Stars: Billy Bob Thornton, Heath Ledger, Halle Berry, Sean Combs, Peter Boyle

Director: Marc Forster

Summary: Hank Grotowski is a prison guard who lives at home with his son and racist father. Lawrence Musgrove has just been executed and Hank meets Leticia, a black woman, and they fall in love. He doesn't know that Leticia is Lawrence's widow...

Set in modern Mississippi, MONSTER'S BALL subtly examines the impact of personal loss and the transforming power of human connection. The movie begins in the state penitentiary's death row, where father-and-son prison guards Hank (Billy Bob Thornton) and Sonny Grotowski (Heath Ledger) administer the execution of a black death-row inmate Lawrence Musgrove (Sean Combs), who leaves behind a wife, Leticia (Halle Berry), and son, Tyrell (Coronji Calhoun). When tragedy strikes both Hank's and Leticia's children, the two grieving parents are accidentally thrust together, where they begin to find comfort and eventually a form of redemption.
Employing a languid pace and minimalist dialogue, MONSTER'S BALL moves slowly forward on the strength of the cast's performances (including a supporting turn from Peter Boyle as Hank's ailing racist father, Buck) and Marc Forster's understated direction. The complex characters are allowed to develop gradually over the course of the entire movie, making the film a richly satisfying character study.

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A harrowing portrayal of Deep South life in the 21st century, Monster's Ballhits you where it hurts most, in the complex realm of extreme human emotions. This is not a movie to pass the time on a Sunday afternoon. With intriguing juxtapositions and some of the best editing of recent times it has all the makings of a modern film noir, yet it's not only the men that end up on the wrong side of the track: pride and ill-fortune are the real femme fataleshere.

Billy Bob Thornton is a death row officer whose redneck father has taught him that emotions make you weak, leading to an inability to love his son (Heath Ledger) and feel any compassion for the convicts in his care. When he loses a "loved one", he embarks on a relationship with the widow (Halle Berry) of a man whom he strapped in the electric chair, and the two of them search for comfort in sex, alcohol and chocolate ice-cream. The movie features fine turns from all actors involved, with Berry deservedly winning an Oscar for best actress and Ledger proving he is more than eye candy. Far from concluding the suffering, the ending leaves the viewer in an emotional void in which you will find yourself analysing your own shortcomings, prejudices and emotional ties. --Nikki Disney

Aspect Ratio:	2.35 Wide Screen, 16:9 Anamorphic Wide Screen
Main Language:	English
Region:	Region 2
Special Features:	Unseen Footage, Anatomy Of A Scene, Optional Commentaries, Films Music
Year:	2001
Release Date:	February 24, 2003
Runtime:	108 minutes
Certification:
Catalogue Number:	E D V 9175
Label:	Lion Gate Films
Keywords:	Ball, Off, General, Wide, Screen, Drama, Schedule, Monster's
Genre:	Drama