Only five years ago the shocking story of the kidnapping and beheading of Daniel Pearl, a reporter for the Wall Street Journal, occupied the media for several weeks - an unusually long attention span explained by the presence of a gruesome videotape - which suggests that most audiences will recall the context of "A Mighty Heart." The memory of that atrocity, along with the presence of one of the most beautiful contemporary stars, may pump up the box office for the movie; on the other hand, the so-called war on terror supplies so many similar incidents, complete with videotape, of captured soldiers, mercenaries, journalists, and medical personnel, that a comparatively ancient story, no matter how horrifying, may seem too familiar to inflame passions or even arouse interest.

Based on the book by Mariane Pearl, Daniel's widow, the film adheres to the facts of Pearl's capture in Karachi, Pakistan, and the extraordinary operation mounted by the Pakistani police, working with American intelligence agencies, to find his kidnapers and rescue their hostage. Angelina Jolie plays Mariane Pearl, a journalist in her own right, with considerable experience covering difficult stories in foreign lands. A smart, sophisticated, and very strong woman, she faced not only the stress of her husband's situation, but also the difficulties of the late stages of her first pregnancy.

Despite its inherent drama and suspense, the simple, tragic situation settles into a series of static, repetitive scenes and sequences that tend to slacken tension and dull the picture's emotional power. The drama of Mariane's anxiety, complicated by her pregnancy, dilutes the urgency and precariousness of her husband's plight. Although no doubt intentionally, Mariane's story overwhelms Daniel's, which diffuses the focus, turning a potentially large film into a small, albeit intense, personal picture.

Apparently aware of the essentially inward concentration of the narrative, the director employs a variety of devices to open the story up and expand the potential in its geography. He shows Mariane's memories of her husband from various moments in their life together in frequent flashbacks, many of them maudlin, as if the couple occupied some dream state of perfect love. He also jumps his camera, often with tight close-ups, all over the house in Karachi where Mariane, her Indian friend Asra (Archie Panjabi), several Journal reporters, and a whole platoon of Pakistani policemen deal with Daniel's plight and her condition.

Alternating with those interiors, the picture shows the Pakistani police investigation, which consists mostly of rapid automobile rides through dark, crowded streets, followed by a series of arrests of a confusing cast of suspects. The police torture those suspects - details discreetly off screen - which ominously wins the admiration and even envy of the American security chief (Will Patton). Despite the torture and the yeoman work of the police, the terrorists behead Daniel Pearl and in a gesture of special cruelty, send a videotape of the event to the police.

"A Mighty Heart" underlines some of the odd paradoxes of what we now call the developing world. For one thing, as the invasion and occupation of Iraq demonstrate, despite widespread poverty, almost everybody connected with terrorism in the Middle East appears to have access to cell phones, computers, and video equipment, technology that enables the enemies of the West to publicize both their deeds and their messages. For another, although they act with courage and diligence on Pearl's behalf, the Pakistani authorities also distrust his endeavor and the people around him - they believe all Indians and most American journalists to be spies, which should incite a certain disquiet in some Western governments.

Her widely publicized and presumably sincere commitment to ameliorating the misery of suffering peoples in Africa and the East may account for the power of Angelina Jolie's performance in the movie. In two shocking moments she violates her composure, screaming in agony at the news of her husband's death and precisely echoing those screams near the end when she gives birth to their son, brilliantly emphasizing the closeness of life and death and suggesting that in the midst of despair, Mariane Pearl found courage and hope.

"A Mighty Heart" (R), directed by Michael Winterbottom, is now playing at Culver Ridge 16, Pittsford Cinemas, Henrietta 18, Webster 12, Tinseltown, Eastview 13, and Greece Ridge 12.