A Mighty Heart (film)
A Mighty Heart is a 2007 American drama film directed by Michael Winterbottom. It’s based on Mariane Pearl’s memoir about her husband, Daniel Pearl, a Wall Street Journal reporter who was kidnapped in Karachi in 2002. Angelina Jolie stars as Mariane Pearl, with Dan Futterman playing her husband, and a supporting cast that includes Irrfan Khan, Archie Panjabi, Will Patton, and Alyy Khan.
The film follows the real-life search for Daniel Pearl as Pakistani security forces and U.S. and other authorities try to track down the kidnapper, Omar Sheikh, who claimed responsibility. Sheikh was captured and convicted and has been appealing his sentence.
Filming took place mostly in India and France. Because of safety concerns, most scenes set in Karachi were shot in Pune, India. Some sequences were filmed in Austin, Texas. The production budget was about $16 million, and the movie earned around $19 million at the box office.
A Mighty Heart premiered in Cannes in 2007 and was released in North America on June 22, 2007. Critics gave it mostly positive reviews, especially praising Jolie’s performance. On Rotten Tomatoes, about 79% of critics gave a positive review, and on Metacritic the score is around 74 out of 100. Some reviewers admired the film’s restrained, human approach, while others had mixed feelings.
Casting Jolie as Mariane Pearl drew some criticism, but Pearl supported Jolie, saying she connected with the role. The film received several nominations, including Independent Spirit Awards nominations for Best Screenplay, Best Actress, and Best Picture, and Jolie earned Golden Globe and SAG nominations.
This page was last edited on 2 February 2026, at 14:56 (CET).