A Mighty Heart (2007)
79%RT Audience Score: 70%
Awards & Nominations: 4 wins & 19 nominations
Angelina Jolie conveys the full emotional range of a woman in a desperate situation in A Mighty Heart, an urgent yet tactful film about a difficult subject
A Mighty Heart is a gripping and intense film that will have you on the edge of your seat. The hand-held digital camera and journalistic approach make you feel like you’re right there in the middle of the action. Angelina Jolie’s performance is powerful and dedicated, proving that her acting skills are worth more discussion than her personal life. It’s not a fun movie to watch, but it’s an important one that sheds light on the complexities of our world. Plus, it’s impressive that the director achieved such a powerful film without bludgeoning the audience with unspeakable violence. Overall, A Mighty Heart is a must-see for anyone who wants to be moved and inspired.
Production Company(ies)
Kudos Film and Television, BBC Films, Serendipity Point Films,
Distributor
Paramount Pictures
Release Type
Theatrical
Filming Location(s)
Islamabad, Pakistan
MPAA / Certificate
Rated R for language
Year of Release
2007
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Color:Color
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Sound mix:SDDS Dolby Digital DTS
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Aspect ratio:2.35 : 1
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Runtime:1h 43m
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Language(s):English, French, Urdu, Arabic
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Country of origin:United States
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Release date:Release Date (Theaters): Jun 22, 2007 Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Jan 1, 2013
Genre(s)
Drama
Keyword(s)
starring Angelina Jolie, Dan Futterman, Archie Panjabi, Will Patton, Irrfan Khan, Denis O’Hare, directed by Michael Winterbottom, written by John Orloff, drama, R-rated, box office gross $9.2M, reviewed by Namrata Joshi, Ben Kenigsberg, Dave Calhoun, Melissa Anderson, Bob Mondello, Sandra Hall, Tim Basham, Fernando F Croce, Wesley Lovell, Heather Huntington, journalist, terrorism, Pakistan, abduction, international attention, underground politics, Mariane Pearl, Daniel Pearl, The Wall Street Journal, urgent, tactful, emotional, powerful, urgent, docudrama, journalistic approach, hand-held digital camera, real feel, Karachi streets, Brangelina, biopic, memoir, Islamic terrorists, rescue, courage, strength, evil
Worldwide gross: $19,008,745
Worldwide gross (inflation-adjusted): $27,231,318
Worldwide gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 1,576
Worldwide tickets sold (est.): 2,969,609
US/Canada gross: $9,176,787
US/Canada gross (inflation-adjusted): $13,146,370
US/Canada gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 1,536
US/Canada opening weekend: $3,948,863
US/Canada opening weekend (inflation-adjusted): $5,657,014
US/Canada opening weekend ranking (inflation-adjusted): 1,073
Budget and Earnings Details
Production budget (est.): $16,000,000
Production budget (inflation-adjusted): $22,921,086
Production budget ranking: 1,292
Marketing and distribution budget (inflation-adjusted est.): $12,343,005
Box office net earnings to date (inflation-adjusted est.): -$8,032,774
ROI to date (est.): -23%
ROI ranking: 1,521
Dan Futterman – Daniel Pearl
Archie Panjabi – Asra Q. Nomani
Will Patton – Randall Bennett
Irrfan Khan – Captain
Denis O’Hare – John Bussey
Director – Michael Winterbottom
Producers – Brad Pitt, Andrew Eaton, Dede Gardner
Writer – John Orloff
Director(s)
Michael Winterbottom
Writer(s)
John Orloff
Producer(s)
Brad Pitt, Andrew Eaton, Dede Gardner
Film Festivals
Awards & Nominations
4 wins & 19 nominations
Academy Awards
All Critics (195) | Top Critics (67) | Fresh (155) | Rotten (40)
Winterbottom tells the story in a similar docudrama vein: hand-held digital camera, a real feel and journalistic approach. There’s an urgency in the way he shoots the restless Karachi streets.
January 25, 2019 | Rating: 3/4
Namrata Joshi
Outlook
TOP CRITIC
November 16, 2011 | Rating: 4/5
Ben Kenigsberg
Time Out
TOP CRITIC
November 16, 2011 | Rating: 4/5
Dave Calhoun
Time Out
TOP CRITIC
November 16, 2011 | Rating: 4/5
Melissa Anderson
Time Out
TOP CRITIC
Knowing how this harrowing story played out in real life doesn’t diminish its power in the slightest.
October 18, 2008
Bob Mondello
NPR.org
TOP CRITIC
Although it is impossible to erase the spectre of Brangelina from your mind altogether while watching Jolie inhabit the role of Mariane Pearl, you can manage it for surprisingly long stretches at a time.
October 19, 2007 | Rating: 4/4
Sandra Hall
Sydney Morning Herald
TOP CRITIC
No preaching and no proselytizing. Just a horrible happening in a continually complicated world.
September 30, 2010
Tim Basham
Paste Magazine
[Jolie’s] stunning performance is a career best and a powerful dedication to the strength and bravery of the real life Mariane Pearl.
July 6, 2010 | Rating: 4/5
Thomas Caldwell
Cinema Autopsy
Torpid, faux-inspirational
August 27, 2009
Fernando F. Croce
CinePassion
The film would be nothing without Angelina Jolie’s brave, powerful performance.
September 30, 2008 | Rating: 2.5/4
Wesley Lovell
Cinema Sight
It is to director Michael Winterbottom’s (24 Hour Party People, Welcome to Sarajevo) credit that he can achieve such a powerful film without bludgeoning his audience with the images of the unspeakable violence that were inherent in Pearl’s last days.
August 21, 2008 | Rating: 8/10
Heather Huntington
ReelzChannel.com
Angelina Jolie continues to prove her acting is worth more discussion than her personal life. It’s not always fun to watch, but it’s an important piece of work.
March 3, 2008 | Rating: 8/10
Jeff Bayer
The Scorecard Review…
Plot
On January 23, 2002, Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl is to fly from Karachi to Dubai with his pregnant wife, Mariane, also a reporter. On the day before, with great care, he has arranged an interview in a café with an Islamic fundamentalist cleric. When Danny doesn’t return, Mariane initiates a search. Pakistani police, American embassy personnel, and the FBI examine witnesses, phone records, e-mails, and hard drives. Who has him? Where is he? There’s also the why: because of U.S. abuse of prisoners at Guantanamo, because of a history of Journal cooperation with the CIA, because Pearl is a Jew? Through it all, Mariane is clearheaded, direct, and determined.
Trivia
Goofs / Tidbits
Angelina Jolie delivers a powerful performance as Mariane Pearl in A Mighty Heart.
Michael-Winterbottom.jpg
