Amelia is a 2009 Canadian-American biographical film directed by Mira Nair depicting Amelia Earhart's (Hilary Swank) attempt to fly around the world and her eventual disappearance during the attempt.
The film also stars Richard Gere, Ewan McGregor, Christopher Eccleston, and Joe Anderson.
It was released on October 23, 2009.
Tropes for the film:
- Artistic License – History: A number of Earhart enthusiasts, especially members of TIGHAR
—a historical society dedicated to finding whatever remains of Earhart (and other missing aircraft passengers like Glenn Miller for that matter)—have noted a lot of historical inaccuracies throughout the feature. - Character Title: For Amelia Earhart.
- Cool Plane: Of course, for a film about a famous aviatrix, this is a given.
- Gory Discretion Shot: After several minutes of increasingly tense attempts at communication between the Itasca and Amelia, we get a final shot of the ocean rushing up to the screen as her plane presumably crashes into the water.
- Foregone Conclusion: Amelia and Fred lose their way as we all know.
- The Great Depression: Takes place during the 1930s, though glimpses into Earhart's past exploits in the 1920s are shown throughout.
- Historical Domain Character:
- Amelia Earhart, pilot attempting to fly across the globe.
- George P. Putnam, Amelia's husband.
- Fred Noonan, Amelia's navigator.
- Eleanor Roosevelt, First Lady of the United States.
- In Medias Res: The film starts where Amelia is in the middle of her fateful trip.
- Manly Tears: Noonan, Putnam, and the sailors on the Itasca are all clearly choking up during the final sequence as the situation gets more and more dire.
- Period Piece: Takes place in 1937, before Amelia's disappearance.
- Stock Footage: Real-world newsreels from the period are shown in between scenes; the credits sequence shows a photo montage of the real Earhart with a monologue from Hilary Swank in character as Amelia.
- Sympathetic Adulterer: The reason Amelia is "sympathetic" is because she is obviously remorseful and goes back to her husband, who is willing to forgive.
