Rating: R | Runtime: 108 minutes
Release Date: June 22nd, 2007 (USA)
Studio: Paramount Vantage
Director(s): Michael Winterbottom
Writer(s): John Orloff / Mariane Pearl (book)

Don’t hold it in.

The story of Daniel Pearl is tragic. I remember following it on the news until the fateful day of his horrific beheading. Just imagining what his family and friends were thinking during the whole ordeal is tough to fathom, but his wife also being with him in Pakistan—pregnant with his first child—breaks your heart.

Pearl’s widow Mariane used her journalistic skills to write a novel about what transpired between his kidnapping and eventual murder. Her words are, I’m sure, haunting and filled with an unbearable amount of love—both lost and strengthened. To have the courage to allow that story to be told to the world is amazing. And director Michael Winterbottom doesn’t squander her trust to tell it with A Mighty Heart.

Being a nonfiction story so many people know demands some ingenuity to make it fresh and interesting for audiences. So, Winterbottom shoots the film handheld and up-close while splicing in numerous clips of actual news footage for added realism. The editing of documentary stock with the actors portraying our leads, both in the present and via flashbacks, is expertly handled. There are no missteps visually as Winterbottom knows how to evoke emotion through economy. When the men on the search for Pearl finally confront the atrocity, it’s in their reactions to the video that makes us understand the brutality. We don’t need to be shown the carnage because their faces say it all.

Give credit to Angelina Jolie too for coming into this project with dedication and professionalism. Her real life persona is nonexistent as she fully disappears into Mariane Pearl. Her accent is impeccable, especially watching scenes where emotions take over without the accent faltering. She embodies the strength that allowed Pearl to deal with the days and weeks she desperately sought answers. It all culminates in a heart-wrenching moment of grief and a release of all the feelings she refused to let out until absolutely necessary. I was extremely impressed by her performance.

The other actors are also fantastic. Dan Futterman plays Danny Pearl with integrity and love as a fearless man who believed in his job and the search for truth. Irrfan Khan follows up his brilliant turn in The Namesake with another solid role as the local police captain. And Denis O’Hare, Will Patton, and Archie Panjabi are each wonderful as those trying their hardest to get through it all. This is not a vanity project for Jolie considering she’s absent for a good portion of the film’s middle. The supporting cast does an admirable job to never let it falter whenever her character is there to shoulder the weight.

Much like United 93, A Mighty Heart is a tough story to experience, but one that must be seen. There are few blemishes on-screen and, although I may never have the desire to view it again, I’m glad I took the time to sit down with this tale of hope, compassion, and life in the midst of devastating tragedy.

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Angelina Jolie as “Mariane Pearl” stars in Michael Winterbottom’s “A Mighty Heart”. Copyright: © 2007 by PARAMOUNT VANTAGE, a Division of PARAMOUNT PICTURES. All Rights Reserved. Photo by Peter Mountain.