Brad Pitt Carries Super Smiley Zahara

Jolie’s star turn weighs heavy on ‘A Mighty Heart’
By Phil Villarreal
Pvillarreal@azstarnet.com
Tucson, Arizona | Published: 06.21.2007

“A Mighty Heart” could have been a worthy memorial for journalist Daniel Pearl, who was kidnapped and killed by terrorists in Pakistan in 2002, but it plays as a pandering vanity project for Angelina Jolie.
Instead of exploring Pearl’s life story or attempting to dramatize his experiences in terrorist captivity for several days, director Michael Winterbottom abandons Pearl (played by Dan Futterman in his brief screentime) in favor of Jolie as Mariane Pearl, Daniel’s pregnant widow.
Mariane’s story, while poignant and heartbreaking, doesn’t make for compelling cinema. She and her supporters stew in miserable anticipation while they comfort one another, make phone calls and computer searches to investigate the circumstances surrounding the kidnapping, and await word from the terrorists or authorities.
Basically the film is about a bunch of sad, frustrated people sitting around waiting for the inevitable. Occasional flashbacks to Daniel and Mariane’s wedding don’t do enough to make it feel as though you know the couple. Mariane desperately wants to know what’s going on with her husband, and so does the audience.
Occasional cutaways show American authorities sifting through Pakistani corruption and disorganization to get to the truth, but the viewer is kept just as much in the dark as Mariane and her friends are.
The more compelling story is playing out offscreen: Terrorists kidnapped Daniel, a Wall Street Journal reporter investigating terrorism in Pakistan, while he was pursuing an interview on Jan. 23, 2002. Daniel, 38, was beheaded Feb. 1, 2002, his body cut into 10 pieces.
In fleeting asides, we learn that Daniel, a nonreligious man of Jewish descent, may have been targeted for his heritage, as well as Pakistani whispers that insisted he was an American spy. Daniel reportedly tried to escape at least two times, and one of his attempts led to his murder.
Moviegoers may expect the film to explain what happened to Daniel in those 10 days, whether the material is inspired by hard facts or reasonable extrapolation of what is known. But Winterbottom gives you almost nothing.
It seems as though the main objective is getting Jolie, the movie’s lone bankable star, as much screentime as possible. The meat of the Daniel tale is cast aside in favor of stagnant misery.
As usual, Jolie turns in a rousing performance, but the better she is, the harder it is to watch. Mariane’s wails of despair when she learns of her husband’s fate are almost too painful to endure.
Winterbottom’s rickety handheld shots strive for a documentarylike immediacy, but they only make your stomach upset. That matches the cumulative effect of “A Mighty Heart.”

Looking at those numerous pictures in the Tabloids I realized that Pitt has aged. I wondered why.

Now, it all makes sense.

The man is stuck no matter what he does he will always look like the bad guy.

So, I hope he will stay put for those gorgeous kids!!!!

Peace to them

is that new?anjie kissing brad?show me the picture!

948 bdj
-
I am also looking forward to seeing AMH, and I am bringing twenty of my friends. We are having all girls night out and would go back to my place for dinner and desserts.
After watching Angie on CNN with AC, I could not fathom how could people compare her with Aniston. Angie is woman of substance while she has no substance. Aside from having a supposedly nice hair, she has nothing. She can have J. Pitt all she wants and it will not change my opinion of her. When she said ” I am using my intuition” (couldn’t even finish a sentence) during the SELF HELP/PITY PARTY , it really made realized this 39 year old woman is full of hot air. She should be peeing on her pants everytime she sees Angie being interviewed on TV as an eloquent, articulate, intelligent, compassionate, mermerizingly beautiful, brutally honest, wonderful mother and more.
I really don’t know what is J Pitt’s logic on meeting with the prune last Sunday but for God’s sake, AMH is her son’s movie. Why can’t she visit her after the showing of AMH in the theaters. What’s the rush now? For me, it was wrong timing.
I lost my respect to Jane Pitt.

MSNBC Entertainment

The actress never thought ‘A Mighty Heart’ would make it to the screen

Actors and activists
Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt (and their growing family) travel the world for worthy causes

By Mike Celizic
TODAYShow.com contributor
Updated: 8:46 a.m. ET June 21, 2007

When Angelina Jolie met Mariane Pearl, she thought they would have a great friendship. But Jolie never thought she would play Pearl on screen.

They had been introduced to each other some three years before the movie “A Mighty Heart,” which opens Friday, was made, Jolie told TODAY’s Ann Curry. Even when Jolie’s companion, Brad Pitt, purchased the rights to it from Pearl, Jolie didn’t think it would result in a film.

