There is always a mild sense of intrigue when it comes to the holiday season theatrical releases that fizzle out for me. Or to put it another way, if you have a film with a tremendous publicity push for a holiday release so that it can be eligible for awards season, and it underperforms popularly and critically, the thought becomes one of wondering what happened. Unbroken had commercials with uplifting and emotional music, and had at least one full hour of network television coverage devoted to the subject of the film, so it is not like it wasn't out in the consciousness. So…what happened?

Based on the book from Laura Hillenbrand of Seabiscuit fame, Unbroken was adapted into a screenplay by Joel and Ethan Coen. No, really, those same Coens. Sharing writing credits with them were Richard LaGravenese (P.S. I Love You) and William Nicholson (Les Miserables), and Angelina Jolie (In the Land of Blood And Honey) directed. The film tells the story of the life of Louis Zamperini. And it is an eventful life to say the least. Zamperini became a track star and participated in the same Olympiad in Berlin as Jesse Owens. Eventually enlisting in the Army Air Corps, a plane Zamperini was on crashed in the Pacific, and was one of three survivors. He was adrift at sea for almost 50 days, before being captured by Japanese soldiers and held in captivity for more than a year until the war was over. While Zamperini lived until 97, the events in the first third of his life are the focus in Unbroken.

To be sure, the events in the first third of Zamperini's life are fascinating beyond most rational summation. And Jack O'Connell ('71), the man who inhabits Zamperini during this time, is a capable actor. But for all the hurdles that O'Connell's character has to overcome, Unbroken was a fail proof film that did because the film holds itself at arm's length from those it is trying to lure. It starts off early by jumping around from Zamperini's youth to his track days to his soldier days, at times non-linearly and most times inexplicably. Jolie seemed to be more intrigued with Zamperini's life than figuring out a way to tell it.

Now O'Connell is a decent actor, and sharing screen time with him on most occasions was Domhnall Gleason (Frank), who plays Louis' friend Phil, but Louis' main antagonist in the film is Watanabe, a.k.a. "The Bird" (Takamasa Ishihara), the leader of the prisoner camp and man who intends to destroy Louis' spirits. Gleason is decent, but Ishihara lacks any sort of menace or danger that makes him worth hating, other than he's a friggin' weasel who hides behind a lot of his guards' weapons, kind of like a pro wrestling manager. Is the lack of emotional resonance does not hinder Unbroken, the lack of believable performance by an integral member of the story will.

Beyond the publicity machine that Universal and Comcast put behind Unbroken laid a film that was in decent storytelling hands, and I am left to wonder how a film whose main character had such a fascinating life, why nobody could think to include something as easy as a moment or two of some sort of identification or viewer empathy to him is beyond me. Compared to the story that is laid out before it, the title of Unbroken serves as more of a paradox that is hard to reconcile than anything else.

In 2.40:1 widescreen and using the AVC codec, there is little to complain about when actually looking at Unbroken, the image detail is strong throughout. Whether it is in the detail of the computer animated planes or the caked mud and dirt on the prisoners, all looks sharp and easily noticeable. Colors and flesh tones appear natural (the latter a tad on the light side, but more a trivial mention than a distraction), and black levels are deep as can be. At least Unbroken looks as good as it possibly can.

Something called a Dolby Atmos track is the main one for the film, which my receiver says was distributed as a DTS-HD Master Audio track in six channels. Despite the new wrinkle, the soundtrack is just as up to the task, starting from the opening notes of a plane coming through the front of the soundstage from left to right. In sequences of more ambience like Louis' Olympics, crowd noise comes through in the rear channels and both the more dynamic and calmer sequences one can pick out directional effects and some channel panning, and this occurs through most of the film. Dialogue fluctuates in moments but is not a concern, and technically the Blu-ray is a beauty.

Starting off, there are 10 deleted scenes (15:54), a couple are interesting, including one where the Zamperini's saw the Hindenburg at one point? Next is "Inside Unbroken" (27:23), which explores how the book became a movie, and thoughts on the story by the cast and crew. The cast talk a little about Jolie the director, and the piece serves as a tribute to Zamperini to some degree. Jolie does a part of her interview as a rainstorm comes through, which seems to serve as cinematic foreboding I guess. It is a decent piece. Next is "The Real Louis Zamperini" (29:47), easily the best piece on the disc, including the film. Recollections on Louis' life by him and his family are talked about, including his struggle with PTSD and spiritual discovery. Zamperini skateboarded into his 80s and skied into his 90s and I think it's safe to say I'd have maybe liked the movie more if they either took this tact or told Zamperini's story from dawn to dusk. Interviews with the cast on the prison version of "Cinderella" is included (6:29) along with a more direct look at Louis' faith by his family (6:43). There is also a concert for the cast and crew by Ishimara, who goes by Miyavi in his day job as a musician. A standard definition disc and digital copy of the movie complete things.

Despite its best attempts to tell a story that is worth telling, Unbroken disappoints in most every way possible. I mean, when a piece on your subject which is a quarter of the length of your film turns out to be better than your film, something's wrong. Technically, the film looks and sounds great, but I would presume you can find better material on Louis Zamperini other than this disc. The merits of Unbroken are few and frankly, not worth mentioning.