Monster's Ball

Monster's Ball centres on Hank Grotowski, a death row correctional officer in the American South who follows his father Buck into the family trade. Hank's son Sonny has recently joined him on the job, though the younger man lacks his father's detachment. The Grotowski men share a history of racism, and Hank carries the additional weight of his wife's suicide and a bitter relationship with his ailing father. When Lawrence Musgrove, a Black death row inmate, is executed, his widow Leticia is left to raise their son alone. Hank and Leticia later meet by chance without either realizing the connection between them, and a fragile romance develops that neither fully understands.

The film is Marc Forster's first, and he went on to direct Finding Neverland three years later. Billy Bob Thornton plays Hank, Halle Berry plays Leticia, and Heath Ledger appears as Sonny. Sean Combs plays Lawrence, with Yasiin Bey as Ryrus Cooper and co-writer Will Rokos as Warden Velesco. The screenplay is by Milo Addica and Rokos, and Lee Daniels produced. Made for about 4 million dollars, it took roughly 45 million worldwide, a strong return on its budget for a drama of this scale.

On IMDb it holds 7 out of 10 from around 98,000 votes, while on TMDB it sits at 6.8 from a much smaller base. A critics' rating of 7.8 from 141 reviews places it above the audience scores. It runs 113 minutes.