Unbroken (film)
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Unbroken | |
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File:Unbroken poster.jpg
Theatrical release poster
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Directed by | Angelina Jolie |
Produced by | Angelina Jolie Matthew Baer Erwin Stoff Clayton Townsend |
Screenplay by | Joel Coen Ethan Coen Richard LaGravenese William Nicholson |
Based on | Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand |
Starring | Jack O'Connell Domhnall Gleeson Miyavi Garrett Hedlund Finn Wittrock |
Music by | Alexandre Desplat |
Cinematography | Roger Deakins |
Edited by | Tim Squyres William Goldenberg |
Production
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Distributed by | Universal Pictures |
Release dates
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Running time
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137 minutes[1] |
Country | United States |
Language | English Japanese Italian |
Budget | $65 million[2] |
Box office | $163.4 million[3] |
Unbroken is a 2014 American historical-biographical-sports-drama-war film produced and directed by Angelina Jolie, and based on the 2010 non-fiction book by Laura Hillenbrand, Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption. The film revolves around the life of USA Olympian and athlete Louis "Louie" Zamperini, portrayed by Jack O'Connell. Zamperini survived in a raft for 47 days after his bomber crash lands in the ocean during World War II, then was sent to a series of prisoner of war camps.
The film had its world premiere in Sydney on November 17, 2014, and received a wide release in the United States on December 25, 2014. The film grossed $115.6 million in North America, with a worldwide total of over $163 million.
Contents
Plot
Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. The film opens with Louis "Louie" Zamperini flying as a bombardier of a United States Army Air Forces B-24 Liberator bomber, during an April 1943 bombing mission against the Japanese-held island of Nauru. The plane is badly damaged in combat, with a number of the crew injured. The pilot, Phil, manages to bring it to a stop at the end of the runway thanks to an exploded tire.
The story flashes back to Louie's childhood as a young Italian-American boy in Torrance, California. Louie is a troublemaker, stealing, drinking liquor and smoking, to the disappointment of his parents. He is picked on by other kids for being Italian. One day, Louie is caught looking up women's dresses from under the bleachers during a track meet. His brother Peter sees how fast Louie runs away and decides to train him to be a runner. As he grows, Louie becomes more disciplined and also becomes an accomplished distance runner, earning him the nickname "The Torrance Tornado". He qualifies for the 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin, Germany. Louie comes in 8th and sets a record for speed in the final lap in the 5,000 meters race.
Returning to 1943, Louie, the surviving crew and several replacements are sent on a search-and-rescue mission with a plane previously used for spare parts. During the mission, the plane's two left engines fail and the plane crashes in the ocean. Louie, Mac and Phil survive and live on two inflatable rafts. After three days, a search plane flies over but they are unable to get its attention. They weather a storm and fend off a shark attack while subsisting on rations, rainwater, birds and fish. On the 27th day, they get the attention of a Japanese plane, which strafes and damages the rafts but misses them. On the 33rd day Mac dies.
On the 47th day, Japanese sailors capture Louie and Phil and they become prisoners of war. The Japanese ask Louie and Phil to tell them about B-class bombers. Louie tells they flew D-class and draws a picture of a radio. Then, Louie and Phil are sent to different prisoner of war camps.
Louie's camp, Ōmori, in Tokyo, is headed by a Japanese corporal, Mutsuhiro Watanabe, who treats him very cruelly, in part because of Louie's status as a former Olympian and American soldier. Watanabe is especially tough on Louie (presumably) out of jealousy and hatred, beating him often. Louie is given an escape from Watanabe's torture when two Japanese newsmen give him the opportunity to broadcast a message home saying that he is alive after they learn the US government classified him as KIA. When he refuses to broadcast a second message with anti-American propaganda, he is sent back to camp where Watanabe has each of the other prisoners punch him to teach him respect.
After two years, Watanabe gets a promotion and leaves the camp. The camp is damaged when Tokyo is bombed by American forces. Louie and the other internees are forced to move to Naoetsu prison camp, where Louie discovers, to his horror, that Watanabe is in charge. The prisoners are now put to work loading coal barges. Louie, exhausted, pauses during work, and Watanabe tells him to lift a giant piece of wood and orders a guard to shoot Louie if he drops it. Louie successfully lifts and holds up the wood, angering Watanabe who beats him.
At the end of the war, Louie and the other prisoners in the camp are set free to return to their homes. Back home in America, he kisses the ground and hugs his family.
