Amelia with Hilary Swank and Richard Gere

When it was first released, I asked my husband to go to the theater with me to see Amelia. He said, ‘no’. I tried to bribe him with a big bag of buttered popcorn but that didn’t work. So, when it was released on DVD, I put myself on the wait list…..number 426, to be exact. And I waited and waited and when I had forgotten all about it, it came in for me. My husband and I watched all 2 plus hours of this movie. Now we all know that Hilary Swank and Richard Gere can act but acting was not the problem with this terrible film. I had hoped for adventure, edge of your seat thrills, and the perfect portrayal of a woman’s guts and glory in a man’s world in the 1930’s. I wanted to see blood, sweat and tears. I wanted to feel Amelia’s anguish and her struggles to accomplish goals that were beyond the realm of the imagination at that time in history. This movie was filled with ‘fluff’. They seemed to portray Amelia as a 21st century woman; self-confident, capable and in control with no obstacles in her way. My husband and I both agreed that we were glad we didn’t pay to see this absolutely awful (and might I add….low budget) movie. Now…….if you want to see a wonderful first flight movie with everything that Amelia did not have….adventure, thrills, blood, sweat and tears….you must watch The Spirit of St. Louis with Jimmy Stewart. This classic Billy Wilder film about Charles Lindbergh and his solo flight across the Atlantic in 1927 has it all. So skip Amelia and try The Spirit of St. Louis.