By STEVE PERSALL, Times Film Critic

© St. Petersburg Times
published February 8, 2002

In Monster's Ball, Halle Berry is far more than a pretty face. In one memorable scene, she takes the audience through a roller-coaster of emotion without speaking a word.

Halle Berry announces herself as an Oscar-worthy actor in Monster's Ball, especially in one scene in which she doesn't say a word.

It occurs when Berry's character, Leticia Musgrove, a struggling widow and mother in rural Georgia, steps onto a porch to share ice cream with Hank Grutowski (Billy Bob Thornton), the prison guard who executed her husband and ignored his racist roots long enough to fall in love with this weary black woman.

What Berry accomplishes in the next few seconds is remarkable, a silent example of expression that should be required study for acting classes. Leticia's face says it all, a fluid progression through several emotions -- awareness, anger, resistance and resignation -- that some actors might need paragraphs of dialogue to convey. It's an actor's moment because the acting is invisible, yet a character's arc is clearly defined.

The scene is perhaps more impressive because the former model's film career has mostly been as window dressing in such films as Swordfish, X-Men and the next, as-yet-untitled, James Bond movie. But something has been coming, a promise that shined on television with an award-winning impersonation of Dorothy Dandridge but only flickered on the big screen. Until now.

Berry sounds flattered to hear me gushing over that career-defining moment during a telephone interview. She wasn't sure if the scene worked until a first viewing months later. Getting her to discuss that mercurial expression offers a peek inside the personal confidence and collaborative trust necessary to fuel the creative process.

[Photo: AP] Halle Berry waves as she arrives for the Golden Globe Awards in Beverly Hills, Calif., on Jan. 20. Berry was nominated for best performance by an actress in a motion picture drama for her work in Monsters Ball.

"The script (by Milo Addica and Will Rokos) just said: "She looks up to the stars and says nothing,' " Berry says. "The great thing about the screenplay, the reason I loved it so much, is that it had so many moments like that, that actors could really just grab a hold of and do some unspoken things.

"That (scene) was a great opportunity to figure what Leticia's really feeling. I always knew it was complicated, but finding a way to convey that without words was truly a challenge. Actors love to do that, to take it wherever."

Then comes the insecurity, wondering if acting decisions that can't be practiced because they would seem phony are the right ones. Berry's facial flow couldn't be measured by Thornton's reaction because Hank is supposed to be unaware of what Leticia is doing. Director Marc Forster kept encouraging Berry through several takes and serious doubts.

"I was like: "Are you sure you don't want to write something?' " Berry says, laughing now at her reluctance then. "Marc kept saying: "No, I'm looking at it from this end of the camera and it's coming across.' He made me believe."

The film's low-budget production schedule didn't allow time for actors to watch the day's footage. Berry didn't see the results of her effort until a final cut was screened. Neither did Thornton, who was floored by what he saw.

"It was only after seeing the movie that he realized what I was doing," Berry said. "His job in the scene was to be oblivious to it. As far as he knew, I just put on a robe and came down to get my ice cream. But after seeing it, he was very complimentary, like, "Wow, that's what you were doing over there?"'

That's a generous move, but Thornton doesn't entirely surrender the screen. Hank absent-mindedly pokes at his ice cream, which is telling but not distracting. Hank's blissful ignorance of the occasion is a perfect counterpoint to Leticia's turmoil, making viewers wonder where these two flawed people will go from there.

"Billy Bob appeared to do nothing, but he was really doing everything," Berry says. "The more you see him, the more you realize why Leticia's making the decision she's making.

"I would like to think I'm the kind of actress who would be that generous. Some scenes are written and they belong to another character. It's all about having enough confidence in your own work to allow someone else to have a moment. Making movies shouldn't be about stealing scenes. You have to give it over to what's driving the story. A good actor like Billy Bob knows that."

Berry has her share of showy scenes in Monster's Ball: declarations of guilt, hate, lust and longing that turn up the volume or turn on the tears to command attention. But that wordless scene speaks loudest about Berry's talent catching up to her pretty face in terms of Hollywood respect.

"Being a model isn't usually synonymous with being a great actor," she admits. "I felt early on that it was important to overcome the stereotypes that go along with careers like that. I knew I would have to pursue certain roles that would help me shed that image."

Monster's Ball effectively turns Berry's beauty into another aspect of Leticia's pain. The role calls for Leticia to reveal several unsavory traits, from alcoholism to child abuse. Such ugly behavior coming from such an attractive person makes a difference. Berry brushes off a suggestion that a plainer actor wouldn't have been as effective.

"Just because one is physically pleasing to people doesn't mean that their lives won't be laden with hard times or complexities or imperfections," Berry says. "I saw Leticia, no matter what she looked like, as a woman who was wounded and struggling. I didn't see her as bad as people maybe saw her. I don't think I could see her that bad and also bring her to life."

The result is a performance expected to contend for an Academy Award when nominations are announced Feb. 12. The smart money is on Sissy Spacek (In the Bedroom) after she claimed most of 2001's best actress prizes, including the Golden Globe. Berry jokes that she picked the wrong year for a breakthrough.

Most actors claim an Oscar nomination is enough. For Berry, even being considered for a nomination seems to be enough for now.

"Something different has happened to my career with this movie," she says. "I think it's a new level of respect. That has made me feel so good day in and day out, that people are getting the movie. As an artist that's really what you want people to do.

"Would I love to have an Oscar? Absolutely. And I hope someday that should happen for me. But I'm also realistic enough to know if it doesn't, I'm feeling pretty good about where I am and where I'm going."

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