Ever notice that every blockbuster movie has the same fundamental pieces? A hero, a journey, some conflicts to muck it all up, a reward, and the hero returning home and everybody applauding his or...

The Hit Pit, Los AngelesUm, You'll Want to Wipe That Bench DownNo one's ever going to mistake The Hit Pit for a 24-Hour Fitness. Frankie Dunn's gym is thoroughly unfashionable. "The place is dark a...

Third-Person Omniscient NarratorScrap is the WBA cruiserweight champion of eavesdropping. Whether he's taking his sweet time buffing the turnbuckle or hiding in a shadowy corner of Maggie's rehab c...

SportsTraining montage? Check. Crusty old mentor and plucky young protégé? Check. Blood, sweat, and tears? Check. Adversity? Double—no, triple check. Million Dollar Baby ticks all of the conven...

Paul Haggis's screenplay for Million Dollar Baby is based on not one but two short stories by F.X. Toole: "Million $$$ Baby" and "Frozen Water." We're glad Haggis stuck with just one title. A Milli...

As if Maggie's death doesn't pack enough of a dramatic punch, the final minutes of Million Dollar Baby have two more revelations in store.(1) If Million Dollar Baby is to be believed, then Scrap is...

PG-13Million Dollar Baby is rated PG-13 for blood, bruises, broken noses, strained relationships between parents and their adult kids, the occasional nasty word, and a tragic accident that leads to...