Credits Director : Michael Winterbottom Starring : Angelina Jolie, Dan Futterman, Archie Panjabi, Mushtaq Khan Our Score :

By Kris Ashton

Mariane and Daniel Pearl are journalists working in the Middle East during 2002 (he for the Wall Street Journal, she for a French newspaper). Their final stop before returning home is Pakistan, where Daniel has been promised an exclusive interview with a fundamentalist linked to the infamous ‘shoe bomber’, Richard Reid. But Daniel is kidnapped and ransom demands are made.

A pregnant yet stoic Mariane joins forces with the Pakistani counter-terrorism unit, police, and local US diplomats, to track down Daniel’s kidnappers and try to rescue him. But can they get to Daniel in time?

This true account of the dangers journalists face covering the Middle East conflict plays out, in the main, like a procedural police drama. It’s only when a resolution is reached that more plangent moments are indulged. This ‘just the facts ma’am’ approach offers heightened realism and gives the subject matter the gravitas it deserves. It’s not without emotion, but if you prefer your drama melodramatic, you might find 'A Mighty Heart' rather dry.

While an excellent actress, Angelina Jolie has the sort of fascinating face that can distract and detract from her performance. Here, brown contacts and tightly curled hair (plus, I suspect, a darkened skin tone) reduce the hypnotic quality of her looks and allows the audience to sup on the meat of her performance. Ironically, this role does not have as much dramatic weight as many others in her career – but it is something casting directors might want to consider in the future. A 'Monster' or 'The Hours'-style character might draw an award-winning performance from her.

Perhaps the film’s most remarkable achievement is that it avoids polemic and political posturing (except for one trite line about misery breeding terrorism). If you don’t think this is unusual, you obviously don’t know much about prevailing attitudes in Hollywood or director Michael Winterbottom’s previous film, 'The Road to Guantanamo'. 'A Mighty Heart' is a sensitive but unflinching re-enactment of a harrowing twist in Mariane Pearl’s life, as well as one of the better films made about the ongoing war on terror and its human impact.

Numerous special features, including an intriguing 30-minute featurette on Pearl, can be found under that button marked 'Extras'.