Amelia

"This is exciting. The photo bit is a little scary ... but it's amazing." "I have to say it's something very surreal," noted Swank, the two-time Oscar winner who won the Hollywood Actress Award for Amelia. "But to have your work recognized? At the end of it all is something that continues to leave me speechless."

Read more: Awards kick off Oscar season | In this article: Carey Mulligan, Hilary Swank, Oscar, Hollywood, Inglourious Basterds, An Education, Christoph Waltz, and Brad Pitt

"I have to say it's something very surreal," noted Swank, the two-time Oscar winner who won the Hollywood Actress Award for her work in "Amelia." "But to have your work recognized? At the end of it all is something that continues to leave me speechless."

Read more: Hollywood Awards Kick Off Road to Oscars | In this article: Academy Awards, Hollywood, Hilary Swank, Carey Mulligan, Julianne Moore, Diablo Cody, Sapphire, Charlize Theron, Inglorious Basterds, and An Education

Hornaday argues that Amelia's box office results will essentially be a failure either way: "If 'Amelia' earns respectable receipts," Hornaday writes, "chances are it will be dismissed as a lucky break. If it fails, it will be cited as yet more proof that strong female protagonists are box office poison."

Read more: Will Strong Female Characters Ever Make A Comeback On The Big Screen? [Film Schooled] | In this article: Hollywood, DVD, Hilary Swank, and Washington Post

"Amelia" was certain. This according to the LA Times Rachel Abramowitz. And before you can say "She was certain she'd be in a hyper-animated dew-droppy Hallmark Card which ticks off all the right feminist touchstones but still makes damn sure the lead actress looks absolutely fabulous, darling, for every single moment of the film," what she actually said was:-

Read more: Hilary Swank & the Kiwi who flew before the Wright Bros | In this article: Richard Pearse, Hilary Swank, Jean Batten, New Zealand, Kiwi, Parochialism, Wikipedia, Wright brothers, and Amelia Earhart

"Gore told me when he walked on the street with Earhart, people would collapse in admiration and she was followed by crowds," says Susan Butler, who detailed the amorous relationship with the older Vidal in the 1997 biography "East to the Dawn: The Life of Amelia Earhart," one of three books on which "Amelia" is based.

Read more: 'Beyond stardom' | In this article: Amelia Earhart, Gore Vidal, Mira Nair, Amelia, Hilary Swank, TV Movie, and Howland Island

"You can't play Amelia Earhart and not learn how to fly. That's just wrong in every way," says Swank, who plans to earn her pilot's license after she's done promoting the film.

Read more: Hilary Swank finds her next thrill in highflying 'Amelia' | In this article: Hilary Swank, Amelia Earhart Putnam, Mira Nair, Oscars, Los Angeles, Jeffrey Dean Morgan, and Million Dollar Baby