“I guess I never really thought it was all gonna come together,” Jolie said. “I thought I’d met this woman and we were gonna become great friends and now even closer friends ’cause we have something we’re all talking about and Brad’s bought this book.”

Pearl had written “A Mighty Heart” after her husband, Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl, was kidnapped and beheaded by al-Quaida terrorists in 2002 while on assignment in Pakistan. The book recounts the kidnapping and the two desperate weeks when Pearl was missing and she and a multinational team were trying to win his release.

Pearl, a radio reporter for a French media outlet, was six months pregnant at the time.

Pitt and Jolie thought it was a great story, but were afraid that unless it had the right director, it could easily be trivialized.

“It was, ‘Who could possibly direct this without making it a melodrama?’” Jolie said during the interview, which was conducted last month when the film was first shown out of competition at Cannes. “It could have just been so many different things where somebody took one angle and tried to milk it, to make it emotional in that way as opposed to just saying this is an extraordinary story.”

Finally, Pitt, who is the film’s producer, enlisted director Michael Winterbottom, whose credits include “Welcome to Sarajevo,” “In This World” and “The Road to Guantanamo,” all films made in the straightforward style of documentaries.

Pitt, Jolie and Pearl all felt that style was best for a film about two journalists who tried to tell stories as honestly as possible, without injecting their opinions into them.

Dan Futterman plays Daniel Pearl and Jolie plays Mariane in a performance that has drawn impressive reviews.

The real Mariane
When the film debuted at Cannes, Jolie had talked about losing her mother to cancer, but refused to compare her loss to Mariane’s. And the paparazzi she has to deal with are also different from the squads of media who chronicled Mariane’s efforts to find and free her husband.

“I don’t know what it’s like to have lost my husband and somebody do that to me,” Jolie said then. “It’s very different … I just haven’t gone through what she’s been through. And so I just think being stopped by paparazzi is one thing. Having cameras in your face when your husband is kidnapped or he has lost his life is something that is totally different and can never be compared.”

When it was clear the movie was going to be made, Mariane personally asked Jolie to portray her. They had met on what Jolie called “a play date like three years before,” but had never really gotten together since.

“We kind of kept sending word back and forth,” she told Curry. “But we both hate a phone. And we both take a really long time to respond to the other. And we never got in the same place at the same time.”

They have since spent a great deal of time together while they were filming on location in Karachi.

Mariane chose not to hate those who brutally murdered her husband. Her book is not about conflict but about the people — Muslims, Buddhists, Christians, Jews — who came together to help her.

“It is about so many things,” she said. “And I think many people will see this and hopefully … will be moved in different ways and be drawn to different aspects of this story.

“This is not Muslims against Christians,” Curry interjected. “It’s not about that. It’s the complications are that there are similarities no matter what faith, what country you’re from.”

“And there’s something beautiful in a film that you would think is about this difference of faith is actually very much focused on the people — from Buddhism to Christianity, Judaism, Muslim — all in the same house, becoming great friends and becoming each other’s greatest support,” Jolie said.

“Acknowledge that we are very different. And at the end of the day, we can see the beauty in that, and we can work together. And that was happening while they were looking for Danny,” she continued. “It’s not this big specific message; it’s not preachy. It’s just something to be aware of.”

953 African Girl | 06/21/2007 at 8:10 am
I can’t believe what I’m reading!!! AJ should leave BP because his mother visted JA??!! Are you serious? My goodnees, with fair weather fans like these….who needs the Fanistons? Honest to God, to say this is a disappointment, is an understatement. So when the good is good….it’s “BP and AJ forever” but as soon as their an inkling that something isn’t going well (based on what we see from the outside) it’s all….”AJ forever”. Jesus…..what are, the Fanistons? You know maybe people are right when the say we’re no different from them after all….I mean isn’t this the kind of behavior that birthed the Fanistons? They couldn’t handle anything that gets away from the mental script the have.
This is NOT a soap opera, you can’t get mad at TPTB because they threw a surprise into the storyline. My God, these are people’s lives and the fact that we’re privvy into less that 1% of their lives does not mean we can control how they live.

If this helps….look at this way, maybe JP was pulling the classic “keep your friends close and your enemies closer” eh? If the Pitts keep insisting JA is a friend of the family, it would be kinda difficult for JA to keep calling a joke, no? I mean it makes her look kinda silly, doesn’t it? My Grandma did that a lot….her thing was kill (I don’t mean literally) them with kindness….it makes it hard for them to think ill of you. Instead of cursing and keeping malice with her, they shower her with kindness, so when next she’s about to do something that makes the JPs look bad, she’s gonna think twice. Hey, I’m only trying to help here.

