While working as a journalist in Karachi, American Daniel Pearl was kidnapped and beheaded in early 2002. It seemed timely to watch the 2007 film A Mighty Heart, based on his wife Miriane's memoir of the experience, as similar attacks by Isis have been in the news in recent weeks.
The main reason I'd been hesitant to see A Mighty Heart is the casting of Angelina Jolie. Nothing against her as an actress, but having a white actress play a mixed-race woman continues a long history of "whitewashing" in film. Jolie does a fine job here, mimicing well Mariane Pearl's French accent and cadence. She plays Mariane as contained and determined during the search, then fierce and raw when she receives the tragic news of her husband's death. Logically I know that if Jolie hadn't been involved, the movie might not have ever received wide release. Yet I couldn't help wondering...
The main reason I'd been hesitant to see A Mighty Heart is the casting of Angelina Jolie. Nothing against her as an actress, but having a white actress play a mixed-race woman continues a long history of "whitewashing" in film. Jolie does a fine job here, mimicing well Mariane Pearl's French accent and cadence. She plays Mariane as contained and determined during the search, then fierce and raw when she receives the tragic news of her husband's death. Logically I know that if Jolie hadn't been involved, the movie might not have ever received wide release. Yet I couldn't help wondering...
- 9/25/2014
- by Elizabeth Stoddard
- Slackerwood
The lives of war correspondents are ripe with both lulls and action, and they’ve been translated, both truthfully and stuffed full of fiction, onto film for decades.
Charlize Theron is in talks to co-produce a biopic of slain war reporter Marie Colvin, according to The Hollywood Reporter. The story is based on the Vanity Fair article “Marie Colvin’s Private War” optioned by producer Basil Iwanyk and Thunder Road’s Peter Lawson. Theron would not only be taking on the challenge of representing a real-life journalist in a believable yet cinematic way, but a female journalist, which brings added complexities.
Charlize Theron is in talks to co-produce a biopic of slain war reporter Marie Colvin, according to The Hollywood Reporter. The story is based on the Vanity Fair article “Marie Colvin’s Private War” optioned by producer Basil Iwanyk and Thunder Road’s Peter Lawson. Theron would not only be taking on the challenge of representing a real-life journalist in a believable yet cinematic way, but a female journalist, which brings added complexities.
- 9/1/2012
- by Solvej Schou
- EW - Inside Movies
The actress's directorial debut, an unflinching portrayal of the genocide in Bosnia, has sent shockwaves through the Balkans – and may mark the start of a career behind the camera
• Feature: 'Angelina Jolie touched our souls' – Bosnia's rape victims have their say
Angelina Jolie's name has remained a byword for sex appeal for longer than most film stars could hope, but the 36-year-old Oscar-winner's status as one of the most compelling women in Hollywood is about to change. Her harrowing directorial debut, In the Land of Blood and Honey, has been met with such unexpected critical acclaim that a future for the actress behind the camera, as well as on screen, now looks certain.
The film, which premiered in New York this month, has already been recognised with a Stanley Kramer award for work in the cinema that draws attention to injustice and social issues. Last week it also received a Golden Globe nomination.
• Feature: 'Angelina Jolie touched our souls' – Bosnia's rape victims have their say
Angelina Jolie's name has remained a byword for sex appeal for longer than most film stars could hope, but the 36-year-old Oscar-winner's status as one of the most compelling women in Hollywood is about to change. Her harrowing directorial debut, In the Land of Blood and Honey, has been met with such unexpected critical acclaim that a future for the actress behind the camera, as well as on screen, now looks certain.
The film, which premiered in New York this month, has already been recognised with a Stanley Kramer award for work in the cinema that draws attention to injustice and social issues. Last week it also received a Golden Globe nomination.
- 12/19/2011
- by Vanessa Thorpe
- The Guardian - Film News
Angelina Jolie was radiant as she awarded her friend, journalist Mariane Pearl, with the Fern Holland Award Monday night at the Vital Voices Global Leadership Awards gala in Washington, D.C. Jolie, who played Pearl in the film version of her book A Mighty Heart, spoke of Pearl's special gift as a mother and called her an example of "courage, hope and tolerance," reports the Washington Post. Pearl, the wife of slain reporter Daniel Pearl, called Jolie "a sister" during her acceptance speech, and the two spent the day together, as their kids – Maddox, Pax and Adam – played. On Tuesday,...
- 4/8/2008
- PEOPLE.com
News cameras have captured Brad Pitt building homes in New Orleans, and now federal tax filings for the Jolie Pitt Foundation have documented the good works that Brad and Angelina Jolie are doing behind the scenes. All told, they gave more than $8 million in donations in 2006, with Pitt putting in $4,402,317, and Jolie donating $4,123,613, the Huffington Post reports, citing newly released federal tax filings. (These latest figures don't include 2007 – in which, among other charitable efforts, Brad's Make It Right Foundation raised $5 million.)In terms of dispensing their funds, according to records for 2006, the foundation handed out $2,367,935, including $1 million to both Doctors...
