Review of Monster's Ball (2001) by Jake W — 15 Sep 2009

I will admit that I came into Monsterâ??s Ball with bad expectations. It seems to be a general opinion that Halle Berry didnâ??t deserve her Academy Award for the filmâ?¦ all will be discussed in my review.

Monsterâ??s Ball follows Hank (Billy Bob Thornton), a racist police officer. He lives with his father (Peter Boyle) and his son Sonny (Heath Ledger). He is in charge of the execution of convicted murderer Lawrence Musgrove (Sean Combs). While driving on a night after the execution, Hank notices a woman â?? Leticia Musgrove (Halle Berry) â?? on the side of the road with an injured boy (Coronji Calhoun). He decides to assist them to the hospital. That one night changes everything for both Hank and Leticiaâ?¦.

Overall, the film works because of the cast. Billy Bob Thornton does some good work here as Hank. You can genuinely feel his performance. Also, Peter Boyle as Hankâ??s father. From his small but memorable performance you can see just why Hank is a racist. Heath Ledger is also worth mentioning. He has maybe fifteen minutes in the film, but he takes on this broken character excellently. Probably the most intuitive of the filmâ??s performances, but not quite the bestâ?¦.

For some time now, I believed the popular notion that Halle Berryâ??s performance was inconsistent and completely undeserving of its Academy Award. Now that I have seen the film for myself, I can honestly say that Halle Berry gave a brilliant performance. I still think that Nicole Kidman should have won for Moulin Rouge! However, Halle Berry plays Leticia so well â?? her emotional layers and burdens on display. It was truly incredible. I have to personally apologize to Miss Halle Berry for ever thinking that she wasnâ??t extraordinary in this film.

The screenplay is good, but it could have been better. The characters are well written, but I didnâ??t see any real plot. It seems just like things happen. Of course, the performances are so good that you donâ??t really care.

I should warn that the film does contain some coarse language and one scene of graphic (nearly pornographic) sexual content. However, a television edit always works.

Recommended.