Most professional reviewers share the same conclusion .. the following sentence boils their reviews down to one sentence: the movie stinks.
But I'm not a professional film critic. I'm the average film buff who watches movies for one main reason: to be transported to a different place or time by a story that could be inspiring, gritty, funny, emotional, romantic, thrilling or horrifying.
This movie was not perfect.. yes, there were some cheesy dialogues and not enough background on Amelia Earhart's passion for flying. But these shortcomings were made up by spectacular cinematography (breathtaking views of the Victoria Falls), authentic airplanes (they used a version of the 1937 Lockheed Electra that Amelia used on her last fateful voyage), brilliant acting (Hillary looks and acts the part to a T) and resonating music (by Gabriel Yared of "City of Angels" fame).
I'm going to take the 5th as far as Mira Nair's hand in this film is concerned. I've seen this director use more originality to bring fiery screenplays to life on the big screen ("Monsoon Wedding", "The Namesake"), so there does seem to be a disconnect between "Amelia" and her previous films.. I'll say no more :)
Don't write off the movie based on the negative reviews. Watch the film for its real appeal - the story of a courageous woman, ahead of her time, who seized every opportunity to live her dreams, whatever the consequence.