- 3/21/2008
- by Lesley Messer and Stephen M. Silverman
- PEOPLE.com
Pitt, stop? Not likely. Brad Pitt isn't even showing signs of slowing down. According to the BBC, the actor-producer, who's currently attached to nearly a dozen development projects, is confirmed for the leading role in State of Play, Universal's adaptation of the hit British series. Writer and executive producer Paul Abbott spilled the beans on the high-profile casting, announcing that Pitt would play the leading role of a journalist investigating the death of a political researcher with mysterious ties to the oil industry. Production dates were not disclosed. Pitt is currently in India producing the Daniel Pearl-kidnapping drama A Mighty Heart with Angelina Jolie. He will next be seen at the titular gunslinger in the Warner Bros. Western The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford.
- 10/12/2006
- IMDbPro News
Angelina Jolie has won her dream role - as author Ayn Rand's iconic heroine Dagney Taggart. Jolie, a longtime fan of Russian-born Rand, has been quietly campaigning to play Taggart in new film Atlas Shrugged - and now she's landed the role, according to trade newspaper Daily Variety. The movie adaptation of Rand's epic tome has been kicking around Hollywood for many years, and, at one point, was set to star Faye Dunaway. The project sets up a busy 12 months for Jolie, whose next movie will be another epic adaptation, Beowulf. She'll also be seen alongside Matt Damon in The Good Shepherd and she'll also star in the adaptation of Mariane Pearl's book about the kidnap and murder of her husband, journalist Daniel Pearl.
- 9/22/2006
- WENN
Filming of Angelina Jolie's hard-hitting new movie A Mighty Heart has caused controversy in Pakistan when the crew was found guilty of shooting without permission. The production crew has been caught filming scenes in Karachi and Islamabad without permission, according to Pakistani reports, and the shoot has been shut down. In a statement released to The Pakistan Daily Times, a government official says, "No request by the film unit to shoot in Pakistan had been made to the embassy." The film is based on Mariane Pearl's memoir about the kidnap and murder of her journalist husband Daniel Pearl, who went missing in Pakistan in 2002, while researching a story about Muslim fundamentalists for the Wall Street Journal.
- 9/14/2006
- WENN
Brad Pitt has confirmed girlfriend Angelina Jolie will play Mariane Pearl, the widow of slain Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl, in a movie being made by his production company. The film will be adapted from Pearl's memoir, A Mighty Heart, which chronicles her experience after her husband was kidnapped and murdered by Islamic extremists in Pakistan in 2002. According to Pitt, "The film will focus on the deep collaboration between people around the world in search of Daniel in 2002. We hope the film can increase understanding between people of all faiths and portray the story and the people involved as honestly as possible without anger or judgment." Pearl, a French journalist, was pregnant when her husband was kidnapped in 2002 and gave birth to their son Adam in May of that year. She has expressed her support for the project: "I am delighted that Angelina Jolie will be playing my role in the adaptation of the book. I deeply admire her work and what she is committed to." The film will begin shooting this autumn and will be Jolie's first dramatic role since giving birth to her daughter with Pitt, Shiloh Nouvel.
- 7/14/2006
- WENN
Motherhood certainly isn't interrupting Angelina Jolie's career. The Oscar-winning mom, who recently joined the animated comedy Kung Fu Panda, has also agreed to portray Mariane Pearl, the wife of slain journalist Daniel Pearl in a film based on her book, A Mighty Heart. Road to Guantanamo helmer Michael Winterbottom directs the Paramount Vantage project, which tells the story of Pearl's search for her kidnapped husband in Pakistan, while she was five months pregnant with his child. Winterbottom and Laurence Coriat will adapt the screenplay while Jolie's betrothed Brad Pitt will produce via his Plan B production company. Filming is expected to start within the next five weeks.
- 7/13/2006
- IMDbPro News
Actor Josh Lucas will seek the truth behind slain journalist Daniel Pearl's death in a timely new thriller. Pearl will be portrayed as a fictitious newsman in the untitled new film, which is based on French author Bernard-Henri Levy's book Who Killed Daniel Pearl. In the book, Levy speculates about the murder of the journalist, who was kidnapped in Pakistan and killed in 2002, suggesting Pearl may have uncovered information he shouldn't have. The Lucas film will be the first of two new movies about the journalist - Warner Brothers executives are also planning to adapt a book by Pearl's widow Marianne into another film.
- 5/9/2006
- WENN
IMDb.com, Inc. takes no responsibility for the content or accuracy of the above news articles, Tweets, or blog posts. This content is published for the entertainment of our users only. The news articles, Tweets, and blog posts do not represent IMDb's opinions nor can we guarantee that the reporting therein is completely factual. Please visit the source responsible for the item in question to report any concerns you may have regarding content or accuracy.