At the end of the film, there is a slideshow showing what happened after the war. Louis was married and had two children. Phil survived and eventually married his sweetheart. Mutsuhiro "Bird" Watanabe went into hiding for several years and successfully evaded prosecution in spite of being listed in the top 40 most-wanted Japanese war criminals by General Douglas MacArthur. Louie lived out his promise to devote his life to God; eventually believing in Jesus Christ and forgave his war-time captors, meeting with many of them. Watanabe, however, refused to meet with Louie.
In January 1998, Louie had an opportunity to revisit his time as an Olympian when he ran a leg of the Olympic Torch relay for the Winter Olympic Games in Nagano, Japan. He was four days short of his 81st birthday. The site for his leg of the relay was not far from one of the POW camps where he was held during the war. The closing titles reveal that Louie Zamperini died on July 2, 2014, at age 97.
Cast
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- Jack O'Connell as Louis "Louie" Zamperini
- C.J. Valleroy as young Louis Zamperini
- Domhnall Gleeson as Russell "Phil" Phillips
- Garrett Hedlund as John Fitzgerald
- Miyavi as Mutsuhiro "The Bird" Watanabe
- Finn Wittrock as Francis "Mac" McNamara
- Jai Courtney as Charlton Hugh "Cup" Cupernell
- Luke Treadaway as Miller
- Travis Jeffery as Jimmy
- Jordan Patrick Smith as Cliff
- John Magaro as Frank A. Tinker
- Alex Russell as Pete Zamperini
- John D'Leo as Young Pete
- Vincenzo Amato as Anthony
- Louis McIntosh as Harris
- Ross Anderson as Blackie
- Maddalena Ischiale as Louise Zamperini
- Morgan Griffin as Cynthia Applewhite
- Savannah Lamble as Sylvia Zamperini
- Sophie Dalah as Virginia Zamperini
Production
Development
Universal Pictures purchased the rights to the book in January 2011, having already acquired the film rights to Zamperini's life story towards the end of the 1950s.[4] Early drafts for the film were written by William Nicholson and Richard LaGravenese while Francis Lawrence was scheduled to direct. Joel and Ethan Coen were then tapped to rewrite the script after Jolie was named director.[5]
On September 30, 2013, Jolie was confirmed to direct the film in Australia.[6] Walden Media was originally set as Universal's co-financer,[7] but withdrew from the project prior to filming and were subsequently replaced by Legendary Pictures.[2] The filming was based in New South Wales and Queensland, with scenes also shot in Fox Studios Australia and Village Roadshow Studios.
Filming
Principal photography began on October 16, 2013 and ended on February 4, 2014,[8] with post-production also being done in Australia.[9]
Some of the scenes were shot at sea in Moreton Bay on October 16, 2013.[10] On December 14, four days of filming were completed in Werris Creek, New South Wales.[11] Other scenes were shot at Cockatoo Island (New South Wales).[12]
Music
The official film soundtrack was released on December 15, 2014, through Parlophone and Atlantic Records. The film score was composed by Alexandre Desplat.[13] The album also features "Miracles", a song written and recorded by British alternative rock band Coldplay, which was released digitally as a single on December 15.[14][15]
Track listing
All music composed by Alexandre Desplat, except "Miracles" written by Coldplay.
Unbroken – Original Motion Picture Soundtrack | ||
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No. | Title | Length |
1. | "We Are Here" | 1:49 |
2. | "Torrance Tornado" | 2:56 |
3. | "Coming Home" | 2:17 |
4. | "Olympic Kick" | 3:47 |
5. | "God Made the Stars" | 1:40 |
6. | "Surprise Mac Attack" | 1:39 |
7. | "Albatross" | 1:01 |
8. | "Mac's Death" | 2:40 |
9. | "Solitary" | 1:43 |
10. | "Making Gnocchi" | 1:11 |
11. | "Drive to Radio Tokyo" | 1:19 |
12. | "Japanese Attack" | 3:30 |
13. | "Trip to Omori" | 2:52 |
14. | "Bombing Tokyo" | 1:43 |
15. | "Rain" | 1:28 |
16. | "Dead Comrades" | 2:20 |
17. | "To Naoetsu" | 3:53 |
18. | "Broken Ankle" | 2:21 |
19. | "The Bird's Farewell" | 2:24 |
20. | "Radio Reading" | 1:12 |
21. | "The Plank" | 4:54 |
22. | "The War Is Over" | 6:02 |
23. | "Unbroken" | 2:29 |
24. | "Miracles" (Performed by Coldplay) | 3:56 |
Reception
Box office
Unbroken grossed $115.6 million in North America and $47.6 million in other territories for a worldwide total of $163 million, against a budget of $65 million.
