Moment of Pain is Worth a Lifetime of Glory

Rating: 7/10 (30 May 2015)

Unbroken was one of the most anticipated films of 2014, not only because it's the first major film directed by Angelina Jolie, but that it's one of the most incredible true stories of triumph survival. I think if I would have seen this film in theaters when it came out and was surrounded with the buzz, I may not have liked it as much as I did. In fact, I think one of the reasons I thought Unbroken was a solid film was because my expectations were significantly lowered after everyone said it wasn't as good as everyone thought. I still don't think it turned out to be as good as everyone thought it would be around this time last year, but it still can be enjoyed.
It tells the story of Louie Zamperini, a former Olympian who is stranded at sea for nearly 50 days, before being captured by the Japanese. The story is absolutely incredible. These are the types of stories that should be legends. Humans aren't supposed to go through this much pain and come out on the other side, but somehow and someway, some people do. Zamperini, who only just passed this past year, has inspired so many people with his will and determination to make it to the finish line (no pun intended). The film honors that, and just about every other extraordinary thing he did during his life. But I think the problem was just the organization of the presentation of those events was the issue in the film. I was enamored with the opening shots of the aircraft and the battle. But then the film immediately calms down and flashes to his childhood. I really liked those scenes, but I don't know that the placement of them in between intense battle scenes and the ensuing crash was the best idea. It slowed the pace down unnecessarily. With that said, the rest of the film doesn't do that and has a consistent pacing from then on out so that was nice to see.
The several (and I mean several) defining moments that Zamperini has throughout the film were cool and shot very well by the legend cinematographer Roger Deakins, but they didn't hit as much as I would have wanted them to. When I think of survival movies, or just movies with unbelievable stories I always think of their defining moments and memorable shots from the film. Braveheart, Gladiator, and Gravity all have those iconic moments, and I just didn't feel that from Unbroken. It's not always a necessity, but the trailers made it seem like their would be. It's a beautiful film with a terrific story that surrounds it, but the execution could have been better. With that said, Jack O'Connell gives a wonderful performance as the lead and is surrounded by a surprisingly gifted cast. There isn't a lot of well known talent, but Gleeson, Hedlund, Courtney, and Ishihara give the film credibility that I thought it would have been lacking. The film is also complimented with a magnetic score by the brilliant Alexandre Desplat who chooses only the right moments to make the music noticeable, and it's really effective.
Zamperini's time in the concentration camp is defined by his relationship with 'The Bird' played by Ishihara, and I really liked that dynamic. I'm not sure how much the film followed the actual events and book, but there's something that happened with that dynamic that felt rushed and too forced. It was something that I didn't think needed to happen, even if it was straight out of the book. So I really enjoyed Unbroken. It has some flaws in screenplay and direction but I don't think the fault lies anywhere in particular, it just wasn't as good as everyone had hoped.
+Magnetic score
+O'Connell
+Incredible story
+Cinematography
-Pacing issues towards the beginning
-Big moments didn't really hit
7.2/10