Dir. Michael Winterbottom, US/UK, 2007, 100mins
Cast: Angelina Jolie, Dan Futterman, Archie Panjabi, Will Patton, Mohammed Afzal
Review by Matthew Rodgers
In the immediate aftermath of 9/11 few stories captured the attention of the world than that of Wall Street Journal writer Daniel Pearl. On January 23rd 2002 whilst researching a story on infamous shoe bomber Richard Reid, Pearl vanished in Karachi, leaving behind his heavily pregnant wife Mariane and a frantic team of investigators, the next time he was to be seen would be in a series of harrowing photos that would ultimately lead to the video of his execution by beheading. A Mighty Heart is that story.
Michael Winterbottom’s film focuses on fact rather than emotion, possibly a mistake in a story that requires very little effort in order to get genuine heartache from such a tragic tale. A cross between Munich and Zodiac in terms of the meticulous nature of the politics and the investigation behind attempting to find Pearl (Dan Futterman – Oscar winning writer of Capote), the approach soon makes way for organised chaos as the clock ticks down on the extremists’ demands to release captives from the notorious Guantanamo prison. The editing, at times reminiscent of Paul Greengrass is brilliantly effective in replicating the taut emotion of Mariane’s plight, never giving the audience time to reflect on unfolding events. Winterbottom stamps his style all over the film – the overhead shot of the empty seat at the table says more than any words could.
Based on Mariane Pearl’s memoirs - A Might Heart: The Brave Life and Death of My Husband Danny – the film has a singular beating pulse in the form of the much maligned Angelina Jolie. Seriously, has she managed a half decent performance since Girl Interrupted? Singled out for criticism for “blacking up” to portray the Parisian wife of Pearl she sidesteps any grandiose gesturing, apart from a wholly contextual and completely forgivable third reel emotional outpouring, to deliver a lip quiveringly intense portrayal of a woman hanging on to hope and sanity by the thinnest of human threads. It’s to her credit that at times you forget that she is an integral cog in the Hollywood star system, E! News cover girl and in fact quite an accomplished actress. She is the film.
Aiding Jolie’s cause and creating an air of complete social and racial mistrust the back drop of Karachi is also a fantastic use of location, adding to the heightened panic; all hustle and bustle and intimate threat of danger, particularly when the sun goes down, it’s the same as many other cities but shot with a claustrophobic, cramped style that suffocates the viewer.
There are a couple of instances in which A Mighty Heart veers from intense, personal drama and rips the audience from the relatively uneasy comfort zone which they have shared with Mariane. Will Patton’s US government agent utters some misjudged Americanisms at inconvenient times; “God, I love this country” belongs in a completely different movie. There is also a romantic idea of journalism, yes it’s important to tell these stories but it also became clear that Pearl may not have followed the correct channels, or erred on the side of caution that lead to his horrific murder.
An accomplished, intelligent, and heartbreaking account of one death amongst many (230 journalists have died since Daniel’s death), any complaints directed towards A Mighty Heart pale in significance to the subject matter because this is Mariane Pearl’s voice and she deserves it to be heard.
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