Monster's Ball (2001)

After a family tragedy, a racist prison guard reexamines his attitudes while falling in love with the African American wife of the last prisoner he executed.

Director:

Marc Forster

Writers:

Milo Addica, Will Rokos

Stars:

Billy Bob Thornton, Halle Berry, Taylor Simpson

Won 1 Oscar. Another 14 wins & 17 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Billy Bob Thornton	...	Hank Grotowski
Halle Berry	...	Leticia Musgrove
Taylor Simpson	...	Lucille
Gabrielle Witcher	...	Betty
Heath Ledger	...	Sonny Grotowski
Amber Rules	...	Vera
Peter Boyle	...	Buck Grotowski
Charles Cowan Jr.	...	Willie Cooper
Taylor LaGrange	...	Darryl Cooper
Mos Def	...	Ryrus Cooper
Anthony Bean	...	Dappa Smith
Francine Segal	...	Georgia Ann Paynes
John McConnell	...	Harvey Shoonmaker
Marcus Lyle Brown	...	Phil Huggins
Milo Addica	...	Tommy Roulaine

Storyline

Set in the Southern United States, 'Monster's Ball' is a tale of a racist white man, Hank, who falls in love with a black woman named Leticia. Ironically Hank is a prison guard working on Death Row who executed Leticia's husband. Hank and Leticia's interracial affair leads to confusion and new ideas for the two unlikely lovers.

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Plot Keywords:

love | prison | racist | black woman | prison guard | 

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Taglines:

A lifetime of change can happen in a single moment.

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Genres:

Drama | Romance

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for strong sexual content, language and violence

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

8 February 2002 (USA)

Also Known As:

El pasado nos condena

Filming Locations:

Laplace, Louisiana, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$4,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

£486,017 (UK) (7 June 2002)

Gross:

£2,267,433 (UK) (19 July 2002)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Lee Daniels Entertainment, Lions Gate Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

111 min 112 min (unrated director's cut)

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital SDDS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Queen Latifah was considered for the role of Leticia.

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Goofs

When Leticia is working in the diner she puts the glass top back on the cake stand twice.

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Quotes

Lawrence Musgrove: I'm a bad man.
Tyrell Musgrove: Who says?
Lawrence Musgrove: I do.

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Crazy Credits

Thanks to Sam, Austin, Gabrielle. Scott Lambert is thanked twice.

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Connections

Featured in Too Young to Die: Heath Ledger: Liebling der Götter (2012)

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Soundtracks

"Broken Up and Blue"
(1998)
Performed by Red Meat
Written by Jill Olson
Published by Olson Girl Publishing (ASCAP)
Administered by Bug Music, Inc.
Courtesy of Ranchero Records

User Reviews

Excellent Acting Fills Out Taut Small Town Story

"Monster's Ball" is the fourth of the 2001 movies for grown-ups about adults dealing with death. Here the main characters find redemption through personal relationships and provide hope.

While some in the audience complained it was too slow, the original script by Milo Addica and Will Rokos feels like an expansion of a short story, as the outlines of the plot are fairly simple and not all the back story is explained, and riddled with coincidences barely made feasible by taking place in a small town.

Director Marc Forster finds a way to visually communicate the difference between sex and intimacy.

But the actors fill the spaces of inarticulate characters with complex performances, not just award-winning Halle Berry (a long way from "X Men"). Billy Bob Thornton starts out slightly less laconic than in "The Man Who Wasn't There" but very gradually finds the ability and a reason to smile.

Less attention has been paid to the excellence in smaller roles by Heath Ledger (yes hunky Heath) and Peter Boyle.

Country music is used in the background only when the radio is on; it's a nice local station they got there that plays Jimmie Dale Gilmore.

(originally written 2/17/2002)