Million Dollar Baby

Name: Million Dollar Baby
Genre: Drama, Sport
Released: December 15, 2004
Duration: 132 min
Rating: 86
Cast: Clint Eastwood, Hilary Swank, Morgan Freeman

2004

METASCORE

Universal acclaim based on 39 Critic Reviews

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USER SCORE

Generally favorable reviews based on 619 Ratings

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7.5

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7.5	User Score Generally favorable reviews based on 619 Ratings

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Movie Details & Credits

Warner Bros. Pictures | Release Date: December 15, 2004 | PG-13

Starring: Clint Eastwood, Hilary Swank, Morgan Freeman

Summary: Two retired boxers who run a Los Angeles gym are caught off guard when a woman approaches them with her dream of stepping into the ring.

Director: Clint Eastwood

Genre(s): Drama, Sport

Rating: PG-13

Runtime: 132 min

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Metascore

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Critic Reviews

100

Kirk Honeycutt

Under Eastwood's painstakingly stripped-down direction -- his filmmaking has become the cinematic equivalent of Hemingway's spare though precise prose -- the story emerges as that rarest of birds, an uplifting tragedy. Read full review

100

Mike Clark

As good as "Unforgiven." Or, to put it another way, as good as any movie Eastwood has ever directed. Read full review

100

Lawrence Toppman

Reveals the drama and degredation so powerfully that it ranks among the all-time heavyweights of sports movies. Read full review

100

Michael Wilmington

Achieves a mellowness and melancholy that recalls the jazzy dissonance of director (and here, composer) Eastwood's best work: "The Outlaw Josey Wales," "Bird," "Unforgiven" and "Mystic River." Read full review

Dallas Observer Bill Gallo

Baby may not be quite as compelling as Mystic River or Unforgiven, but there's something so stirring, and disquieting, too, in his quest that we cannot help but pay close attention to him. In the middle of his long career's third act, he's still searching for the secrets in things with striking resolve. You certainly can't ask more than that of any 75-year-old ex-gunslinger. Read full review

James Berardinelli

It is a rich and challenging motion picture that both affirms life and emphasizes its fragility. Eastwood touches our hearts and energizes our minds without resorting to overt manipulation. Read full review

David Edelstein

It's impressive, in the sense that a sucker-punch impresses itself on your skull. Read full review

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User Reviews

HenryV.

Apr 8, 2007

Never hits a false note, never breaks from its melancholy, reminiscent tone.

0 of 0 users found this helpful

chw

Oct 18, 2014

Million Dollar Baby was awesome. Jay Baruchel acts as if he acts the way he does all the time, same with Morgan Freeman, Clint Eastwood, and Hilary Swank.

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

Kiva

Aug 2, 2013

Million dollar baby is a story about a female boxer who decides in her early 30's to star boxing.She goes to a gym to exercise and there she finds a coach. Million times if you see that film a tear will come out from your eye. A depressive sport movie that it is really touching and it showsMillion dollar baby is a story about a female boxer who decides in her early 30's to star boxing.She goes to a gym to exercise and there she finds a coach. Million times if you see that film a tear will come out from your eye. A depressive sport movie that it is really touching and it shows friendship and love. Million dollar baby also shows how difficult is for a person that loves you to decide whether you are going to live or die. Hillary Swank was amazing in that movie. I don't know how she did that. I actually thought that i was feeling what she was feeling. I don't understand the negative reviews and I don't want to spend any time telling my opinion for them and i simply understand that some people don't have a heart. That's all I have to say for that masterpiece.… Expand

4 of 5 users found this helpful41

amheretojudge

Feb 8, 2019

A Good Bold Deed.

Million Dollar Baby Eastwood makes it look easy. It's as simple as that, over the years, watching him blend in, in all sorts of genre there never seems any doubt how much he adores the cinema. There is mutual love and respect, if there is sincerity in Eastwood's methods,A Good Bold Deed.

Million Dollar Baby

Eastwood makes it look easy. It's as simple as that, over the years, watching him blend in, in all sorts of genre there never seems any doubt how much he adores the cinema. There is mutual love and respect, if there is sincerity in Eastwood's methods, the response is equally charming. Magnanimous is his vision and is exactly what he gets. But above all what fascinates me the most is how he reserves his persona on both on and off screen, I hardly remember yelling him ever on screen, Freeman had to jump in and point out, "You think she can hear you from here?" The answer is yes. She does; she may not follow it but she does.

