Drama based on a true story, starring Jack O'Connell. Olympic runner Louis Zamperini has more than a few hurdles to jump after being captured by the Japanese during the Second World War and is singled out for special punishment by the sadistic camp commander.
Angelina Jolie takes a conventional but confident approach to directing this film about the amazing life of Louis Zamperini. Jack O'Connell (Starred Up, '71) gives a lion-hearted performance as the self-proclaimed regular guy who competed in the Berlin Olympics in 1936, only for his life to take some terrible turns thereafter. While serving in the US Air Force in the Second World War, he crashes in the Pacific Ocean and is cast adrift. He is saved, only to be thrown into a PoW camp where Japanese commander "The Bird" (Takamara Ishihara) singles him out for special punishment. But Zamperini's heroic run in Berlin provides him with the inspiration to keep going. If Jolie denies us a more complex portrayal of her subject, the scenes of hardship he endures are viscerally enacted, and are well balanced by the man's bright, unrelenting optimism.
| role | name |
|---|---|
| Louis Zamperini | Jack O'Connell (2) |
| Russell Allen "Phil" Phillips | Domhnall Gleeson |
| John Fitzgerald | Garrett Hedlund |
| Mutsushiro Watanabe | Takamasa Ishihara |
| Pete Zamperini | Alex Russell |
| Francis "Mac" McNamara | Finn Wittrock |
| Miller | Luke Treadaway |
| Hugh "Cup" Cuppernell | Jai Courtney |
| Frank A Tinker | John Magaro |
| Louise Zamperini | Maddalena Ischiale |
| role | name |
|---|---|
| Director | Angelina Jolie |
