A Mighty Heart is based on the memoirs of Marianne Pearl, Daniel's wife, and recounts her experiences during Daniel's captivity. The story begins with Daniel's (Dan Futterman) disappearance and follows Marianne's (Angelina Jolie) life as it becomes a hectic, emotional rollercoaster as American and Pakistani investigators attempt to find her husband.
Ultimately, A Mighty Heart is a police procedural film. Director Micheal Winterbottom manages to make the film less about the characters and more about the situation, sometimes to the extent that the film has a documentary-type feel. Although Marianne is a central figure throughout the film, she is more of an emotional touchstone rather than the main "star." Throughout most of the film, Jolie feels less like a superstar and more like a down-to-earth, real-life person. This isn't just to Winterbottom's credit, but to Jolie's. It is easy to forget that underneath the sexy, tough girl persona she often displays in movies, she is still a fantastic actress.
This real-life approach, however, isn't a complete success. There is a handful of uncomfortable situations; some intended and others not. Part of the problem is that information comes in so quickly that it is sometimes hard to process it all. The approach is similar to the one used at the end of The Dark Knight; you're blasted with so much information that you'll feel overwhelmed. While the approach works to bring you closer to what the investigators are feeling, the story is never given a chance to breathe. The end of the journey is clear (and devastating), but the journey is confusing.
Another unfortunate side-effect to the film's real-life approach is that the investigation sometimes becomes so much of a focus that the Pearls are pushed out of their own story. Ultimately, this is Marianne's story, and the film loses some of its direction when she isn't in it.
A Mighty Heart is light on the extras with nothing added for the Blu-ray release. Aside from a PSA and look at the "Committee to Protect Journalists," the only other extra is a behind-the-scenes documentary. The feature looks at the process of bringing the story to film. Most of the included interviews are with the cast and the crew. The real people the movie is based on also make appearances, but are unfortunately pushed to the background.
A Mighty Heart is a movie that deserves more attention than it has received. While this could be contributed to lingering post-9/11 shellshock and fatigue from near 24/7 news coverage on the "War on Terror," A Mighty Heart is a unique look at personal loss set against a bigger issue. While the lack of extras and action may not bode well for the Blu-ray release, hopefully the movie will find a wider audience with the home release.
