What can you say about a woman who vanishes in proverbial thin air? The mysteries about the remarkable Amelia Earhart and her disappearance in 1937 with her navigator Fred Noonan (Christopher Eccleston) over the Pacific Ocean persist and make ideal fodder for biographies and biopics.
In Amelia, the new movie directed by Mira Nair, Hilary Swank stars sporting a boyish haircut that reminds us of her Oscar winning role in Boys Don't Cry. Earhart was the ideal and most idealized woman of her time, a role model for young aviatrixes, and women everywhere. When asked for advice, she says, Don't let anyone turn you around, a great message for anyone gifted with her passion.
Aside from flying, she also has a knack for finding wonderful, enabling men: her husband George Putnam (Richard Gere, still a heartthrob with silver hair) and lover Gene Vidal (a debonair Ewan McGregor). Yes, there is a cameo of his son, the young Gore Vidal, but my favorite is scene-stealing Cherry Jones as Eleanor Roosevelt when Amelia takes the first lady for a midnight spin.
The movie features many in-air scenes of canyons, deserts, and gorgeous views galore shot in radiant light, as well the pilots in their storm-hounded cockpits. Also highlighted is the marketing of Amelia Earhart in her time: she poses for clothing ads in trendy plaid shirts and jumpsuits, endorsing a line of luggage.
That aspect of her career was underscored at the movie's world premiere on Tuesday night with an afterparty at Bloomingdale's also sponsored by Vanity Fair. Celebrants--Harry Connick Jr. and Julie Taymor among them--filed past the purses, ascended the escalator to the third floor, and munched on hors d'ouevres amidst the Missonis. Fashions worn by the fictional Earhart were on display.
This glossy film works best as a romance thrillingly propelled by the tragic irony of the lead's demise. Hilary Swank is surely on her way to well-deserved nominations and awards for her performance. As a portrait of a historic figure, Amelia Earhart remains elusive, flawlessly imagined, and as ethereal as the mists.
Among the styles recently returned from the dead are micro minis, skinny belts, jumpsuits, platform shoes -- and, now, just in time for Fox Searchlight's Amelia -- the Amelia Earhart look.
Melissa Silverstein: Where We Are as Women (In Film)
We are over 50% of the population; we buy 50% of the tickets. We want to see movies by and about women, as well as movies by and about men. I'm not asking for special treatment, just decent.
Loading comments… 
