M.R. Dinkins
February 2, 2008
HDTV Solutions

History, whether in word or image, is gummy glue, tacky tar, sticky honey. Once out of the jar, it picks up bits of everything and is never the same again. So too with the filming of Mariane Pearl‘s book A Mighty Heart, The Brave Life and Death of My Husband.

Hence anyone uncomfortable with Angelina Jolie's thick accent might feel quite like a voyeur of quasi history. But under Michael Winterbottom's direction, the formidable cast still performs with an intensity that shuns anything schmaltzy or sentimental.

Both the memoir and the movie chronicle pregnant Mariane's quest to find Daniel Pearl, (Dan Futterman), the Wall Street Journalist. In 2002 he was abducted in Pakistan by Islamic extremists as he researched the story of Richard Reid, the British "Shoe Bomber."

In the harrowing weeks leading to Daniel's cruel death, Mariane orchestrated an international investigative team in a compelling race to find him first.

For Jolie, playing Mariane was a labor of love--for her friend and for her friend's cause. Written for Adam, born three months after his dad died, the book and the film are dedicated to revenging Daniel's execution. Not in anger, but by living without loathing and fear.

Mariane Pearl, of Cuban and Dutch descent, ably inspired a multireligious force of friends and professionals (Christian, Muslim, Hindu, and Buddhist) who united to search for her Jewish husband. In the movie, in her book and in life, Mariane finds solace in that. And so does the audience.

Extras

The Extras help reinforce the theme of the story: "not giving in to hatred," said actor Will Patton. Since almost all of the principals from the real ordeal had been contacted before filming, there was a personal connection felt by the cast. And there was a certain intensity generated by making the film in sequence cramped inside a home for about the exact five week duration of Mariane's search. They talk about their feelings and the experience in interviews.

Additional segments cover two organizations that were inspired by Daniel's Brave Life and Death. TV's Christiana Amanpour explains the Pearl Foundation which fosters international and interdenom-inational dialogue and music.

Members of the Committee to Protect Journalists discuss their mission to speak out for journalists facing persecution and prosecution in their pursuit of truth.

The real story has been fictionalized for the screen. Even autobiographies and memoirs are part fiction. You have to remember – or interpret – or fill in the blanks – or make up your take on past events.

Only living can come close to nonfiction. But even life is fictitious. We make it up best we can as we go along.

Studio: Paramount

Director: Michael Winterbottom

Cast: Angelina Jolie, Dan Futterman, Archie Panjabi, Mohammed Afzal, Irfan Khan, Will Patton

Length: 102 minutes

Rated: R

Video:
Video codec: VC-1
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 2:35:1

Audio:
English:
  Dolby True HD 5.1
  Dolby Digital Plus 5.1
French & Spanish:
  Dolby Digital Plus 5.1

Subtitles:
English SDH, French, Portuguese, Spanish