Mostly known for playing tough guys in Westerns before the 1970s,Clint Eastwoodis one of thebest actors turned directorsthe industry has ever seen. It all began in 1971 when the San Francisco native actor famous for appearing in high-profile spaghetti Westerns decided to change his career direction.Play Misty for Mewas a near-perfect thriller that he also starred in, and from that moment on, producers knew they could give him enough creative control to direct his films. However, decades later, and one Oscar for Best Director after, Eastwood still had to fight his worthy fights:Million Dollar Babywasn’t an easy film to make.
The 2004sports drama consolidatedHilary Swank’s role in Hollywood and is arguably her best performance to date. However, Clint Eastwood, her co-star, producer, and director of the film, also gave a very notable performance. Playing Frankie Dunn, the always-angry but good-natured boxing trainer, Eastwood proved in 2004 that beneath so many frowns and his gruff voice, there was a very compelling character that could only have been effective in the hands of a performer like him.
The following feature contains spoilers for Million Dollar Baby
Million Dollar Baby Is One of the Best Boxing Movies of All Time
Million Dollar Baby
Million Dollar Babyfollows the life of Frankie Dunn, an Irish-American boxing trainer who owns a gym in a rundown area of Los Angeles. Frankie’s a successful man, and his prospects appreciate his help. However, Dunn doesn’t like the idea of entering a championship challenge. Big Willie drops Frankie and leaves him for a better trainer and manager. Frankie is left to grow old in Hit Pit, among boxing wannabes and his best friend and employee, Eddie Dupris (Morgan Freeman).
One day, they realize someone new is training at their gym. Maggie Fitzgerald (Swank) can’t fight a punching bag, and Frankie laughs at the idea of training her, even when she pleads for his help. However, seeingthe underdog’s insistenceand following Eddie’s advice, Frankie decides to give her a shot. Entering the amateur division appears easy, but Maggie “grows up” rapidly, and Frankie starts rejecting bigger fights.
Nevertheless, her fame is inevitable, and Maggiebecomes a famous fighter. Frankie is forced to arrange a title fight. The problem is who she faces: The Blue Bear, a notoriously dirty fighter. The fight goes great for Maggie, but her opponent is furious at her celebration and throws a sucker punch that causes Maggie to break her neck. Mo Chuisle, Maggie’s nickname in the boxing universe,is now a quadriplegicwho’s dependent on machines to keep breathing.
This throws Frankie on an emotional descent. He’s unable to grasp the idea of being guilty of Maggie’s misfortune. As much as she tries to comfort him, Frankie stays in the dark. That is until Maggie proposes the unthinkable, and Frankie is put at a crossroads that will make him question his sanity and integrity. But perhaps it’s the only thing he can do for the daughter he never had but one he still loved as such.
One of Clint Eastwood’s Best Performances
The film is one of Eastwood’sbest non-Western movies. He masterfully directs it, and it features a notable script by Paul Haggis, who understands that the film has to be about more than the usual underdog making it big in sports. Eastwood focuses on creating an emotional experience of a loving relationship that stems from spiritual strength and not from the chemistry between trainer and boxer. There are no uplifting sequences in which Maggie becomes a grand fighter overnight. It’s all about Frankie witnessing a woman whose force was more than she could control, both in and outside the ring. Ultimately, he pays tribute to the strength of her spirit by simply following her command and pleading.
But don’t get us wrong. In front of the camera,Eastwood is fantastic as his character. The man hardly ever smiles, but Frankie’s attitude doesn’t call for that. It doesn’t get better than the film when it comes to good casting calls. Swank and Freeman are perfect, and bothwon Academy Awardsfor their performances. Only Eastwood didn’t win in the Best Actor category, losing to Jamie Foxx inRay. But perhaps it was for the best. He went home with the Best Director and Best Picture prizes.
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However,it is one of his best performances and arguably the last great one of his career to date. Why is Frankie Dunnone of his iconic characters? It concerns a sharp understanding of the character’s progression to a humble father figure whose most extraordinary mission in life is anything but his own. He just needed to be there for Maggie. Eastwood’s lonesome scenes, and the ones he does best, are where he’s seen questioning the madness and injustice of the world he’s been forced to witness. This encounter with reality is too much of a burden for a man whose trials and tribulations were more shallow than he had imagined. But he needed to stay up (with his chin down) to support the one woman he loved and failed.
Nevertheless, it’s not a coincidence that one of the reasons for Eastwood’s outstanding performance is his opponent in the acting ring:Swank’s best performance of her career is inMillion Dollar Baby.
What Is Clint Eastwood’s Next, and Supposedly Final Movie?
Eastwood’s excellent performance inMillion Dollar Babyis memorable and compelling. However, Eastwood may be a better director than an actor. It’s whathe should be rememberedfor. SinceCry Machowasreleased in 2021, he has been away from the spotlight.
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The 94-year-old filmmaker is still active in making films, and his latest andpossibly final filmwill probably be released later this year or early 2025.It’s titledJuror No. 2and wrapped production in April 2024. The cast includes familiar faces like Nicolas Hulot, Toni Collette, Kiefer Sutherland, Leslie Bibb, and J.K. Simmons, among others. The official synopsis can be found below.
Family man Justin Kemp who, while serving as a juror in a high profile murder trial, finds himself struggling with a serious moral dilemma… one he could use to sway the jury verdict and potentially convict-or free-the wrong killer.
