Oscar-winning actress Hilary Swank gives Earhart a convincing Kansas twang but little else in a performance that is unaccountably stiff.
Amelia (2009)
Tomatometer
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Reviews Counted:140
Fresh:29
Rotten:111
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: $14,195,118
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...
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 aviation pioneer Amelia Earhart (two time Academy Award® winner Hilary Swank).
After becoming the first woman to fly across the Atlantic, Amelia was thrust into a new role as America's sweetheart - the legendary "goddess of light," known for her bold, larger-than-life charisma. Yet, even with her global fame solidified, her belief in flirting with danger and standing up as her own, outspoken woman never changed. She was an inspiration to people everywhere, from First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt (Cherry Jones) to the men closest to her heart: her husband, promoter and publishing magnate George P. Putnam (Golden Globe® winner Richard Gere), and her long time friend and lover, pilot Gene Vidal (Ewan McGregor). In the summer of 1937, Amelia set off on her most daunting mission yet: a solo flight around the world that she and George both anxiously foresaw as destined, whatever the outcome, to become one of the most talked-about journeys in history. --© Fox Searchlight
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Starring: Hilary Swank, Richard Gere, Ewan McGregor, Christopher Eccleston
Starring: Hilary Swank, Richard Gere, Ewan McGregor, Christopher Eccleston, Joe Anderson
Director: Mira Nair
Director: Mira Nair
Screenwriter: Ron Bass, Anna Hamilton Phelan
Producer: Ted Waitt, Kevin Hyman, Lydia Dean Pilcher
Composer: Gabriel Yared
Studio: Fox Searchlight Pictures
Reviews for Amelia
Towards the end, as the story returns to that round-the-world flight, the suspense kicks in, and Swank’s performance comes into its own.
The period detail is brilliantly brought to life, but the film is superficial, lacking the passion of its heroine.
Swanks’ 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.
Amelia 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
Romance 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
It has beautiful cinematography, a star performance that is shocking in its authenticity, a careful eye for nuance and detail and an irresistible blend of action and romance that should spell automatic success.
Watching Ms. Swank struggle to emote through carefully-patterned enunciation is an exercise in patience.
Amelia provides only a cursory look at Earhart's commercialization, more a way to delineate her marriage troubles than investigate her self-image or her treatment as a pop star.
When 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.
Swank’s moving performance, the period dressing and beautiful planes all appeal, but dramatically it doesn’t really soar.
Inoffensive, arcane and ultimately rather sweet, ‘Amelia’ is one to take your grandmother to.
Hilary Swank is forced to deliver dialogue that sounds as if it was written in Chinese and then translated into English by a computer.
A tinny and barnacled affair, showcasing a peculiarly awful performance from Hilary Swank.
If you’re the kind of person who deplores the modern vogue for debunking historical figures, and who welcomes the opportunity to indulge in heroic feats and lush landscapes... then this is the film for you.
The movie is so dragging and dull that it's a squandered opportunity.
[Earhart's] trajectory from bubbling wannabe to national treasure is never less than compelling thanks to a no-nonsense performance from Swank.
An extraordinary life winds up feeling like a series of random blips on the radar screen.
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