Anyway, thanks all for the AC blogging. I missed the show….got to boston and just crashed. Have a lovely day all and stop creating drama where there’s none.
+++++++++++

Screw You, I love Brad, Angie, and the children. I want them together. I also want them successful, sooo I went to see Ocean’s 13. I have made it no sercert that I love Angelina and I am glad she met someone who could support her, but if Brad ain’t doin that then she needs to look out for her babies and herself. When Brad was promoting his film he hid behind George and Matt speaking only when he had too. Angelina can’t hide behind her costars and let them promote A MIGHTY HEART, Brad is the producer shoudn’t he something. Brad gave to funky interviews with Angie one for Dateline and the other for Newsweek. Brad hardly says anything. Its been two years and still that beyotch Jen Maniston plays the victim and Brad lets her. BRAD IS A GREAT FATHER, CLEARLY. I JUST NEED TO SEE WHERE HIS LOVE FOR ANGIE IS, SUPPORT HER BRADLEY SAY SOMETHING.

FU*K HIS MOTHER AND JEN, REAL BAD TIMING.

A MIGHTY HEART, JUNE 22

Jane loves Jen because she handled herself like a lady during the mess the other two created. And I doubt very seriously that if Jen did all that manipulative crap that most of you suggest she wouldnt be so close to her still. Mothers take up for their kids first and its obvious who she feels was in the RIGHT and handled theselves best. I dont ever see any pics of Mom with his girlfriend/babymomma. And Im sure Jane loves her grandchild and may have to be around his girlfriend in the near future to see her. So she’ll deal with her when necessary and be polite for Brads sake. But it speaks VOLUMES about the whole relationship. So when are you guys going to put a hit out on Momma Pitts head?? This must drive you people nutz!!! Look who’s screaming at the ….ocean/Brad/nannies now!!!

what a bunch of drama queens on this thread.

987 LOVE ANGELINA | 06/21/2007 at 9:17 am
=——————————-=
First of all. Did you even read what AG said??

And second. How may times does Brad have to say that he is happier than he has ever been i his life before?? Everytime he has an interview he never fails to say it.

As an Angelina fan you have to do some research and see what you idol is saying. Angie have said that she is NOT considering TRUE love when two people are hiding behind each other’s backs or when they try to protect each other. She conciders true love when two people have same goals and valious about life and they will try hard to achieve them. But unfortunately you don’t give a sh*t of what she says.

And what the hell makes you think that she is worried of what In Touch or Star will say?? Did they ever said anything positive about her in the first place?? Do you think that people who are reading these magazines and takes them seriously are going to watch AMH??? LMAO!!!

Well to be honest I have come to the conclusion that some Angie’s fans are not different from the fanistons. And that is something I understood a long time ago. It’s really sad. When something is happening they won’t hesiatate to even crucify the man SHE chose to be the father of her kids.

Begining to follow this couple as Brad fan first I could have eat up everything I was hearing and reading here and there concernng Angie and form a complete opposite opinion of her. But I did not. I managed to learn so many great things about her and I know that she ain’t any of this sh*t they are saying about her. And at the end of the day if this is the woman Brad chose to be next to him and make her his life partner who the hell am I to complain. It’s his freaking life.

So I was expecting from some to think a bit before they judge but I guess that’s a lot to ask.

Bottomline I’m glad that this two people found each other and I’m glad that they are going stronger and stronger no matter what fans and haters think.

993 think positive! | 06/21/2007 at 9:51 am
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
FU*K YOU, ANGELINA LOVES BRAD ENOUGH TO SPEAK NICELY OF HIM WITHOUT HIM ASKING BECAUSE SHE LOVES HIM AND SHE ACTS LIKE IT. I ALL I WANT IS ONE REALLY GOOD INTERVIEW, BRAD DOES AN ANGELINA AND TALKS AND IS REALLY OPEN. HELL I TAKE A QUICK RED CARPET THING WHERE HE RUNS BY THE INTERVIEWS SAYS “GREAT MOM” OR “SHE ONLY DOES GREAT THINGS” ANYTHING.

Really love thair family, very cutie

Angie obviously doesnt need Brad for anything other than a daddy to her children. I really think that’s all she cares about. I hope she doesnt have anymore kids with the idiot though.