It opened in the North America on December 25, 2014 across 3,131 theaters and grossed $15.6 million on its opening day (including Christmas Eve previews) which is the third-biggest Christmas Day debut ever, behind Les Misérables ($18 million), and Sherlock Holmes ($24 million) and the fifth-biggest Christmas Day gross ever.[16][17] The film was among one of the four widely released film on December 25, 2014, the other three being Walt Disney's Into the Woods (2,478 theaters), Paramount Pictures' The Gambler (2,478 theaters) and TWC's Big Eyes (1,307 theaters).[18] It earned $31,748,000 in its traditional three-day opening weekend (including its revenue from Christmas Day it earned $47.3 million) debuting at #2 at the box office behind The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies setting a record for the third-biggest Christmas debut behind Sherlock Holmes ($62 million) and Marley & Me ($36 million).[19] and fourth biggest among World War II theme movies.[20] It was the eighth film that earned $25 million plus in its debut weekend for Universal Pictures and the fifth $30 million plus debut for an "original" movie following Lone Survivor, Ride Along, Neighbors and Lucy.[20]
Critical response
On Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds a rating of 51%, based on 194 reviews, with an average rating of 6/10. The site's consensus reads, "Unbroken is undoubtedly well-intentioned, but it hits a few too many of the expected prestige-pic beats to register as strongly as it should."[21] On Metacritic, the film has a score of 59 out of 100, based on 48 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".[22] On CinemaScore, audiences gave the film an average grade of "A-" on an A+ to F scale.[20]
The SAG Nominating Committee gave it a standing ovation after a screening.[23]
The score received a mixed critical reaction. Callum Hofler of Entertainment Junkie stated, "At its finest, Unbroken is perhaps Desplat's strongest and most resonant emotional work since The Tree of Life or Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2, both from 2011. It comes off as bold, ambitious, yet intimate and sentimental all the same. It can be an elegant and harmonious exploration of human determination, drive and spirit." He also criticised numerous components, claiming that, "In most cases though, the primary issue with the album is its lack of energy and vitality. There is many a time where the music seems to just sit in place, lacking major progression in character, motive or mindset." He awarded the score a final rating of 6 out of 10.[24] Jorn Tillnes of Soundtrack Geek acclaimed the album, stating, "This score is pretty great. It's been a really good year for Desplat. Godzilla and The Monuments Men at the top of the pile, but this is not far behind." He summarized with, "It is a turning point though for those who think Desplat is about boring bass rhythms and motifs. This might even get the haters to respect him as a composer." He awarded the score an 87.8 out of 100.[25]
Controversies
Prior to the film's release, some Japanese nationalists asked for the film and the director to be banned from their country, largely because of a part in Hillenbrand's book, which was not depicted in the film, where she describes "POWs were beaten, burned, stabbed, or clubbed to death, shot, beheaded, killed during medical experiments, or eaten alive in ritual acts of cannibalism" by the Japanese Army.[26][27] A petition on Change.org calling for a ban attracted more than 10,000 signatures.[28] In response, it triggered a Change.org petition by Dutch Indonesian group The Indo Project voicing support for the movie, as they saw it as a reflection of what their family members in the former Dutch East Indies experienced in Japanese camps. Several prominent Dutch Indos, including author Adriaan van Dis, Doe Maar frontman Ernst Jansz, and actress Wieteke van Dort, signed the petition in support of the film.[29] Another petition on Change.org calling for a release of the film in Japan, this time written in Japanese, gathered more than 1,200 signatures.[28] The film was eventually released in Japan on February 6, 2016 by independent distributor Bitters End on a much smaller scale than originally intended, while Toho-Towa, the usual distributor of Universal titles, had passed on releasing the film.[30]
The film received some criticism for omitting Zamperini's fight against alcoholism and PTSD, as well as his Billy Graham-inspired religious conversion.[31]
Accolades
List of awards and nominations | |||||
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Award | Date of ceremony | Category | Recipient(s) and nominee(s) | Result | Ref |
Academy Awards | February 22, 2015 | Best Cinematography | Roger Deakins | Nominated | [32] |
