Review of Unbroken (2014) by Connor D — 29 Mar 2015

"Unbroken" is directed by world famous actress Angelina Jolie, and it tells the true story of Louie Zamperini, a famous Olympian and World War II veteran. The story mainly tells, however, of Louis's struggle to survive when his plane crashes in the middle of the ocean and he is captured be the Japanese.

I have to say, I didn't much care for this film, as much as I wanted to. The real life true story seems so amazing and unbelievable, but I don't think the effort was entirely there to make this film. The direction is beautifully done, the cinematography is great, and the acting is superb, but what this film lacked was a more gritty feel, given the circumstances. It just seemed too perfect, with the exception of about the last 20-30 minutes, which actually made the scenario seem more believable. But for the most part, the way this movie was made seemed too stylish to me. I mean, Spielberg made a very stylish looking movie in "Saving Private Ryan," but the raw emotion, grit, and realism made that what it is, and I think Jolie was going for a more family friendly movie, regardless of the 'R' Rating. Overall, "Unbroken" does have beautiful features to it, but for me, it fell short of what it was ultimately trying to be by lowering the raw grittiness that could have made this film special. 5.9/10.