The cathartic equation of this trio is the root of the film. With humor as slick as their body language- few lines from Baruchel doesn't fit in appropriately though- and flamboyancy on their rhythm that makes you scream for its awesomeness, it makes you want to warp back to your childhood days, never has someone loved something such unconditionally. It is for all the drama we crave for, we are not aware of where it can take us, but somehow we have been craving for it.

This has never been a sports genre for me, I couldn't care less about those knockout punches, I am waiting for Swank to go back to her corner and tangle more with Eastwood's vision. Haggis- the screenwriter- has written a complete script, swooping in all the drama or even humor- that you might think isn't essential to the storytelling- "forming a circle" gets a whole new definition. With an incredibly intense narration by Freeman, few poetic lines are the least bit of metaphor you are going to get, the real content is hidden beneath those questions that he keeps asking us; a smart move by the writer as it factors a lot on advancing the storytelling.

And mind you, Freeman is not just a narrator, everyone gets one last shot (Eastwood gets Swank's dream and Swank gets her family) in this film and you cannot exclude him from it. Swank, the one that dares to dream, is confidently appealing on her terms, her bizarre fascination of ending a fight within first round, her petty questions and neglecting the orders constantly, is the window which she never lets go of.

Eastwood as her father figure grows more than that you can aspire for. Yes, it was anticipated that their chemistry would be the heart of the film but to extend this friendship on such a scale still melts me down; Mo Cuishle he calls her. The first training that he gives her where he snatches the punching bag and then shuts her down only to regret it later and give her that punching back again; that bit itself says a lot about the film. Call it a trash talk or flirt talk, their conversations are brimmed with humor that makes you weep hard than it makes you tickle, those moments are Million Dollar Baby.… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

JuanSebastian

Dec 25, 2015

Incredible touching till the end. I never imagined this movie would make me cry but it did. I think this screenplay was a great one, works really good. But this screenplay would be nothing without the fantastic direction by Clint Eastwood, acting was great too.The highlight in Million DollarIncredible touching till the end. I never imagined this movie would make me cry but it did. I think this screenplay was a great one, works really good. But this screenplay would be nothing without the fantastic direction by Clint Eastwood, acting was great too.The highlight in Million Dollar Baby I think is the strong characters that the writers created, tragic and emotional stories that relates immediately to viewer. One of my favorites movies now I've watched it.… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

Riren

Apr 29, 2007

Swank, Eastwood and Freeman make this a must-see movie. Million Dollar Baby has a plethora of loose plot threads and a tendency to forget plot elements and randomly bring them up again 30 or 60 minutes later, but mirky directing can't detract from three of the best performances in Swank, Eastwood and Freeman make this a must-see movie. Million Dollar Baby has a plethora of loose plot threads and a tendency to forget plot elements and randomly bring them up again 30 or 60 minutes later, but mirky directing can't detract from three of the best performances in recent film history. The trio portray deep, sympathetic characters with three of the earthiest relationships, each a delight to follow until the disappointing ending. The story doesn't build to a climax or a final act; the final act falls onto the film, and is so out of place that it takes a half an hour to get its barings again. It's a sensationalist and provocative ending, melancholy and hard to fight morally, but it just isn't earned by where the film goes in its first 85 minutes - and the movie notices this, summoning more mood lighting and mood music than is noticeable in the rest of the picture. Also be warned that Million Dollar Baby is not a boxing movie. It's not a sports movie. It's a human drama that happens to take place in a gym a lot of the time. The fights are handled terribly, from the early montage of unbelievable knockouts to the final match that unfolds more like a bad pro wrestling match than something from televised boxing. Still I implore you, see this movie for these three performances. It will be a long time before we get three more like them, especially in the same picture.… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful

MarcPosner

Jan 15, 2005

came out of this movie furious -- and I'm a Clint Eastwood fan........

This movie is just an overbearing piece of propaganda for sanctioning euthanasia -- or as it is commonly known -- MURDER..... Life ain't fair, as this movie graphically illustrates,,,,,but murdering thecame out of this movie furious -- and I'm a Clint Eastwood fan........

This movie is just an overbearing piece of propaganda for sanctioning euthanasia -- or as it is commonly known -- MURDER.....

Life ain't fair, as this movie graphically illustrates,,,,,but murdering the unfortunate among us just makes it worse....

Yet another example of a film suggesting that "situational ethics" trump "absolute truths"

The Hollywood loonies could do us all a favor by taking some of those "painkillers" that Eastwood gave to Swank at the end of this disgusting film...… Expand

0 of 2 users found this helpful

SEE ALL 88 REVIEWS

9	#9 Best Movie of 2004
14	#14 Most Discussed Movie of 2004
7	#7 Most Shared Movie of 2004