Review of Monster's Ball (2001) by Jiana W — 09 Oct 2013

Before I review, I just want to say that I remember when this came out. There was a huge controversy about the explicit sexuality and the people I knew who said they saw it squealed about how gross it was. Honestly, I do not see what the fuss is about. I guess back in 2001 mainstream movies weren't exactly like this yet (I assume) so that's why it was a big deal. The movie is not "gross" or very explicit at all. If that is what deters people from ever seeing this movie I would suggest they ignore the horror stories and see for themselves because it isn't that bad.

Everyone did very well in the performance department but did Halle Berry deserve an Oscar for her role? Not in my opinion. I never really thought she was that good of an actress, to be honest. Billy Bob Thornton, I've always said, has a charismatic onscreen persona no matter what role he plays and this movie is no different. He's actually kind of handsome here. The man just has star quality.

Berry plays Leticia, a struggling single mom whose husband is killed on death row. Thornton plays Hank, a corrections officer who oversees the death of Leticia's husband along with his kind son, Sonny. Hank seems to live his life attempting to please his crotchety, bigoted father while treating his own son the way his father used to treat him. After his son commits suicide, Hank is changed and quits his job at the penitentiary. As fate would have it, Hank and Leticia's paths cross one tragic night. They are drawn together by their inner-pain and find solace in one another despite the racial tension that still runs through the veins of the South.

As a black female I think I can see what other people have complained about with Berry's role here. I'll elaborate. Her husband, a black man, is on death row for an undisclosed crime (so goes the idea of black men in jail, leaving "their women" to fend for themselves.) She has no one-- no family to call, no friends to speak of. She is about to be evicted from her house. Then along comes Hank, a white man who is assuredly racist (he shoots off a shotgun to get young black kids off his property and calls a fellow police officer a "nigger" during a scuffle.) Leticia asks Hank to "make her feel good" the night of their--ahem-- consummation, I guess is what you can call it. She tells him that she needed him because it's been a long time since she felt anything and thanks him for having sex with her basically. Hank gives Leticia, who walks everywhere, his son's old truck. While delivering a present to Hank, Leticia meets Hank's father, Buck. Buck tells Leticia that he had a thing for black tail too when he was younger and insinuates that Hank just needs to get his lustful desires out of his system. Later in the movie, after she's tossed out of her home, once again it is Hank to the rescue and he sets up a place for her to stay with him. He tells her he wants to take care of her and she responds with, "Good. I need to be taken care of.".

Even before Buck insulted Leticia in that scene I couldn't help but think that that is what was happening in the movie, at least to some extent. Hank isn't a guy who has a racist father but shares NONE of his dad's views. He clearly does. But he has sex with a black woman. A lot of white men in history have been bigots and yet slept with (and impregnated) black women. Thomas Jefferson being one of them. You can hate somebody and still lust after them-- and maybe even the fact that you lust after them is why you hate them. I don't know what has fueled that phenomenon throughout history and I won't speculate on it further.

But the film seems to want the audience to believe that it's nothing but pure emotion fueling this relationship. I didn't completely buy that. It also gives credence to the societal myth that black men can't get it together, are in jail, leaving their families behind and a good white man has to step in and take up where he left off, giving her what she needed (a good lay, a car and a place to stay because she doesn't have anywhere else to go and is unable to take care of herself.) Overall I just think Leticia's character is a pretty negative portrayal of black women and just women in general. She doesn't exhibit any inner-strength that you expect would be very obvious from a woman who has been raising a son on her own for a good 11 years while her husband was waiting to be put to death. How she made it this long is a wonder. Her relationship with Hank is semi-disturbing and borderline condescending as well. I don't believe that all of this was the movie's ultimate *intent* (it could've been), but you can't help but pick up on the negative, racist, condescending undertones that run throughout this movie.