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Parents' Guide to

Unbroken

By S. Jhoanna Robledo, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 14+

Intense WWII biopic is inspiring but doesn't go deep enough.

Movie PG-13 2014 137 minutes
Unbroken Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

What you will—and won't—find in this movie.

Community Reviews

age 14+

Based on 9 parent reviews

age 16+

Certainly not a feel good movie, but worth the watch.

This is a fairly graphic movie and there are plenty of scenes showing torturous abuse, including beatings, verbal harangues, and psychological attacks; some of it is quite difficult to watch - But it was also a good movie to watch regarding world history. It had my two teenage boys very engaged 17 and 19. A movie about being strong and courageous in the midst of pain and sorrow. Certainly not a feel good movie, but worth the watch. There was no sex - always a plus when watching a movie with my sons.
age 13+

Very Good

The book is as good as the movie. The movie is awesome and has good role models and a awesome message. There are some scenes of action and not a lot of swearing. Spoiler: The movie also has a message of hope in the end because Louie sets up a camp for boys and helps boys like him find a passion and Louie forgives "The Bird" and the other soldiers that beat him when he was a POW.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say (9 ):
Kids say (41 ):

This movie will undoubtedly leave audiences with nothing but admiration for the strong, noble Zamperini, and for this alone, it's worth watching. It's also notable for its lush cinematography and disciplined storytelling, which doesn't rely overly on swelling music and other tricks to make audiences feel with a capital F.

But for a film that does so much, Unbroken still falls short in some aspects. A footnote at the end hints at incomparable kindness that Zamperini bestowed upon his enemies, and yet this is told in words rather than images. It's a pity. And though it's clear Zamperini survives partly by holding on to the lessons his brother gave him -- words that echo through his head and that the audience hears -- it feels like there's much more depth to him that's left unexplored. And what of his pain? The film hints that he suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder of some kind; completely understandable, given the circumstances, but nothing makes a man even more unbroken than to have survived all so much while still maintaining the measure of grace that historians said Zamperini had -- but that's not quite reflected here. We would have loved to have seen the whole story.

Movie Details

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