No, this is not that cute, animated film starring a little creature with one eye, that's Monsters, Inc. This film is a character-driven human drama starring Billy Bob Thornton, Heath Ledger and Academy Award winner for Best Actress, Halle Berry. The title, Monster's Ball, is a term that was used in past centuries in Europe to describe the night of feasting that was traditionally had by a condemned prisoner, the night before he or she was to be executed.
Hank Grotowski (Thornton) is a prison guard, who lives with his prison guard son, Sonny (Ledger) and his openly racist, redneck father (Peter Boyle). As is usual in these families, prejudices are mostly passed down through the generations, but Sonny is unlike his father and grandfather. This is not fully explored in the film, but it is clear that Hank is not happy about his son's friendship with some of the locals.
Set in America’s south, and in a state that still executes prisoners, the prison prepares itself for the execution of Lawrence Musgrove (Sean ‘Puffy’ Combes - yes, Puff Daddy, P. Diddly-Doodly or whatever the man's bloody stupid name is this week). We are not privy to his crime, but we can assume it was not shoplifting. We witness his final hours spent with his wife, Leticia (Berry), and son Tyrell, followed by some interesting interaction between the condemned man and the normally hard, racist, and intolerant prison guards, as they try to ensure a smooth and by-the-numbers execution.
During the execution in the electric chair, we see Musgrove's wife and child at home awaiting a final phone call from their husband and father, and it becomes clear that the lives of all those involved are about to change, and some of those changes are dramatic and unexpected.
Through circumstance, Hank Grotowski finds himself falling for Musgrove's widow, though neither is aware that the other has a connection to the executed Musgrove. This attraction challenges everything Hank has learned from his racist father, and he is forced to deal with other issues including the value of family and mixed relationships. It is only in the final few minutes when some hidden truths are exposed, that the underlying tension raises its head, and from a rather unlikely source.
There has been continuing debate as to whether Berry deserved her Oscar for Monster's Ball and I will spare you my opinion. The cast all do a fine job, and the direction, interesting editing and unusual framing of the film help create an air of tension. Being a drama, the pace varies with several scenes that hit like a hammer, but this is by no means a racy script.
Monster's Ball is a film that requires dedication and attention. It is a movie that explores several themes and the varying relationships between the main characters. Opinion of the film seems evenly divided between great and flawed, so it is probably best to view it for yourself. Be warned though, it is a bit of a slog at times, as characters are built and themes are developed. This is a movie for drama lovers.
Monster's Ball is presented in an aspect ratio of 2.35:1 and is 16x9 enhanced. As with most new films, this is a very clear and sharp transfer. Detail is excellent, and colours look natural and even. Skin tones are very accurate and black levels are likewise solid. There is no evidence of chroma or low-level noise.
There are a number of night scenes and indoor scenes, but shadow detail is fine and no problems present themselves. There are no examples of film to video artefacts such as shimmer, but there are a number of noticeable film artefacts. These are mostly white blobs, and occasional black marks that flash up. This was not expected in a film as recent as this.
The layer change is placed at 76:54 and is noticeable, though not disruptive.
Wow, this is a fine audio transfer that makes good use of the Dolby Digital 5.1 track. The whole thing is a little front heavy, but as a dialogue driven drama this works fine. There is good use of the rear speakers for some ambient sound, and the occasional more noticeable sound effect. The musical score also makes good use of all speakers, and though orchestral in sound, it is actually made of earthy instruments such as guitars and pianos that have been 'tweaked'.
The mastering is a little on the soft side, and you will need to crank the volume up a little to appreciate the fine audio. Most dialogue is placed in the centre speaker and is always clear and audible. There is some noticeable panning of sound across the front speakers, and generally good separation.
Low-level sounds are very good, although they are mostly on show when the score is playing and are rather infrequent at other times. As this is not an action film, this should not come as a surprise.
Audio synch is good, and there are no subtitles.
The Dolby Digital 2.0 track is also very good, again mastered at a low volume. The main difference is the noticeable lack of depth in the sound that a 5.1 transfer delivers. The music sounds a little less haunting, but as there are no explosive scenes, Monster’s Ball suffers less in 2.0 than many other films.