Monster's Ball (2001) review

Corrections officers Hank (Billy Bob Thornton) and his son Sonny (Heath Ledger) put to death (via electric chair) convicted cop killer Lawrence Musgrove (Sean Combs) and it deeply affects both of them - later, Hank helps out a woman named Leticia (Halle Berry) whose son was hit by a car and they start a romantic relationship ... without him realizing she is Lawrence's widow.  For the most part, it's a somber depiction of two damaged people finding some solace with each other - Berry deservedly won the Academy Award for Best Actress and Thornton plays tortured and haunted quite well - that only unravels near the end when Hank's bigoted father Buck (Peter Boyle) insults her, she runs off and then Hank is turned into the "White Savior" she "needs to survive" and he even buys a gas station to support her (after dropping Pop off at the Old Age Home).  While I appreciate a good sex scene (if done well), the two here are kind of overdone: I understand the desperation in the characters, but Halle moaning "fill me" is too much.