Long ago, I knew a person in college who, upon graduation, wanted to travel to the Middle East in an effort to try to help bring peace to the area long besieged by ideological disagreements, strife, and death. While that wasn't my cup of tea, I had to admire her idealistic dreams, what with her being a diminutive young woman desiring to travel to and then work in a hot bed not exactly known for treating women with utmost respect.
I have no idea if she ever made it there, but think of such commitment whenever I hear about non-military, non-government types who ply their trade in decidedly less than safe environs. That includes journalists who, by their very public and often high profile nature, seem likely magnets for potentially bad things to occur to them.
Aside from TV journalist David Bloom dying from a pulmonary embolism while covering the second Iraq war, probably the most notable such story is that of Daniel Pearl. He was the South Asia bureau chief for The Wall Street Journal in Karachi, Pakistan following a lead regarding "shoe bomber" Richard Reid. His kidnapping in January 2002 led to a massive manhunt that, despite the best efforts of all involved, didn't end happily.
As a result, his wife Mariane later published her account of that harrowing time, "A Mighty Heart: The Brave Life and Death of My Husband Danny Pearl." With her consent, that memoir has now been turned into the political drama "A Mighty Heart." Directed by Michael Winterbottom from a script by John Orloff, the film is generally well made and features various strong performances, particularly from Angelina Jolie who nearly disappears into the role of the six-month pregnant spouse who had to deal with this multi-layered crisis.
Shot in a pseudo documentary style, the film features a ton of edits, a back and forth storytelling style showcasing the "real time" investigation as well as flashbacks to the reporter's meetings with various figures and better times among the married couple, and most every location and character is identified by onscreen titles.
While it's fairly emotionally involving at times, I have to say I'm surprised it's not more powerful than it is. Some of that obviously has to do with knowing the outcome before the lights dim (although I'm guessing a majority of moviegoers probably never heard of Pearl, or if they did, have forgotten most if not all of the details).
Yet, and as Paul Greengrass proved in "United 93," it's still possible to make a riveting tale despite the ending being a foregone conclusion. Granted, that was an action-based drama that tapped into still highly charged emotions about 9/11, while this is far more of a straightforward drama. Even so, I never experienced any sort of "what's going to happen," edge of your seat reaction to what's presented.
Another potential explanation is the way in which Winterbottom and Jolie opt to portray Mariane. While the performance is quite good -- so much so that at times the instantly recognizable actress is nearly unrecognizable, at least until the camera occasionally catches a glimpse of those famous lips -- it's also quite reserved, at least until the very end.
From what I've read, the portrayal is accurate -- Mariane remaining strong and steadfast despite what has and is occurring all around her -- but the effect of that seems to distance the viewer a bit from being completely engaged in what occurs. In fact, and notwithstanding the ending, some of the more powerful moments are in those otherwise low-key, flashback moments of happier times between her and Daniel, solidly played here by Dan Futterman.
Supporting performances are strong, from Irrfan Khan as the determined head of the Pakistani counter-terrorism unit to Archie Panjabi as a family friend and Journal colleague who must contend with allegations about her being a spy based on her nationality (she's an Indian in Pakistan).
Overall, I found the film to be good, but I just wish I had felt that it was great. Nevertheless, and despite the arms-length emotional distance she purposefully projects, I wouldn't be surprised to see Jolie's name bantered about around awards season time, as the transformation from movie star to this real-life character is astonishing at times. It's just too bad the film doesn't quite climb to that same level. "A Mighty Heart" rates as a 6.5 out of 10.
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