The period detail is brilliantly brought to life, but the film is superficial, lacking the passion of its heroine.
Comment
11/11/09
Amelia (2009)
20
%
Tomatometer
How does the Tomatometer work 
Reviews Counted:137
Fresh:28
Rotten:109
Average Rating:4.4/10
Consensus: Amelia takes the compelling raw materials of its subject’s life and does little with them, conventionally ticking off Earhart's accomplishments without exploring the soul of the woman.
Genre: Dramas
US Box Office: $13,766,323
Synopsis: Visionary. Lover. Dreamer. Fighter. Legend. Icon. AMELIA. An extraordinary life of adventure, celebrity and continuing mystery comes to light in AMELIA, a vast, thrilling account of legendary... [More]
Starring: Hilary Swank, Richard Gere, Ewan McGregor, Christopher Eccleston
Director: Mira Nair
Reviews for Amelia
1 - 20 (sorted by fresh rating; Australian critics are listed first)
Top CriticAmelia reminds us how little we really know about the lives of famous achievers who changed the world, and underlines the power of biography on screen. It's a creatively and technically accomplished film with thrills and emotional action in equal measure
11/05/09
Top CriticTowards the end, as the story returns to that round-the-world flight, the suspense kicks in, and Swank’s performance comes into its own.
11/11/09
Top CriticHilary Swank captures her beautifully.
11/11/09
Top CriticOscar-winning actress Hilary Swank gives Earhart a convincing Kansas twang but little else in a performance that is unaccountably stiff.
11/12/09
Top CriticSwanks’ clear shot at a third statuette is blocked by hulkingly dull writing and direction that could point the way towards a definitive cure for insomnia.
11/11/09
Top CriticRomance edges ahead of adventure or characterisations and as a result, despite a soaring lead performance by Hilary Swank, the film suffers from a fatal dose of melodrama
11/05/09
Top CriticWhen it takes to the skies Amelia really soars with thrilling recreations of Earhart’s solo flights but when it returns to earth all that remains is soap opera.
11/13/09
Swank’s moving performance, the period dressing and beautiful planes all appeal, but dramatically it doesn’t really soar.
11/13/09
Top CriticThough this traditional story about a defiantly nontraditional woman doesn't always soar, it fits Hilary Swank, its producer/star, like a jumpsuit. She and Nair thrill to the life of this American who broke records, hearts, and boundaries.
10/22/09
Director Mira Nair stays within the safe parameters [of the biopic]in bringing the life of Amelia Earhart to the screen.
10/29/09
Overly glorifies its human subject, cautious to get its hands dirty and dig beneath the surface of Earhart's public life. And yet, even so, Hilary Swank is a joy to watch.
10/22/09
By no means the perfect biopic, but one that covers a lot of ground in telling Amelia Earhart's story. The amount of research that went into (it) is fairly impressive.
10/22/09
A biodrama about an extraordinary woman aviatrix who followed her passion and blazed a trail for others to do the same.
10/23/09
Swank makes it look easier than it probably should be. She's equally charming and vulnerable, which were evidently a couple of the traits of the real-life Earhart. And that's a good thing, because the film often sputters, sways and wobbles...
10/22/09
Although Amelia is too conventionally constructed to attain the heights of Martin Scorsese's "The Aviator," the cinematography and Depression-era props are splendid. Swank, of course, is too.
10/21/09
What a fresh but sorrowful journey.
10/24/09
[A] quiet, reflective film... Earhart is not an icon or a symbol: she's a human being... [T]he assumption of autonomy... is a luxury rarely accorded to women in our pop culture, and it is wonderful to see here.
10/23/09
When (Swank) steps into the right role, she wears and inspires it like Denzel Washington.
10/23/09
Amelia is never less than watchable thanks to gorgeous cinematography and strong performances but the script's insistence on playing it safe prevents it from becoming the film it could have been.
11/13/09
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October 22, 2009:
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October 22, 2009:
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When Hilary Swank takes to the sky in "Amelia" this weekend, she'll be adding to Hollywood's long -- and, yes, rather bumpy -- fascination with flight. More...
October 08, 2009:
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June 28, 2009:
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