After a near-fatal plane crash in WWII, Olympian Louis Zamperini spends a harrowing 47 days in a raft with two fellow crewmen before he's caught by the Japanese navy and sent to a prisoner-of-war camp.
The life of Louis Zamperini, an Olympic athlete who joined the armed forces during the second world war. Only to be captured by the Japanese navy after a plane crash in the Pacific. During his capture, Louie must continue his fight by surviving through the war.Written by
Tristanmerkler01
After the war, Louis Zamperini struggled for several years with PTSD and alcoholism. At the urging of his wife (she threatened to leave him), he attended an early Billy Graham crusade, rededicated his life to Christ, and forgave his captors. Inspired by Louie's powerful testimony, Graham helped him get started in a secondary career of public speaking. See more »
Goofs
The national markings of the American transport plane shown near the end of the movie (1945) have a red dot in the middle of the star. That red dot was deleted from American planes in 1942 to avoid any possible confusion with the "hinomaru" red circle used by all Japanese planes. See more »
Quotes
[first lines]
Phil:
[in cockpit]
We are here.
Cup:
[over radio]
At 8,000 feet. This is it, boys.
Phil:
[over radio]
You got it, Zamp?
Louis Zamperini:
[dialing in bombing scope]
Roger.
Lambert:
You hit this one, drinks are on me.
Louis Zamperini:
I ain't going to a bar with you, handsome. You confuse all the broads.
Mac:
[wolf-whistles]
Phil:
Get your cameras, boys. I'm gonna light it up like Christmas.
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I have been looking forward to this movie, having loved the book and admiring Louis Zamperini like so many others. While the movie was well-crafted and well-acted, it failed to blow me over emotionally. It's one movie that could have been longer, while at the same time tightening up the POW sequence by at least 15 minutes.
The director, editors and committee of screenwriters (never a good sign) cut out too much of the back story of what shaped Louie's character as a kid, and (critically) his PTSD and religious awakening at the end. I know this would have made Unbroken a three- hour movie but Louie's story deserved a fuller treatment. Instead, the character is turned into a Christ-like vessel of suffering for his fellow prisoners, rather than a flesh-and-blood person, although he seems oddly unscathed by the ordeal when he reunites with his family.
I was hoping for a "Spielberg" experience to leave me in tears, and it just didn't happen. Too bad.
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I have been looking forward to this movie, having loved the book and admiring Louis Zamperini like so many others. While the movie was well-crafted and well-acted, it failed to blow me over emotionally. It's one movie that could have been longer, while at the same time tightening up the POW sequence by at least 15 minutes.
The director, editors and committee of screenwriters (never a good sign) cut out too much of the back story of what shaped Louie's character as a kid, and (critically) his PTSD and religious awakening at the end. I know this would have made Unbroken a three- hour movie but Louie's story deserved a fuller treatment. Instead, the character is turned into a Christ-like vessel of suffering for his fellow prisoners, rather than a flesh-and-blood person, although he seems oddly unscathed by the ordeal when he reunites with his family.
I was hoping for a "Spielberg" experience to leave me in tears, and it just didn't happen. Too bad.