I watched Unbroken when it came out in 2014. It was fantastic. It is the story of Louie Zamperini (1917-2014) an Olympics runner, a World War II bombardier, and a POW survivor. During World War II, his B-24 crashed at sea, leaving him and two other survivors lost at sea aboard a life raft for 47 days.
Unbroken is the story of Zamperini’s survival while in captivity in Japan, Unbroken: The Path to Redemption is his amazing post-war story.
Haunted by nightmares of his torment, Louie sees himself as anything but a hero. Despite battling demons, anger, and alcohol abuse, Louie feels obligated to participate in an Army tour to raise money for War Bonds. But he ends up focusing more on hotel bars than his public appearances, so Louie is eventually ordered to take R&R on the beaches of Miami.
There, he meets Cynthia, a young woman who captures his eye—and his heart. After a whirlwind courtship, the couple marries and moves to Los Angeles.
While pursuing every avenue of hope he can find—from trying to reestablish himself as a world-class runner to get-rich-quick investment opportunities—Louie’s wrathful quest for revenge drives him deeper into despair … and the bottle.
Hopeless and on the brink of divorce, Cynthia attends Billy Graham’s 1949 Los Angeles Crusade where she places her faith in Christ and walks away with a renewed commitment to her marriage and her husband. She prays that God would help Louie find the peace and forgiveness he so desperately needs.
Watch the trailer below:
The movie is based on the book, Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption by Laura Hillenbrand. The movie is produced by Matthew Baer (Unbroken) and Mark Elliott and directed by Harold Cronk (God’s Not Dead).
Samuel Hunt (Chicago P.D.) plays the role of Louie Zamperini. Merritt Patterson (Kyle XY, Percy Jackson & The Olympians: The Lightning Thief, The Royals) plays Cynthia Zamperini. The movie also stars David Sakurai (Watanabe, “The Bird”), Gary Cole (Dr. Bailey), and Will Graham as his grandfather, Billy Graham.
The movie will be released in theaters on Friday, September 14. (It will be shown in 15 theaters in Iowa.)