Unboken (2014)

“If you can take it, you can make it.” – Pete

Number of Times Seen – 1 (11 Jan 2015)

Brief Synopsis – True story of an Olympic Athlete captured in the Pacific theater during WWII and the hardships he endured in order to survive as a POW.

My Take on it – When I saw the trailer for this movie back in the summer, I was sure that this would be the Oscar Best Picture winner.

It is a story of faith in a desperate situation.

It is based on true events.

It is directed by Angelina Jolie, a darling of the industry

and finally…

It’s a story of hope that is reminiscent of previous Oscar fare.

Unfortunately, the trailer is superb, but the movie doesn’t live up to all expectations.

The story itself is good, but at certain points just moved too slowly giving off a non-satisfying feeling.

During those drawn out scenes, it is slightly too easy to be distracted and have your mind wander a bit -instead of fully appreciating what is going on onscreen.

This movie has some excellent moments that are reminiscent of some of the great WWII movies like Bridge on the River Kwai (1957) , Empire of the Sun (1987) and Olympic track sports like in Chariots of Fire (1981).

Jack O’Connell is great in the title role and definitely helped give off the feeling of hope when faced with dire circumstances.

This movie has a great song at the end by Coldplay called Miracles.

Listen to it here:

 

 

Bottom Line – Great story that is reminiscent of some of the great movies about POW camps during WWII, but ultimately only barely manages to keep interest throughout it’s running time. Recommended!

Rating – Globe Worthy

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