The Million Dollar Blog

I have been long absent from this blog, I think in part because I began the blog with an emphasis on politics and world news, particularly Asian news. This is an emphasis which is foreign to me. I do not spend my time reading news or keeping up with world events. I am not a person, like my friend Triet, who is addicted to news. No, I am addicted to something else, a fine and well told story.
Reading Triet's blog of late I realize that perhaps I should change my focus. Rather than try to learn about current events and then write about them, I'm going to write about other things, things that are more dear to my heart, more important to me as a person and represent who I am, for real. This change will most likely take me in the direction of the arts, films, books, television, music, musicals...but I'm not sure exactly where I'm off to, who knows where this mad world will stop.
That said, on the the good stuff.
There are very few writers in Hollywood, anywhere for that matter, who can produce a movie with enough intelligence and heart to move captivate and move me. I have spent most of my life devouring stories, books, films, television, what have you and, as such, there is very little that I don't see coming. Not only that, but there is very little that can truly inspire me. Tonight I saw, for the second time in as many days, The Million Dollar Baby. I come to this movie after seeing Paul Haggis Crash, last week, an opportunity I'm glad I took for the film is no longer playing in my valley. (Too few box office receipts. I live in a conservative place.) Crash amazed me. It contained an entirely character driven story with enough twists and turns and surprises to keep me on the edge of my seat combined with an ending that doesn't answer all the questions, simply implies that they exist, somewhere.
After I saw Crash, I decided that I needed to see Haggis's other film, The Million Dollar Baby, it did win the Academy Award for Best Picture of 2004 after all. So I went, and I watched, and I left with the knowledge that someone in Hollywood finally got it. Paul Haggis joins the very short ranks of writers in Hollywood who treat the audience with respect, who ask us to think, and in return, gives us a ride we'll not soon forget. Combine an incredible story and screenplay with the fine directing of Clint Eastwood, a man who I come to respect more and more with each passing year, and the acting of Eastwood, Hilary Swank, and Morgan Freeman, and The Million Dollar Baby is one of the best films out of Hollywood in a very very long time.
As for the technical aspects of the film, the score was light and for the most part stayed out of the way. It was simple, something that Hollywood doesn't understand. The lighting was one of the more interesting and powerful aspects of the film, adding entire dimensions to the cast's performance. Editing was solid and the film was well paced. The only thing I noticed a few times during the film was the penchant for characters to mumble, on ocassion making it difficult to understand their lines. This last point loses meaning in light of the otherwise awe inspiring film. Props to everyone involved. If you haven't seen this film yet, see it, you won't regret it.