A Mighty Heart Blu-ray offers solid video and great audio in this excellent Blu-ray release
After her husband, Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl (Dan Futterman,
Urbania), is kidnapped by terrorists, Mariane (Jolie) heads a desperate search for
clues in a frantic race against time to locate her missing husband. Directed by
maverick filmmaker Michael Winterbottom (The Road To Guantanamo), A Mighty
Heart is a gripping story of faith, hope and courage in the face of tragedy.
When the body of The Wall Street Journal's South Asia Bureau Chief, Daniel Pearl, was
discovered nine days after his kidnapping in 2002, much of the western world had recently
been forced into recognizing the realities of Islamic terrorism, in the wake of the events of
September 11th, 2001. Mr. Pearl's brutal murder sparked nearly universal outrage, as well
as an outpouring of support for his Widow, Mariane Pearl, and the couple's unborn child.
Mrs. Pearl soon dropped out of the spotlight, only to return in 2003 with her written account
of the shocking events that transpired between Mr. Pearl's kidnapping and eventual murder.
A Mighty Heart, the film version of her story, recreates these startling events
through Mariane's eyes; demonstrating for the world the horrors that she endured during
those fateful nine days in 2002.
Mariane traverses Karachi
Journalist Daniel Pearl (Dan Futterman) and his pregnant wife, Mariane (Angelia Jolie), travel
to Pakistan in early 2002, investigating potential links between
shoe-bomber Richard Reid, Al Qaeda and Pakistan's ISI intelligence agency. On January 23,
2002, a mere day before the couple is scheduled to leave Pakistan, Pearl vanishes into thin
air on the way to interview a radical Muslim Sheik. After hours of not answering his phone
and not checking in, Mariane begins a fruitless search for Daniel, hopelessly attempting to
gain assistance from local police. When a series of terrorist hostage videos featuring Daniel
surfaces, she finds
herself caught between FBI investigators, Pakistani authorities and a bureaucracy that limits
her access to information and stifles her attempts at assisting the authorities' efforts; all
taking place as she becomes the central figure in the biggest international news story of the
year.
Mariane endures virulent anti-Semitic hatred, repeated accusations of being an American
spy and the constant agony of being forced to witness her husband's image on every
television station, as his life
is threatened and demands are issued. Mariane's strength and courage is repeatedly
tested on a
minute-by-minute basis; she keeps up appearances and fights for Daniel's life. Nine days
later, Mariane discovers that her wish is not to be; Daniel has been killed and their unborn
child will never meet his own father.
A Mighty Heart is a painful film to experience. Daniel Pearl's kidnapping and murder
were in constant rotation on every news channel imaginable back in 2002; the story was
horrific and the images of his grieving, pregnant wife proved to be haunting to many. By
telling the story through Mariane's experiences, the film provides a new perspective on the
events of the kidnapping, while never actually showing Mr. Pearl's own struggles with his
captors. A Mighty Heart exists entirely through the eyes of Mariane Pearl; her
conversations, private moments, public statements and struggles are shown precisely as
she would have experienced them at the time.
There are many effective supporting performances in A Mighty Heart, but the film is,
without a doubt, an Angelina Jolie vehicle. She appears in almost every scene in the film;
the tremendous emotional weight of the subject matter rests squarely on her shoulders.
She creates a complex character whose strength shines through her obvious pain. With a
lesser actress, the role could have easily fallen victim to over-acting and melodrama.
A Mighty Heart is a very difficult film; one that is bound to unearth unpleasant
memories for those who followed Daniel Pearl's kidnapping back in 2002. While I wouldn't
call it a great film, it's perfectly acted and devastatingly effective. More importantly, it serves
as an important reminder to the barbaric events that took Mr. Pearl's life seven short years
ago; events that, for many, are too quickly forgotten.
Shot on digital video with an intended look that can only be described as "gritty," A
Mighty Heart arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of an accurate 1080p, AVC Mpeg-4 transfer,
that
maintains the movie's original theatrical aspect ratio of 2.35:1. A Mighty Heart will
probably end up being somewhat of a controversial release on Blu-ray; the photography is
noisy and an extensive amount of artificial grain has been utilized. In addition, the picture is
practically monochromatic throughout the film, resulting in a nearly sepia-tone look.
Given the heavy amount of grain/noise, A Mighty Heart lacks a great deal of fine
detail. Some shots do clear up a bit, but the majority of the movie takes place in darkened
settings that amplify the already ample noise. Given the aforementioned monochromatic
quality of the picture, any judgment of color accuracy would be pointless. In spite of these
potential issues, I believe that A Mighty Heart accurately represents the intent of
the filmmakers, much like the oft maligned Blu-ray of Miami Vice, a film with a
similar visual style. A Mighty Heart just wasn't ever intended to be conventionally
pretty, a factor
that elevates this presentation considerably, earning the title an easy recommendation.
There's a lot to like about the soundtrack to A Mighty Heart; it's an effective exercise
in efficient sound design that manages to move the story along while keeping viewers'
attention firmly in the action. Presented in 5.1 Dolby TrueHD, the source material is
presented as accurately as possible, never missing a beat.
Dialogue is of primary importance in A Mighty Heart; it's delivered intelligibly from the
center channel and never dissipates into static or hard to decipher passages. Rear
surround activity appears sporadically throughout the film, adding a nice sense of ambience
to the proceedings. While A Mighty Heart isn't groundbreaking or particularly
exciting, this Blu-ray does its job admirably. Recommended.
- "A Journey of Passion: The Making of A Mighty Heart"
- "Committee to Protect Journalists"
- Public Service Announcement for the Pearl Foundation Featuring Christine
Amanpour
- Theatrical Trailer
A Mighty Heart misses the mark where supplements are concerned. Instead of
taking the opportunity to present featurettes and documentaries dealing with the life of
Daniel Pearl, his kidnapping and the impact it had on foreign correspondents, the war on
terror and the public, Paramount has, instead, chosen to include a couple of rudimentary
EPK-style
featurettes, a short public service announcement and the film's theatrical trailer. I can
appreciate the need to spread the word about the Pearl Foundation and I certainly
appreciate the trailer being presented in high definition, but there's so much more material
that could have made this a truly involving collection of extras. Unfortunately, that's not to
be. This is a seriously disappointing selection of special features.
A Mighty Heart is a painful and relentless film that chronicles Mariane Pearl's
heartbreak and tenacity in the face of the kidnapping of her husband, Daniel Pearl. The film
attempts to dramatize actual events, succeeding at presenting the confusion and paranoia
that plagued efforts to locate the missing journalist. Paramount presents an admirable
video transfer of challenging material and audio that does its job well. The film's
supplementary features, however, are an almost total waste of time. Not for the
squeamish, A Mighty Heart is a compelling film featuring outstanding performances
and impossibly distressing circumstances. Recommended.
Paramount Home Entertainment has announced the technical specs and special features for the upcoming Blu-ray releases of 'A Mighty Heart' and 'Things We Lost in the Fire', which are both due to hit store shelves on March 24th. The previously announced Blu-ray 'Kite ...
