Million Dollar Baby” has the most realistic boxing scenes ever committed to film. It’s quite evident that Swank trained for her role. Her arms are beefed up and she, as well as the other female boxers, punch with convincing authority.

The third act of “Million Dollar Baby” holds devastating surprises that in fairness cannot be discussed in a review. Just as he did in “Mystic River,” Eastwood drops an emotional bombshell that will stay with the viewer for a good long while.

Outside of “Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind,” “Million Dollar Baby” may be the best film of 2004. The film, the direction and actors Freeman, Eastwood and Swank all deserve Oscar nominations.

Jim Wunderle owns Wunderle Sound Services and is a Springfield free-lance writer and musician.