'Amelia'

23 Oct 2009
Film
Dir. Mira Nair
Wr. Ronald Bass & Anna Hamilton Phelan;
Susan Butler (book "East to the Dawn"),
Mary Lovell (book "The Sound of Wings")
Role: Fred Noonan (the navigator).
 
CE bio & image from official site 

International release dates (IMDb)

Reviews:
Pre-première online reviews 
(only reviews mentioning CE will be covered post-première)

All relevant critics' quotes: Part 1, Part 2 

In-house: Chiclit's review - guest review by Joanr16 - Alex's review
 
DVD & Blu-ray release info

Videos (links to elsewhere on the blog if not noted otherwise):

Trailer: CE as Fred Noonan

"Finding the Electra": Mira Nair, Hilary Swank, CE


Behind-the-scenes II: Noonan & Earhart flying above Africa


Behind-the-scenes I: Extracts from the film


"Luke Field Crash" excerpt from the film

B-roll: Swank & CE, filming


Site --- Gallery --- IMDb --- Trails [Traileraddict] --- Facebook

News (most recent first):
  • More from Nair on casting CE (movieweb.com):
    I loved the rest of this cast as well, like Richard Gere, Ewan McGregor and Christopher Eccleston. Were they attached when you came on board as well, or did you find them?

    Mira Nair: Oh no. Only Hilary was and I cast the rest of them. I mean, I've loved Christopher Eccleston for so long and, in fact, the studio was less aware of him than I was and I really had to make a case for him. He's just fantastic in the role and Ewan, of course, we all strived for and Richard as well. We just went role by role.
  • The Hollywood Reporter. On CE's casting:
    Nair worked with veteran casting director Avy Kaufman ("The Sixth Sense," "Brokeback Mountain") in rounding out the rest of the cast. One of the more unique casting choices in the film is British actor Christopher Eccleston as aerial navigator Fred Noonan, who disappeared with Earhart in her legendary last flight. Eccleston is best known for his stint as the time-traveling hero in the long-running BBC sci-fi series "Doctor Who."

    "I've adored Chris Eccleston since his first roles in 'Jude' and 'Shallow Grave,' and I think he's one of the most extraordinary actors," says Nair. "He looks blindingly like Fred Noonan and has sex appeal, but most of all Chris just has an absolute natural ease with the camera and with himself. He's very earthy and independent, yet without ego, as Fred was. Fred had all sides to him. He was both a hard drinker and the best navigator in the world, and Chris nailed that contrast. I think the scenes with Fred and Amelia at the end of the film are truly moving and memorable."
  • Article on visual effects for 'Amelia'.
  • Watch short CBS documentary feature on Amelia Earhart here at cbsnews.com.
  • Three short clips w/ Hilary Swank as Amelia Earhart can be viewed off-site here, here and here.
  • The Envelope, Los Angeles Times Awards Insider, takes a closer look at the secretive movie, and finds that prolonged post-production has given positive results. More about target group and prospects here.
    [...] she's [Swank] even better in the quieter moments behind the controls of the plane -- particularly in a suspenseful sequence toward the end where she and her navigator (expertly played by Christopher Eccleston) try to fly their way out of trouble.


Still from the film: Noonan & Earhart. Source

  • Official companion to the film, 'AMELIA: The Motion Picture' by Mira Nair to be released on Oct 20th. Pre-order it at Barnes and Noble. Fox Searchlight:
    The book features scenes from the film, including side-by-side comparisons of the real people and events with their on-screen counterparts, as well as an abbreviated script, and historical ephemera of Amelia's life. Original press clippings, photographs, maps and stories from cast and crew will provide readers with a well-rounded and fascinating view of the woman who became a legend.
  • Watch video here at moviejungle.com. Oct 16th press conference w/ Hilary Swank, Mira Nair, Susan Larson (President of the Ninety-Nines, aviation group of women pilots), Susan Butler ("East to the Dawn: The Life of Amelia Earhart"), Elgen Long ("Amelia Earhart: The Mystery Solved").
    HILARY SWANK AND MIRA NAIR TO MAKE SPECIAL PRESENTATION TO NINETY-NINES PRESIDENT SUSAN LARSON
    ...with items from the production of AMELIA to launch a commemorative exhibition at the Amelia Earhart Birthplace Museum in Earhart’s home town of Atchison, Kansas on October 23, 2009, which is also the date the film opens in theaters!
    As part of the exhibit, the museum will celebrate "Earhart Education Week," in which people can learn about the legendary aviatrix and the making of the film.

Trailer: Gere, Swank, Eccleston
  • The score by Gabriel Yared will be released on 10th Nov, by Varèse Sarabande.
  • Free screening in Baltimore on 21st Oct, registration at Atomic Popcorn.
  • Official site updated 8th Oct; info, CE bio and images in this post.
  • mtv.com 'Oscar Watch: George Clooney, The Coen Brothers and More'.
  • 'Amelia' will open the newly launched Doha Tribeca Film Festival on the 29th of October. Their page for the film, also watch Highlights from the festival's films.


Trailer: Luke Field scene

  • On September 22nd Mira Nair appeared at Independent Filmmaker Conference (New York),'The Global Marketplace' day, where she discussed "her distinguished career and where she sees indie film heading". lttlbgGrl (Twitter) relayed director's answer to our question regarding the post test-screening changes: "it depends on the version you saw, the last version is more potent and has more action".
  • The poster can be beheld at comingsoon.net.
  • First trail has been released (Jun 26), watch here on the blog.
  • A short trailer has been aired following the Academy Awards ceremony, but it's not been made officially available.

Trailer: Noonan & Earhart

Reviews before the 23rd Oct: 
Beliefnet B-; MNFilmTV (CE +); The Washington Post 1 1/2; Eonline C; David Elliott 2; The Washington Times 2/4; The Wall Street Journal; Roger Ebert 3; Reelviews 2 1/2/4; IndieWire; Slant Magazine 1 1/2/4; National Post 2; Contra Costa Times C-; Comingsoon.net 7.5/10; Dustin Putman 2 1/2/4; Deseret News 2 1/2/4; nj.com 2; npr.org; JSOnline 2 1/2; Chicago Tribune 2; LA Times; Metromix 2/5; Gary Thompson C+; Carrie Rickey 3/4; msnbc; LAWeekly; MovieWebOneGuysOpinion C-; Brian Orndorf C; Wilmington 3 (CE +); Back Stage (CE +); Miami Herald 2 1/2; Starpulse.com 3/5 (CE +); AVClub D (CE +); stltoday.com 2 1/2 (CE +); ScreenDaily; TimeOut Chicago 2/5 (CE +); Emanuel Levy C-; Entertainment Weekly C+; David Germain, AP 2/4 (CE +); Chicago Tribune 2 1/2; The New York Observer; DesiHits 4/5; PopCultureNerd (CE +); Boxoffice.com 3/5 (CE +); Kansas City Star 3/5; Variety 3/5; (CE +); Hollywoodreporter.com (CE +)
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