UNBROKEN – The Blu Review

When Dana Jung reviewed UNBROKEN here at We Are Movie Geeks, he called it “an amazing testament to the human capacities for endurance and survival.” (read all of Dana’s review HERE)

I too found UNBROKEN to be an outstanding film. Directed by Angelina Jolie, UNBROKEN was the inspiring true story of Olympic winning medalist, Louis Zamperini, who went on to serve during World War and went through a string of unbelievable hardships. UNBROKEN opened with an incredibly strong action scene and as the story unfolded, Jolie gave us flashbacks of Louis’ childhood and upbringing. It is a bit formulaic in the sense that it follows pretty much the same conventions as most biopics have done in the past, but that old-fashioned approach worked best for this material. Even though you know the Liberator crew is going to crash, you can’t help but feel the sorrow of the loss of the plane and its men. Shipwrecked at sea in a rubber raft, you relate with the lost crew, are embroiled in their starvation and sorrow,  and frightened when they are attacked by sharks. The POW scenes accurately evoke the pain and hopelessness these men must have felt. Technically, UNBROKEN is terrific. Roger Deakins’s cinematography is outstanding as always. The Coen brothers aren’t as successful when they don’t direct their own screenplays, but this time they had strong material to work with. Lauren Hillenbrand is a great writer and the story is inspirational so there is a lot to like. Jack O’Connell played Zamperini and he is definitely an actor worth keeping your eyes on. The supporting performances from Domhnall Gleeson and Miyavi as the sadistic guard Bird, are also very solid. But by the time the end credits start rolling you kind of wish the film had focused on the later aspects of Louis’s life which were perhaps even more inspiring than the torture he endured, but that would have been another film.

UNBROKEN will be released on Blu-ray March 24^th and We Are Movie Geeks has had a sneak peek.

UNBROKEN looks magnificent on Blu-ray – an immaculately detailed and colored transfer. The exteriors springs to life with every pebble, rock, branch, and leaf presented with textures so tactile that viewers will all but reach out and feel the different surfaces. Likewise, military uniform details are incredible, from frays around the edge of hats to the heavier textures on patches and clubs. Facial details are incredibly lifelike, down to the finest facial hair and bead of sweat. Colors are gorgeous. Bright green vegetation nicely stands apart from earthy terrain. Skin tones appear accurate throughout, and black levels raise no alarms. This is a beautiful image all around, reference quality material from start to finish.

UNBROKEN arrives on Blu-ray with a Dolby Atmos True HD 7.1 soundtrack. This is an incredible listen, particularly the plane mssion and subsequent crash. Prior to and following that, however, the track springs to life with full and detailed musical delivery. Ambient effects around the POW camp are frequent and authentic, effectively placing the listener in the busy, oftentimes loud landscape. All in all, this is a marvelous listen from Universal.

The UNBROKEN Blu-ray includes a generous amount of extras:

• Inside UNBROKEN: An above average 30-minute featurette broken into three parts: Fifty Years in the Making – shows Ms Hillenbrand discussing her novel, then segues into her relationship with Louis Zamperini and discusses how Angelina Jolie became involved. The Fight of a Storyteller Director Angelina Jolie – takes a look at the sheer logistics of getting the film made – shooting at sea, the POW sequences, and a look at the special effects involved. Hardiest Generation – takes a look at the supporting characters and how important to the filmmakers it was to get their stories accurate.
• The Real Louis Zamperini: This is the money extra – a 30-minute bio with rare footage of Zamperini that goes into detail about his Olympic career, his military service, and even covers his death. One of the best extras I’ve seen on any disc in a while.
• Cast and Crew Concert Featuring Miyavi: Bird, the villain of UNBROKEN was played by a Japanese singer-songwriter named Miyavi – Angelina Jolie introduces an 8-minute performance from the musician.
• Prison Camp Theater: Cinderella – A 6-minute version of the performance briefly shown in the film.
• Louis’ Path to Forgiveness – A 6-minute look at Zamperini’s spiritual salvation is somewhat reduntant since most of the central points were covered in the 30-minute bio of Zamperini
• Deleted Scenes – A generous and interesting selection: Dad Comes Home (0:50), Light and Darkness (2:23), Victory Kiss (0:55), Cecy (1:24), Bird Plays “Sakura Sakura” on Shamisen (2:09), Bird Plays “Cherry Blossom Song” on Shamisen (0:59), Bird Hits Fitzgerald (4:08), Louie Taken to Barracks After Beating (0:58), Family Photo (0:35), and What a Deal (1:33).
• DVD and Digital HD

UNBROKEN is one of the best Blu-ray releases I’ve seen this year.