A Mighty Heart is based upon the true story of Daniel Pearl (Dan Futterman,), the South Asia Bureau Chief for the Wall Street Journal, who was killed in Pakistan in early 2002, shortly after the American invasion of Iraq. Adapted from the book of the same name, by Pearl’s wife Mariane (Angelina Jolie of Mr. & Mrs. Smith), the screenplay is co-written by her and John Orloff (one of the writers for the mini-series “Band of Brothers”). Dan Futterman is also a fine actor and writer who received an Oscar nomination for his adapted screenplay of Capote. 

Daniel and Mariane, both journalists, are determined to bear witness to and report on the chaos and political quagmire that is the Middle East. They find themselves working in Karachi, Pakistan. Committed to uncovering truths and to each other, they are expecting their first child, a son they will name Adam. Mariane is a Cuban/French woman, and Daniel is a non-practicing Jew. The world is a minefield that they are willing to navigate.  

On January 23, 2002 Daniel Pearl was kidnapped on his way to an interview with a supposed terrorist leader. Using personal sources and the Internet, Pearl was duped into thinking everything was on the up and up. After all, if you exchange emails with someone, they must be.

 The film has overtones of Babel and Syriana regarding Americans in the Middle East. Its tone is more somber, partly because we know that the outcome of the grisly story is true. Jolie gives a fine performance, and has mentioned that she has great regard for Mariane and was deeply moved to portray her. War weariness, however, may keep Jolie from an Oscar nomination for this film.  

Strong supporting roles by Archie Panjabi as Mariane’s friend and fellow journalist, and the Karachi Police Captain (Irfan Khan of The Namesake) expand this feature to feel like a documentary in parts. This docudrama style is familiar for director Michael Winterbottom. There is also a chilling feeling of living in a city so large that there is no accurate census. One comes to easily understand how Pearl was kidnapped without a trace.  

Many will focus on the emotional torture suffered by Mariane, and while we don’t minimize that, of more interest to us was the sub plot regarding the use of torture and Gestapo tactics. Everyone it seems sinks to the lowest common denominator with respect to the interrogation of prisoners. We see it in Pakistan as if anything is okay, as long as you get the desired results. What’s important is that although we see what is being done, there are no observations that it’s not all right. In the current world, the Geneva Convention is a cruel joke. It exists in name only. 

As a minor footnote, it’s interesting that the film is rated R only for language and not for violence as well, considering the subject matter. It may be corny to say that “only love will conquer hate,” but that seems to be truer than ever after seeing this film. The brutal death of Daniel Pearl shows the direction and destination toward which hate takes us is only more misery.