The Reel Review
The subject has the makings of Oscar material – the true story of a former U.S. Olympic runner Louie Zamperini, who survives having his plane being shot down over the Pacific during WWII only to endure a torturous existence in a Japanese POW camp. But Angelina Jolie’s amateurish direction turns it into a clumsy, heavy-handed mess, beating the emotion out of an incredible story.