Unbroken seem a little broken to me. It was mediocre, at best.

Rating: 7/10 (27 June 2015)

Unbroken doesn't shows that a lifetime of glory, is worth a moment of pain, but it's semi-alright, because the will to live is strong with this movie. This historical biographic life story movie had been in development for nearly 60 years. At one time, even the great actor, Tony Curtis originally attached in the lead role. It was only made, after the phenomenal success of Laura Hillenbrand's 2010 novel, Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption; which went on, to become a New York Times Bestseller. Soon, after this, actress Angelia Jolie show interest in turning the novel into a movie, with the movies studios backing, her claim as director. While, her skills as director are not that sharp, she was still able to product, a semi-alright film. It was well-shot, much thanks to Cinematographer Roger Deakins, but it felt like it was trying too hard to be Oscarbait. While, it didn't win any Oscars in 2014. It still had a strong opening for the last month of that year. The film revolves around the life of USA Olympian and athlete Louis "Louie" Zamperini, (Jack O'Connell) during his time in World War 2. Without spoiling the movie too much, the movie is pretty historical accurate to Louis Zamperini's real life accounts of the war. Sadly, the later years of Zamperini's life are not mention in the movie, but can be read about in the latter chapters of Hillenbrand's book. Omitting Zamperini's fight against alcoholism and PTSD, as well as his Billy Graham-inspired religious conversion might seem wrong, because the audience don't see the happy redemption part, but I know Jolie wanted to spend the most time, with showing his near-death struggles during the war-years. After all, that's the meat of the story, and the movie run-time was already, getting a little long. The movie tries to hint, about all those omitted problems, but it doesn't work. It makes the movie so much more confusing, because it's missing those huge chucks of information. We don't know, much about his adult life. He's seem like a bland-boy scout caricature for the most part. Don't get me wrong, Jack O'Connell is fine actor, but they really didn't give him, much dialogue to work with. All, we know of him, based, just on the movie, is that he runs fast, and able to take a beating. We barely know anything about his personality. Another thing, we hardly see, is the supporting characters. All of his family or the co-pilots that he flew with; seem very much stock characters to me. They hardly gave, any useful exposition about Louie, nor help the scene, become memorable. I also didn't like, how the movie open, because it gave the movie, so really odd pacing. Jumpstarting the movie in the middle of the war, made the film, so chaotic. It's not good. The movie tries hard to tell the backstory, through flashbacks, but there so awkwardly, edited into the first part of the film that it barely match up, with what was happening on screen. While, the flashbacks did help show, how Louie became a runner; it doesn't show, how Louie the runner, became Louie the Airmen. Honestly, the movie would have, work better. if they only to focus, showing his life as a runner, first, then his time becoming an airmen, rather they showing him, already a airmen. I also didn't like, how the flashbacks stop, after the first act. It felt like a waste of a medium. They could had fit, so much more, in. The film really needed it. The first act is weak, because of it. It got really boring. The second part with the raft, really drags. While, it's shows how many days, Louie was stranded in the ocean, the movie tries too hard, being artsy that it forget to show much change in the characters. By the time, they are capture by the Japanese, the men barely have any facial hair, and still have somewhat clean enough clothes. It was really jarring. The last part of the film, was market the most, by trailers, making it seem like a survivor movie, but after watching this film, it felt more like torture porn. I really couldn't stand the Japanese actor, playing the Japanese prison of camp warden, Mutsuhiro "Bird" Watanabe (Miyavi). He was so over-the-top. He's a guitar player and needs to stick with music. For a PG-13, the torture is pretty harsh and brutal. While, the book make it seem like, they were trying to make the Bird seem like, he hiding some sexual repression, toward Louie. The writers here, don't do it. The movie plays it, safe, by making him, into a one-dimensional stereotype villain. While, the movie says that the Coen Brothers help wrote the script, I really don't see anything in the film that has that Coen Brothers style. I think, the others writers, mostly rewrote a lot of Coen's earlier scripts. One big that I kinda hate about the film is the lack of score. The movie seem a little too eerily in how quiet, it was. I really didn't think composter Alexandre Desplat did a good job. While the movie has a pretty predictable outcome, there are still dangerous moments that might surprise you, and make you jump, wondering if he was going to live or die. Honestly, in my opinion, the best way to watch this movie, is to go into it, having no clue, what's the story is about. I think this is the best way to leave an imprint on yourself. Overall: While the movie barely left one on me. It wasn't, a bad movie, for sake. Just meh. Could had been better.