Salted Popcorn Reviews…’Unbroken’ (2014)
Cast - Jack O’Connell, Domhnall Gleeson, Garrett Hedlund, Finn Wittrock, John Magaro, Alex Russell, Miyavi
Director - Angelina Jolie
Trailer - http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=X8mBzKLhL0U
Directed by Oscar winning Actress Angelina Jolie, Unbroken is the incredible true story of Louis Zamperini, an Olympic athlete who volunteers to join the Air Force in WWII.
Zamperini (Jack O’Connell) is a typical mischievous young boy, getting into fisticuffs with the local boys, drinking liquor disguised as milk bottles and looking up girls skirts at any given opportunity. His older brother Pete (Alex Russell)however, encourages Louis to focus his energy elsewhere and take up running with the aim of preventing him being a bum and going down the wrong path in life. Pete believed in his younger brother, even if he didn’t believe in himself and so, with a little brotherly encouragement, the training began.
After winning race after race and holding a world record he entered the Olympics, only for it to be put on hold when Louis volunteers to join the Air Force. The crew soon descend into mayhem when the planes engines bow out and a near fatal plane crash leaves Louis and two other lucky survivors, Mac (Finn Wittrock) and Phil (Domhnall Gleeson), stranded in the middle of the big, blue ocean with not an ounce of life in sight. It’s just them, two life rafts, the rippling waves and a few finned friends thrown in for good measure.
Blistered from the blinding sun the only source of energy they had to keep them going was whatever they could catch, literally! (including one animal that turns out to be a bit of a stomache churner). This scene in particular stood out for me as you really felt their desperation, almost like you were stranded right there with them. You have to be extremely strong minded and determined to survive something like that for weeks on end.
47 long and painful days passed where they endured hunger, dehydration and near death from a few toothy enemies until they were finally thrown a lifeline…well sort of.
From sea to land they are captured by the Japanese and sent to war camps where they are subjected to brutal beatings, starved and forced to act upon their every heartless command, or suffer the unbearable consequences.
I can quite honestly say I was blown away by this movie, what an incredible story and what an honour it must have been to be able to direct it. I was utterly gripped from start to finish, I don’t think I barely blinked I was that engrossed in what i was watching. I love a true story because you are taken bit by bit through real life events and emotions of a chapter of someone’s life. It makes for a completely different viewing experience in my opinion. The pain and suffering the war camp prisoners had to go through does not bare thinking about but Louis Zamperini was a strong, courageous, brave and inspirational man who, from day one, never gave up hope.
We’ve seen Jack O’Connel in ‘71 and more recently in Starred Up but his portrayal of Zamperini in this movie was nothing short of outstanding, from start to finish. From firing guns in the plane to enduring bloody beatings he really made you feel every emotion, every punch, every whip and every dry and painful breath and it was really quite fantastic to watch. For me this is, without a doubt, an Oscar worthy performance that will more than likely thrust him into the spotlight and set his career into a dizzy spiral of opportunity going forward.
Miyavi, who plays the part of Mutsushiro Watanabe, gives a believable performance of a sadistic and merciless Japanese guard who thrives on the power he has at his disposal. Brutally beating the prisoners it’s Louis in particular that catches his eye and he is adamant on pushing him to the absolute limit. His cold looks and intimidating behaviour contributed to a memorable performance from this relatively unknown actor.
Angelina Jolie’s direction was excellent as expected. Not only an incredible actress but a credible director who you know lived and breathed this movie throughout filming. From being in front of the camera to behind it she is certainly in a great position to give direction to others. She has captured every element from fighting in the sky, to the life raft at sea to the war camp and delivered them to a consistently high standard.
The transformation you see the characters go through is astonishing. From strong, muscly, healthy men to thin, boney, hollow shells with their lives hanging by a mere thread. This makes the more brutal scenes even harder to watch because they all look like they would be break into a thousand pieces with just one hit. The minimal dialogue made the events that unfolded that little bit more intense and almost eerie to watch. This really added to the realism of what was unfolding in front of you because let’s face it, there isn’t much you can say in a situation like that, it’s purely about survival.
True story’s always really get me because the whole time you are watching you are thinking ‘this actually happened’. To bring amazing stories like this to life on the big screen and share this unforgettable event is really eye opening and certainly an emotional ride that continues after the film has ended. What an extraordinary man and what an extraordinary, memorable film. I enjoyed every minute of it. A definite must see and an all round great achievement.
I give it 5/5 bags of salted popcorn
