Release Date:
October 16, 2007 Studio: Paramount Vantage Director: Michael Winterbottom
Screenwriter: John Orloff Starring: Angelina Jolie, Dan Futterman, Archie Panjabi, Will
Patton, Irfan Khan, Sajid Hasan, Aly Khan, Denis O'Hare Genre: Drama MPAA Rating: R (for horror violence, some sexual content and language)
Preview: A Mighty
Heart comes at the
murder of journalist Daniel
Pearl with a de-glamorized
intensity: it's not a
melodrama about Pearl's
kidnapping and killing at
the hands of Islamic
terrorists, but a
near-documentary about the
process of trying to find
him. Thus the center of the
film is not Pearl (Dan
Futterman) but his wife
Mariane (Angelina Jolie), a
cool customer who
manages--almost--to maintain
her calm throughout the
weeks-long ordeal. Director
Michael Winterbottom is less
overtly political here than
in his Road to Guantanamo,
although the reactions of
various authorities, from
U.S. officials to local
Pakistani cops, give the
flavor of different
attitudes and approaches.
Review: In what will
likely be the most talked
about role in her career,
Angelina Jolie plays Mariane
Pearl, journalist and wife
of Daniel Pearl in the movie
adaptation of Mariane's
book, "A Mighty Heart." Even
with history already
recorded and the outcome
known, you feel the fear and
the desperation that Jolie
brings to her role as a wife
stressed and stretching, but
unwilling to break down in
the face of disintegrating
situations...more
Extras:
"Journey of Passion: The
Making of a Mighty Heart,"
Committee to Protect
Journalists featurette,
public service announcement:
Pearl Foundation With
Christiane Amanpour.
A Mighty Heart Release Date:
June 22, 2007 Studio: Paramount Vantage Director: Michael Winterbottom
Screenwriter: John Orloff Starring: Angelina Jolie, Dan Futterman, Archie Panjabi, Will
Patton, Irfan Khan, Sajid Hasan, Aly Khan, Denis O'Hare Genre: Drama MPAA Rating: R (for horror violence, some sexual content and language) Official Website:
AMightyHeart.com
Plot Summary: On January 23, 2002, Mariane
Pearl's world changed forever. Her husband Daniel, South Asia bureau chief for
the Wall Street Journal, was researching a story on shoe bomber Richard Reid.
The story drew them to Karachi where a go-between had promised access to an
elusive source. As Danny left for the meeting, he told Mariane he might be late
for dinner. He never returned.
In the face of death, Danny's spirit of defiance and his unflinching belief in
the power of journalism led Mariane to write about his disappearance, the
intense effort to find him and his eventual murder in her memoir "A Mighty
Heart: The Brave Life and Death of My Husband Danny Pearl." Six months pregnant
when the ordeal began, she was carrying a son that Danny hoped to name Adam. She
wrote the book to introduce Adam to the father he would never meet. Transcending
religion, race and nationality, Mariane's courageous desire to rise above the
bitterness and hatred that continues to plague this post 9/11 world, serves as
the purest expression of the joy of life she and Danny shared
EN 5 Second Review:
Angelina Jolie makes her case as one of Hollywood's best
actresses, not just the hottest.
"The
film’s strict avoidance of exploitation and sensationalism only adds to
the film’s emotional impact" Peter Travers: Rolling Stone In just a few scenes, Futterman - the
acclaimed screenwriter of Capote - digs deeply into Daniel as a
journalist and a man. But the film belongs to Jolie...more
"Quest
for truth and the power of communication he believed in is the film's
most hopeful element. Early in "A Mighty Heart," those ideals are mocked
at a dinner party as "a romantic idea of journalism," but they finally
turn out to be ideas both Daniel Pearl and this committed film believe
are worth making a dreadful sacrifice for" Kenneth Turan: LA Times
Making "A Mighty Heart" a compelling experience is quite an
accomplishment given that anyone who cares enough to see the film will
know the outcome of the story. ...more
"It
plays as a pandering vanity project for Angelina Jolie" Phil Villareal: Arizona Daily Star
Instead of exploring Pearl's life story or attempting to
dramatize his experiences in terrorist captivity for several
days, director Michael Winterbottom abandons Pearl (played
by Dan Futterman in his brief screentime) in favor of Jolie
as Mariane Pearl, Daniel's pregnant widow...more
Release Date:
June 22, 2007
EN 5 Second Review:
Angelina Jolie makes her case as one of Hollywood's best
actresses, not just the hottest.
"It
plays as a pandering vanity project for Angelina Jolie"