Unbroken - B

Jack O'Connell as Louis Zamperini

Rated PG-13, 137 minutes

Wes's Grade: B

Intense, uplifting yet flawed, “Unbroken” is a worthy look at a war hero 

There’s an endless amount of uplifting, inspiring stories, and the true story of war hero Louis “Louie” Zamperini is among the most inspiring, and even more remarkable is the fact that it hasn’t been told on film until now. Angelina Jolie’s “Unbroken” is a moving, often brutal portrait of Zamperini, and while Jolie does an impressive job of bringing the story to the screen in only her second feature film as director, some of it seems emotionally distant. “Unbroken” follows the incredible life of Olympic runner and World War II hero Zamperini (played by British actor Jack O’Connell in a strong performance), a former Olympic track star, survives a plane crash in the Pacific, spends 47 days drifting on a raft, and then more than two and a half years living in several Japanese prisoner of war camps. Directed and co-produced by Jolie and co-written by Joel and Ethan Coen (an interesting but solid choice here), the entertaining “Unbroken” is a sublimely handled, poignant tale that is often difficult to watch, particularly from the abuse that Zamperini endured in the Japanese POW camp. Based in part from Laura Hillenbrand’s best-selling biography of Zamperini, it follows the first part of his life from troubled youth, to Olympic runner to war hero. There’s much to like about Zamperini and the film version of his story and Jolie has assembled it well: the score from acclaimed composer Alexander Desplat and the cinematography from veteran Roger Deakins, who has handled most of the Coen brothers films, is handsome and energetic and adds to the flow of the film, not to mention the film is well-cast. O’Connell is stout, engaging and believable as Zamperini, grounding the film well, in addition to a strong supporting cast that includes Domhnall Gleeson and Garrett Hedlund as some of of his war buddies, as well as Japanese rock star Miyavi as real-life Japanese sergeant “The Bird” Watanabe, who brutally beat many POW’s, including Zamperini. However, even with its good qualities, not all works perfectly in "Unbroken." The section with Zamperini languishing at sea goes on too long, giving way to the most memorable section of the movie, the POW camp section and the beatings, which are painful to watch yet gives you a genuine sense of what Zamperini endured during this time. Curiously, for a big movie such as this (which seems perfect Oscar-bait given the material, though it’s recent snubs from the Golden Globes and Screen Actors Guild doesn’t help), the film lacks a certain big-scale emotion needed to carry it through its last act, something a more skilled director than Jolie could’ve elicited from the screenplay. The most disappointing aspect of “Unbroken,” is that the last, even more remarkable act of Zamperini’s life, in which he married, had a family, endured more personal struggles and exhibited even more faith and forgiveness to his captors, is essentially ignored onscreen and is told only over the epilogue of the film. We do see the real Zamperini at age 80 in news footage running through the streets of Tokyo carrying the Olympic torch, providing more emotional heft than the last act of the movie. “Unbroken” is a well-assembled, uplifting film that is required viewing, and while overall it’s a solid effort, it could’ve focused less on the abuse and more on the healing that occurred later in Zamperini’s life.

Opens on Christmas Day