Troubled father helped Berry make film

Associated Press

BERLIN — Halle Berry says her childhood with a troubled father helped her play the role of an alcoholic in the critically acclaimed movie "Monster's Ball."

The film, in which Berry portrays a single mother who falls in love with her husband's executioner, played by Billy Bob Thornton, is among 23 entries vying at the Berlin Film Festival for the Golden Bear. The prize will be awarded Feb. 17.

Berry, 33, said Saturday that her own mother struggled to raise two children after being abandoned by her alcoholic husband.

Her father "had never been loved himself," a sorrow shared by the film's characters, she said at a news conference.