Etienne Xiao, G10A, RDF International School

“Unbroken” is a film based on a true story, which tells of the hardships and torments experienced by Louis Zamperini after being captured by the Japanese army during World War II. His indomitable spirit and great courage in difficult situations inspire me during hard times.

Zamperini, an Olympic distance runner, joined the army after the outbreak of World War II. During a combat, his fighter crashed. He and two crew members drifted at the sea for 47 days before they were finally rescued. But it was the Japanese soldiers who rescued them. They were thrown into a prisoner-of-war camp, and suffered. However, Zamperini persisted until he escaped from captivity.

Zamperini always remembered what his brother once told him, “If you can take it you can make it.”

The entire movie revolves around this theme. He suffered but endured what came his way, whether it was the harsh training and competing in the track and field team in his teenage years, or when he was drifting on the vast ocean waiting for rescue, or when he was beaten up by an officer at the POW camp.

The movie is not only about the unbroken spirit of a human being, but the beauty of forgiveness and the glory of human nature. If someone causes you mental and physical pain and you then have the opportunity to take revenge, what would you do?

In the movie, when Zamperini later saw his persecutor Mutsuhiro Watanabe in prison, he didn’t insult him. Instead, he shook his hands.

It is worthwhile to watch this movie. Through the movie, I could feel the beauty and strength of human nature and understand the value of life. It gets me to think about the significance of life, and makes me cherish everything I have now.

If I can act as determinedly as Zamperini, what difficulty in the world couldn’t I overcome? “If you can take it you can make it.” This sentence has become my motto, too.