#5 Unbroken | Angelina
Jolie’s much anticipated biopic of Olympic runner and World War II POW, Louis
Zamporini (Jack O’Connell) tells the incredible true story of his harrowing
ordeal. Already facing a rather ambivalent awards reaction so far, “Unbroken” now
faces the embrace of audiences. The subject matter is grim and as was seen
earlier this year with “The Railway Man”, viewers may not be up to seeing the
horrors of war.
Limiting personal expectations is the casting of O’Connell as
Zamporini. Having mostly played a cache of villains, it’s hard to imagine him
playing a heroic role. Having left such an indelible impression with his
terrifyingly evil portrayals of despicable youths in “Eden Lake” and “Harry
Brown”, watching him as a hero will require quite a disappearing act and a
staggering range of characterization. When it comes to measuring up “Unbroken”,
it faces its toughest comparative competition from Werner Herzog’s under seen
POW opus, “Rescue Dawn” starring Christian Bale and Steve Zhan. Release Date: Dec 25