MOVIE REVIEW ... AMELIA

MOVIE REVIEW ... AMELIA

Every year scores of films attempt to capture Oscar voter's attention. Filled with previous award winners in stories full of triumph, tragedy and romance, producers hope these ingredients will see them win a coveted statue. Some are more shameless in 'Oscar baiting' than others and none more so than Amelia. Copying the award winning template to the letter, it lacks the soul needed to connect with the most important voters of all - its audience. Finding fame as the first woman to cross the Atlantic Ocean in 1928, Amelia Earhart's (Hilary Swank) journey turned her into a household name. Upon marrying publishing tycoon George Putnam (Richard Gere), she buttresses her reputation by chronicling her various other solo flights. With an affair with aviation administrator Gene Vidal (Ewan McGregor), her personal life and ambitions threaten to run aground. These interludes are cast aside when she plans what would be her last endeavour, a solo flight around the world, little knowing of the fate and impact the journey would bring. If you walk out of a cinema knowing more about a subject than when you came in, then a biography has done its job. Sadly Amelia fails in this basic task by only skimming the surface of an influential woman. Earhart was in some ways one of the first people to turn themselves into a 'brand name' evident by her many commercial endorsements and newsreel appearances. It can only be imagined the media saturation she would have received these days, as she became a feminist icon where few existed. These elements are reasonably well shown providing the main interest in a rather dull affair. Instead of charting the more interesting tribulations of her many flights, the script uses her love life to provide its main conflict. Whilst this could be seen to 'humanise' the legend, this has the unfortunate effect of diminishing her spirited determination. The actors do their best, although the trite dialogue and unbalanced characterisation dilutes each character's impact. It finds a more assured footing when exploring her influence on society and aerial travels, with Stuart Dryburgh's cinematography successfully highlighting the freedom she craved. It's doubtful any Oscars will fly Amelia's way with a film running on empty from its first reel. Given the talents it could have been so much better had the characters been more fleshed out and more background given for Amelia's aerial fascination. Overall this is a feeble plod through a life of someone deserving of a better biography that isn't focussed on winning awards. Movie Review Rating 4 / 10 Movie Review by Patrick Moore Amelia released in Australia on Thursday 12th November 2009. If you have any comments to make about this Movie Review, then please use the comment box, titling your comments with Movie Review Amelia Patrick Moore's Movie Review is an alternative look at current movie releases in Australia. Official HomePage click HERE