As part of the BFI’s ‘The Cinematic Life of Boxing’ season, a screening of Million Dollar Baby (2004) was followed by a Q&A with broadcaster and former athlete Jeanette Kwakye, retired boxer and writer Ruth Raper and professional boxer Laura Akram. The season explores the boxing lens and its unique ability to platform stories of love, social injustice, politics and above all, the strength of the human spirit.
Clint Eastwood’s Million Dollar Baby is one of cinema’s greatest examples of this; on the surface it’s the sad story of a remarkable female boxer and her reluctant trainer, but in truth it’s a story of family turmoil, gender inequality and, as Clint Eastwood himself described ‘a father-daughter love story’.
Oscar-winning Hilary Swank stars as underdog Maggie Fitzpatrick, who finally convinces coach Frankie Dunn (Clint Eastwood) to take her under his wing, aided by gym caretaker and narrator Eddie Scrap-Iron Dupuis (Morgan Freeman). It’s got everything you want from a boxing movie: grit, determination, heart-warming success, out-of-character vulnerability and a devastating ending.
Eastwood’s idea for the film was initially rejected by Warner Bros – ‘It’s about a woman in boxing! Nobody will want to see that!’ – but he convinced them with a small budget and strong will. It’s true, in 2004, not many people did want to see women in boxing; women’s boxing wasn’t even in the Olympics until 2012, and even now women’s matches are knocked down to the bottom of line-ups. Raper discussed the current attitude towards women’s boxing, noting that there is ‘still a long way to go’.
The first ever all-female boxing card to headline a major venue was just last year at the Royal Albert Hall, and still they are paid a fraction of what their male counterparts receive. The former boxer turned writer/presenter discussed this with current boxer Laura Akram after the screening. They discussed the truth of the film, its moments of dramatisation and accuracy, and how it made them, as female boxers, feel. It was clear that the film’s tragic ending isn’t conducive to improving the sport’s dangerous reputation, but that its portrayal of the typical boxing gym, the themes it discusses and the relationship between coach and athlete were handled truthfully.
There was a general sense of hope from the panel; female boxing has come a long way since 2004, with world champions Katy Taylor, Caroline Dubois and Claressa ‘T Rex’ Shields, to name but a few, leading the way for aspiring young women. Representation in cinema is gaining traction, with Ryan Destiny’s portrayal of Claressa Shields in The Fire Inside (2024) Sydney Sweeney starring in Christy, the 2025 biopic of legend Christy Martin.
Also up for discussion was the accuracy of the film’s ‘Hit Pit’ gym, Raper noting that boxing gyms are often ‘in places where they are needed’, in deprived areas, working mens clubs, and that Million Dollar Baby does a good job of representing this element of the sport. The side stories of Danger Barch (Jay Baruchel) and the gym regulars are a big part of this, symbols of the social and symbolic power of boxing beyond its definition.
Wonderfully facilitated by Jeanette Kwakye, the evening was an inspiring and eye-opening peek into the world of women’s boxing, and an excellent meeting between cinema and sport, highlighting the importance of their intersection expertly.