Marc Forster’s Monster’s Ball Essay -- Marc Forster Monsters Ball Ess

Marc Forsters Monsters BallMarc Forsters Monsters Ball is a depiction of one mans journey to overcome his lifelong ignorance, but this seems to be the films only accomplishment. The sickish drama attempts to address pressing racial issues, but instead it creates a monstrous web of unanswered questions and unfulfilled plotlines cleverly masked by first-class acting and cinematic beauty.The first half of Monsters Ball revolves around a family of executioners responsible for the last days of a black death-row inmate. truncheon loading dock Thornton is striking as Hank Grotowski, a native Georgian who has spent his life following in his fathers footsteps both as a corrections officer in the state penitentiary and as a racist. Peter Boyle plays Thorntons retired father and delivers a gritty action that is a grateful change from his role as the wise-cracking Frank Barone on CBSs Everybody Loves Raymond. Heath Ledger is Sonny Grotowski, Thorntons son, a third-generation corrections off icer who never lives up to the familys tough-guy standards and dares to have black friends. Hank and Sonny are part of an execution team assigned to Lawrence Musgrove, a cop-killer skillfully portrayed by Sean Combs, whose impressive performance suggests that his acting career may have as much earning potential as P. Diddys current line of work.Thorntons portrayal of Grotowski is flawlesshis top hat since 1996s Sling Bladeand helps one forget such disappointments as 1998s A Simple Plan. He becomes Hank and leaves no trace of Billy Bob on the screen. Grotowskis dialogue is limited and purposely lacks profundity, forcing Thornton to convey meaning through action. When Hank descends his front porch to meet his sons two black friends with a s... ...mwhen the monster himself, Lawrence Musgrove, is awaiting death. Chesse creates depth and parallelism between Lawrence and Leticia, bouncing back and forth between the activities on death row and in Leticias home. The scene is aware of Dea d Man Walking, but Combs Musgrove is a welcome departure from Sean Penns Matthew Poncelet in that Musgrove accepts his fate and doesnt fight death. This allows him to be fully effective in conveying what is the films best line of dialogue as well as its main theme It truly takes a human beingness to really see a human being.Monsters Ball had the potential to be a gripping tale of delight in lost and love found, but that potential is lost in a sea of subplots that drowns the main narrative. Forster is left with a film that is little more than a star fomite for Berrys and Thorntons most compelling performances to date.