By Chlotrudis Independent Film Society
Rating: 3.5 cats
Director: Michael Winterbottom
Country: united_kingdom, united_states
Year: 2007
Running time: 100
IMDB: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0829459/
Bruce says: “Anyone glued to the nightly news during the saga of journalist Daniel Pearl knows the sad ending of his harrowing kidnapping story. A MIGHTY HEART is based on the writings of his wife Mariane, herself a journalist. Daniel Pearl was South Asia Bureau Chief of the Wall Street Journal and was investigating the connection of shoe bomber Richard Reid to Al Qaeda when he disappeared in Karachi on the way to meet an informer. The Pearls, played by Angelina Jolie and Daniel Futterman, were very much in love and dedicated to what they would describe as a romantic type of journalism rather than aligning themselves with the cynical side of their profession.
“A MIGHTY HEART is, pure and simple, an account of what happened from the moment Danny kisses Mariane goodbye on the fateful day. Mariane is staying with her friend Asra Nomani (Archie Panjabi) in Karachi. Asra’s house is overrun with police and government officials once it is determined that Danny has disappeared. Hour by hour we get a detailed account of what happens behind the scenes, how the authorities think, what their strategy is and how plans are executed. A white board is used to document all the findings in hope that someone will somehow connect the dots. By the end of the film we are familiar with every aspect of Mariane’s ordeal.
“Angelina Jolie does a terrific job with her role in spite of many objections about her accent and her not being the correct racial mix for the part. Jolie captures Mariane’s supreme dignity and grace amidst the most horrific tragedy a human being could experience. Twice at news conferences Mariane rises above the media circus to a loftier plane. As she says in her final interview, ’10 (people) have been killed by terrorists this month. The others were Pakastani. They are suffering, too.’ She knows that her grief, her loss, is not any greater than that of many others, just more publicized.
“While I admire Michael Winterbottom, I’ve only loved one of his films – WONDERLAND. I feel that his political films – A MIGHTY HEART, WELCOME TO SARAJEVO, IN THIS WORLD, THE ROAD TO GUANTANAMO and the upcoming MURDER IN SAMARKIND – will be more appreciated in retrospect, as they are viewed in the aggregate. As for A MIGHTY HEART – it is a good film which concentrates too much on the personal drama and emotion (believe me there is enough of both for several films) and not enough on the issues of terrorism and international politics which engulf its story. 3.5 cats”