Director: Angelina Jolie
Cast: Jack O’Connell, Garrett Hedlund
Three stars
Unbroken is a story about Louis Zamperini that seems to have little interest in Louis Zamperini.
The film painstakingly details his harrowing wartime experience and every brutal assault. But don’t expect to walk away with a deep understanding of the Olympic athlete, who survived not only 47 days on a raft in the Pacific but also two years as a prisoner-of-war in a Japanese detention camp.
Unbroken floats on the surface. It isn't a bad movie – it's just safe to a fault.
The director Angelina Jolie has made a beautiful film based on Laura Hillenbrand’s best-selling book. Her respect for Zamperini’s story is evident. By the end, though, the gaze turns reverential and distant as his experiences become more obscured.
Unbroken kicks off with a bang. A gorgeous air battle places the audience in the middle of Second World War. From there, it fades in-and-out of flashbacks to Zamperini's childhood and unlikely ascent to athletic greatness. Before enlisting in the Air Force, he was a track star who ran in the 1936 Olympics in Berlin. Though fairly straightforward, his racing scenes are among the most exciting of the movie – he's a guy who saves his best for the final moments. It's immediate and thrilling. The wartime "present", however, has the feel of a lengthy montage, especially when Zamperini and two crewmates are stranded after their plane crashes in the Pacific. He survived on a raft at sea for 47 days, only to be captured by the Japanese and put into a brutal POW camp.
The film becomes a series of moments – flashes of misery on a boat as we see men in various stages of decay. It strips the experience of any arc or thrill. There’s also a missed opportunity for an emotional gut punch when Zamperini is separated from his friend. It seems like Jolie was aiming for subtlety here. Instead, we just feel robbed.
When he gets to the POW camp, we’re introduced to a sadistic prison guard whose sole purpose seems to be to beat Zamperini. Again, without any inquiry into what inspired Zamperini to endure, the endless brutality falls flat.
O’Connell’s performance is strong and steadfast with moments of greatness and deep vulnerability, but it fails to inspire an emotional response.
Jolie hasn’t done a disservice to Zamperini’s life, but it’s hard to know what she was trying to tell. It’s Zamperini’s story in fact and circumstance – yet he feels like an enigma.
artslife@thenational.ae
Coffee: black death or elixir of life?
It is among the greatest health debates of our time; splashed across newspapers with contradicting headlines - is coffee good for you or not?
Depending on what you read, it is either a cancer-causing, sleep-depriving, stomach ulcer-inducing black death or the secret to long life, cutting the chance of stroke, diabetes and cancer.
The latest research - a study of 8,412 people across the UK who each underwent an MRI heart scan - is intended to put to bed (caffeine allowing) conflicting reports of the pros and cons of consumption.
The study, funded by the British Heart Foundation, contradicted previous findings that it stiffens arteries, putting pressure on the heart and increasing the likelihood of a heart attack or stroke, leading to warnings to cut down.
Numerous studies have recognised the benefits of coffee in cutting oral and esophageal cancer, the risk of a stroke and cirrhosis of the liver.
The benefits are often linked to biologically active compounds including caffeine, flavonoids, lignans, and other polyphenols, which benefit the body. These and othetr coffee compounds regulate genes involved in DNA repair, have anti-inflammatory properties and are associated with lower risk of insulin resistance, which is linked to type-2 diabetes.
But as doctors warn, too much of anything is inadvisable. The British Heart Foundation found the heaviest coffee drinkers in the study were most likely to be men who smoked and drank alcohol regularly.
Excessive amounts of coffee also unsettle the stomach causing or contributing to stomach ulcers. It also stains the teeth over time, hampers absorption of minerals and vitamins like zinc and iron.
It also raises blood pressure, which is largely problematic for people with existing conditions.
So the heaviest drinkers of the black stuff - some in the study had up to 25 cups per day - may want to rein it in.
Rory Reynolds
UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
NO OTHER LAND
Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal
Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham
Rating: 3.5/5
RESULTS
2.15pm: Al Marwan Group Holding – Handicap (PA) Dh40,000 (Dirt) 1,200m
Winner: SS Jalmod, Antonio Fresu (jockey), Ibrahim Al Hadhrami (trainer)
2.45pm: Sharjah Equine Hospital – Maiden (PA) Dh40,000 (D) 1,000m
Winner: Ghallieah, Sebastien Martino, Jean-Claude Pecout
3.15pm: Al Marwan Group Holding – Handicap (PA) Dh40,000 (D) 1,700m
Winner: Inthar, Saif Al Balushi, Khalifa Al Neyadi
3.45pm: Al Ain Stud Emirates Breeders Trophy – Conditions (PA) Dh50,000 (D) 1,700m
Winner: MH Rahal, Richard Mullen, Elise Jeanne
4.25pm: Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan Cup – Prestige Handicap (PA) Dh100,000 (D) 1,200m
Winner: JAP Aneed, Ray Dawson, Irfan Ellahi
4.45pm: Sharjah Equine Hospital – Handicap (TB) Dh40,000 (D) 1,200m
Winner: Edaraat, Antonio Fresu, Musabah Al Muhairi
Where to buy art books in the UAE
There are a number of speciality art bookshops in the UAE.
In Dubai, The Lighthouse at Dubai Design District has a wonderfully curated selection of art and design books. Alserkal Avenue runs a pop-up shop at their A4 space, and host the art-book fair Fully Booked during Art Week in March. The Third Line, also in Alserkal Avenue, has a strong book-publishing arm and sells copies at its gallery. Kinokuniya, at Dubai Mall, has some good offerings within its broad selection, and you never know what you will find at the House of Prose in Jumeirah. Finally, all of Gulf Photo Plus’s photo books are available for sale at their show.
In Abu Dhabi, Louvre Abu Dhabi has a beautiful selection of catalogues and art books, and Magrudy’s – across the Emirates, but particularly at their NYU Abu Dhabi site – has a great selection in art, fiction and cultural theory.
In Sharjah, the Sharjah Art Museum sells catalogues and art books at its museum shop, and the Sharjah Art Foundation has a bookshop that offers reads on art, theory and cultural history.
