A Mighty Heart

A Mighty Heart

Starring Angelina Jolie, Dan Futterman & Archie Panjabi

With a title such as "A Mighty Heart," one might expect a film with great... heart. However, this is not the case entirely for Michael Winterbottom's wishful biography about the separation of the Pearl family. When Daniel Pearl (Dan Futterman) searches through the streets of Karachi for an interview with one of the most dangerous terrorists on the planet - and this is shown to us near the end of the film with his horrible execution. The movie is about Mariane's struggle and fight to find her Danny and to bring him back home.

Jolie beholds one of her strongest performances, but not one to be over the top about. She has one good scene in which she falls apart in her bedroom over the news of Danny's beheading. This scene is both moving and enticing, but the rest of the movie drags on. Jolie's character runs full circle about five times for about an hour of the film in which her, her friends, and government officials target certain people to be involved in Danny's capture. The plot suffers greatly here, throwing us name after name and never grabbing our attention. Mariane's friend, Asra (Archie Panjabi), is very likable for her intelligence and determination to help her torn friend, but again, it's not enough to make the film entertaining.

The background meaning behind "A Mighty Heart" is somewhat present, but the attempt to bring this to life failed.

Grade: C