Best Sound Editing | Becky Sullivan and Andrew DeCristofaro | Nominated | |||
Best Sound Mixing | Jon Taylor, Frank A. Montaño and David Lee | Nominated | |||
American Film Institute | December 8, 2014 | Top Ten Films of the Year | Won | [33] | |
Art Directors Guild Awards | January 31, 2015 | Excellence in Production Design for a Period Film | Jon Hutman | Nominated | [34] |
ASC Award | February 15, 2015 | Theatrical Motion Picture | Roger Deakins | Nominated | [35] |
Cinema Audio Society Awards | February 14, 2015 | Outstanding Achievement in Sound Mixing for a Motion Picture – Live Action | David Lee, Jon Taylor, Frank A. Montaño, Jonathan Allen, Paul Drenning, John Guentner | Nominated | [36] |
Critics' Choice Movie Award | January 15, 2015 | Best Picture | Nominated | [37] | |
Best Director | Angelina Jolie | Nominated | |||
Best Adapted Screenplay | Joel and Ethan Coen, Richard LaGravenese, William Nicholson | Nominated | |||
Best Cinematography | Roger Deakins | Nominated | |||
Empire Awards | March 29, 2015 | Best Male Newcomer | Jack O'Connell | Nominated | [38] |
Hollywood Film Awards | November 14, 2014 | New Hollywood Award | Jack O'Connell | Won | [39] |
Houston Film Critics Society Awards | January 12, 2015 | Best Cinematography | Roger Deakins | Nominated | [40][41] |
Make-Up Artists and Hair Stylists Guild Awards | February 14, 2015 | Best Period and/or Character Make-Up in Feature Length Motion Picture | Toni G. and Nik Dorning | Nominated | [42] |
MPSE Golden Reel Awards | February 15, 2015 | Feature English Language - Dialogue/ADR | Becky Sullivan, Andrew DeCristofaro, Laura Atkinson, Glynna Grimala, Lauren Hadaway | Won | [43] |
Feature English Language - Effects/Foley | Becky Sullivan, Andrew DeCristofaro, Jay Wilkinson, Eric A. Norris, David Raines, Dan O'Connell, John T. Cucci, Karen Triest, Dan Hegeman, Nancy MacLeod, Darren "Sunny" Warkentin | Nominated | |||
National Board of Review | December 2, 2014 | Top 10 Films | Won | [44] | |
Breakthrough Performance | Jack O'Connell (also for Starred Up) | Won | |||
Saturn Awards | June 25, 2015 | Best Action or Adventure Film | Unbroken | Won | [45] |
Best Editing | William Goldenberg, Tim Squyres | Nominated | |||
Screen Actors Guild Awards | January 25, 2015 | Outstanding Action Performance By Stunt Ensemble Motion Picture | Unbroken | Won | |
St. Louis Gateway Film Critics Association | December 15, 2014 | Best Screenplay: Adapted | Joel and Ethan Coen, Richard LaGravenese, William Nicholson | Nominated | [46] |
Best Cinematography | Roger Deakins | Nominated | |||
Visual Effects Society Awards | February 4, 2015 | Outstanding Supporting Visual Effects in a Photoreal/Live Action Feature Motion Picture | Unbroken | Nominated | [47] |
Home media
Unbroken was released on March 24, 2015 in the United States in two formats: a one-disc standard DVD and a Blu-ray Combo pack (Blu-ray + DVD + Digital Copy).[48]
See also
- The Great Raid, a 2005 war film about the raid at Cabanatuan in the Philippines during World War II.
- To End All Wars, a movie set in a Japanese prisoner of war labour camp where the inmates are building the Burma Railway during World War II.
- Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence, a 1983 Japanese war film based on the story of a Japanese POW during WWII.
- My Way, a 2011 South Korean war film based on the story of a Korean captured by the Americans on D-Day.
- List of World War II films
References
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- ↑ Angelina Jolie directs Unbroken in the Australian heat | Daily Mail Online
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- ↑ Zamperini film by Angelina Jolie will not include his faith in Christ | God Reports
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- ↑ THE JAMESON EMPIRE AWARDS 2015
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- ↑ 'Captain America: The Winter Soldier' and 'Interstellar' Lead Saturn Awards Noms
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- ↑ Unbroken – Blu-Ray
External links
- Use mdy dates from January 2015
- Pages with broken file links
- 2014 films
- Official website not in Wikidata
- 2010s drama films
- 2010s war films
- American films
- American war films
- English-language films
- Japanese-language films
- Films directed by Angelina Jolie
- Biographical films about sportspeople
- Biographical films about military personnel
- World War II prisoner of war films
- Dolby Atmos films
- Films about the United States Army Air Forces
- Films based on actual events
- Films based on biographies
- Films set in Japan
- Films shot in Australia
- Pacific War films
- War drama films
- Athletics films
- Legendary Pictures films
- Universal Pictures films
- Film scores by Alexandre Desplat
- Screenplays by the Coen brothers