Amelia

A combination adventure saga and love story, Amelia is about a woman who followed her passion and blazed a trail for others.

Hilary Swank stars in Amelia, a look at the life of the legendary American pilot Amelia Earhart.

Hilary Swank plays Amelia Earhart (1897-1937), the first woman on a flight across the Atlantic. She later married publisher George Putnam (Richard Gere), who had hired her for that adventure.

He helped her become the first American celebrity, financing her flights with public appearances, advertisements and sponsorships. In 1932, she was the first woman and second person to fly solo across the Atlantic.

But everything else was small potatoes when set against her ambitious and daring attempt to make a 27,000-mile flight around the world.

Mira Nair directs Amelia, which zeroes in on the Midwestern spunk of this pioneering woman whose bravery was founded on a spiritual ability to confront her fear squarely (20th Century Fox, PG).