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Movies / On DVD / Monster's Ball
Monster's Ball

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Monster's Ball (2001)

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Reviews Counted:141

Fresh:120

Rotten:21

Average Rating:7.4/10

Consensus: Somber and thought provoking, Monster's Ball has great performances all around.

Rated: R [See Full Rating] for strong sexual content, language and violence

Runtime: 1 hr 53 mins

Genre: Dramas

Theatrical Release:Dec 26, 2001 Limited

Box Office: $31,252,964

Synopsis: MONSTER'S BALL is a hard hitting Southern drama tempered by a story of powerful, life-changing love. It is the story of Hank (Billy Bob Thornton), an embittered prison guard working on Death Row... MONSTER'S BALL is a hard hitting Southern drama tempered by a story of powerful, life-changing love. It is the story of Hank (Billy Bob Thornton), an embittered prison guard working on Death Row who begins an unlikely, but emotionally charged affair with Leticia (Halle Berry), the wife of a man he has just executed. MONSTER'S BALL also features Heath Ledger and Peter Boyle. Boyle plays Hank’s bigoted, aging father, whose hatred seems to have poisoned his entire family as much as the family business, which is working on the prison Death Squad. Ledger plays Hank’s son, who is hell-bent on getting out of the family business. The film is directed by award-winning filmmaker Marc Forster. He was nominated for an IFP/West Spirit Award as Best Low Budget Feature and won the Movado "Someone to Watch" Prize at the 2001 Spirit Awards for his film, "Everything Put Together."

Set in Georgia, MONSTER'S BALL was filmed entirely on location in and around New Orleans, Louisiana and at the notorious Louisiana State Penitentiary at Angola (also known as "The Farm").

MONSTER'S BALL is from an original screenplay by Milo Addica and Will Rokos, is produced by Lee Daniels, executive produced by Mark Urman, Mike Paseornek, and co-produced by Milo Addica and Will Rokos. Lions Gate Films will release the film in December, 2001. -- © 2001 Lions Gate Films [More]

Starring: Billy Bob Thornton, Halle Berry, Heath Ledger, Peter Boyle

Starring: Billy Bob Thornton, Halle Berry, Heath Ledger, Peter Boyle, Sean "Puffy" Combs, Mos Def

Director: Marc Forster

Director: Marc Forster
Screenwriter: Milo Addica, Will Rokos
Studio: Lions Gate Films

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Release:

Jun 11, 2002

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Reviews for Monster's Ball

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101 - 120 (sorted by date)
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The real strength of Monster's Ball lies in its well-drawn characters and the actors who play them.

Full Review Source: Phantom Tollbooth | comment Comment
01/30/02
J. Robert Parks
J. Robert Parks
Phantom Tollbooth

Thornton and Berry deliver the goods here convincingly, making Monster’s Ball one of the top films of 2001.

Full Review Source: ToxicUniverse.com | comment Comment
01/27/02
John A. Nesbit
John A. Nesbit
ToxicUniverse.com

A candid, gut-level emotional powerhouse.

Full Review Source: SPLICEDWire | comment Comment
01/26/02
Rob Blackwelder
Rob Blackwelder
SPLICEDWire

Dark and beautifully directed.

Full Review Source: San Francisco Chronicle | comment Comment
01/25/02
Edward Guthmann
Edward Guthmann
San Francisco Chronicle
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

It says something that the film has stayed with me well past the entire year-end Oscar season screening frenzy, when I sat through twice the usual number of films.

Full Review Source: Combustible Celluloid | comment Comment
01/25/02
Jeffrey M. Anderson
Jeffrey M. Anderson
Combustible Celluloid

In [Berry's] remarkably animated performance, Thornton's deft laconic turn finds a fitting match.

Full Review Source: San Jose Mercury News | comment Comment
01/24/02
Bruce Newman
Bruce Newman
San Jose Mercury News
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

It's a bleak and beautiful movie, and while the rain never stops, it does ease up, offering one of the most delicately redemptive stories we've seen since Dead Man Walking.

Full Review Source: Contra Costa Times | comment Comment
01/24/02
Mary F. Pols
Mary F. Pols
Contra Costa Times

Even if the last half gets bogged down in the cinematic equivalent of quicksand, the first half is absolutely exquisite and captivating.

Full Review Source: Internet Reviews | comment Comment
01/24/02
Steve Rhodes
Steve Rhodes
Internet Reviews

An arty sleepwalk.

Full Review Source: New York Magazine | comment Comment
01/22/02
Peter Rainer
Peter Rainer
New York Magazine
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

mostly resides in a mood of loss, somberness and prejudice, with a tender tiny beating heart of hope.

Full Review Source: Hollywood Report Card | comment Comment
01/18/02
Ross Anthony
Ross Anthony
Hollywood Report Card

The strength of the actors' performances help convince us of the possibility of passion.

Full Review Source: Eclipse Magazine | comment Comment
01/17/02
Sean O'Connell
Sean O'Connell
Eclipse Magazine

All roads lead to acting-award nominations, but none lead to truth.

Full Review Source: Entertainment Weekly | comment Comment
01/17/02
Lisa Schwarzbaum
Lisa Schwarzbaum
Entertainment Weekly
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Modamag.com | comment Comment
01/09/02
Brian Orndorf
Brian Orndorf
Modamag.com

The grimness often verges into pure melodrama, but Forster is a savvy filmmaker, gets value from his cast, and knows where to put the camera for maximum visual effect.

Full Review Source: Film Journal International | comment Comment
01/05/02
David Noh
David Noh
Film Journal International

It's less than half a fine movie. The great surprise is that its actors come through in the clutch.

Full Review Source: Salon.com | comment Comment
01/04/02
Stephanie Zacharek
Stephanie Zacharek
Salon.com
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

It's wonderful, mature writing, and beautifully acted.

Full Review Source: Ebert & Roeper | comment Comment
01/03/02
Richard Roeper
Richard Roeper
Ebert & Roeper
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

A catalog of human misery that even the laceratingly honest, warts-and-all sweat of Halle Berry and Billy Bob Thornton can't save from contrived incredulity.

Full Review Source: New York Observer | comment Comment
01/03/02
Rex Reed
Rex Reed
New York Observer
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

A solid little picture, but Halle Berry's performance is downright astonishing, and if for nothing else the film will be remembered for that.

Full Review Source: TheMovieReport.com | comment Comment
01/03/02
Michael Dequina
Michael Dequina
TheMovieReport.com

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: www.susangranger.com | comment Comment
01/02/02
Susan Granger
Susan Granger
www.susangranger.com

It takes more than a little sex to overcome 16 tons of emotional baggage.

Full Review Source: Laramie Movie Scope | comment Comment
12/31/01
Robert Roten
Robert Roten
Laramie Movie Scope
 
 
101 - 120 (sorted by date)
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