Against the Sun (2014)

Don't listen to the negative reviews

This story has more twists and turns than a second-rate soap opera.

The film may be flawed, but its message is not.

It is encouraging that the film ends so strongly.Otherwise, it wouldn't have been a particularly memorable film

I just saw this pretty recent film off Amazon Prime, and half-way through I'm thinking it's probably loosely based on the same story featured in the recent movie, "Unbroken". After doing some research, however, I found out that the two are completely unrelated, which I'm like- TWO different true stories of three soldiers stranded on a raft in the middle of the ocean in WWII-???Garrett Dillahunt ("Raising Hope") plays the leader of these three, and I think one of the other guys was from the "Harry Potter" movies. No matter- I'll give this movie a borderline recommendation since you do find yourself concerned about these three characters as they try to survive. I also liked Dillahunt's performance, especially *possible SPOILER* since his character ultimately blames himself for the whole thing- even suggests he should be court martialed. And if you've already seen the recent Angelina Jolie-directed "Unbroken", which is basically done in three acts- 1) story of an Olympian, 2) survival story of soldiers stranded on raft in ocean, 3) POW camp story- THIS movie is basically Act II of that film. So if you have seen "Unbroken" already, you've basically seen this one, and may just want to skip it..

"They'll check every square mile out here. It'll take a while but they'll do it. Won't they?" After drifting off course a WWII pilot and his crew end up in a tiny lifeboat with no food, water, flares, or any real chance of being rescued. This is the true story of how they did everything the could to survive. Even though this is a true story it is something I had never heard of before. After recently watching Unbroken I was wondering how this would compare. This one opened with about 10 minutes of in plane scenes then right into the raft. What follows is an hour and a half of tense moments and wondering how this will play out. I would compare this very favorably to Unbroken, All Is Lost, or even something like Cast Away. If you have enjoyed those movies then I would check this one out as well. Very inspiring and moving. Another huge surprise watch. I always love when I find a movie I have never heard of that turns out to be better than 90% of the ones I have. This is one of those movies. Overall, if you liked Unbroken than check this one out as well. This is on par or better. I give it a high B+.

This movie i watched after Unbroken By (Ang Jolle) filmed in Australia The opening sequence almost mirrors the plight of pilots that have to ditch their planes, and is a fantastic story. BUT it is almost the same as the first half of Jolle's Film. At Least her film moves from Raft to rescue to Internment. Whereas this movie is solely concerned with the guys on the raft.Same stuff, plane ditched, everyone in rafts, Long time at sea, catching sharks etc. Only difference is these guys make it to an island after 1000 plus miles at sea.If I had to watch the two movies again, Give me Unbroken Any day. Even though Both are true stories.

I was fortunate enough to see a screening of this film before its theatrical release. As a student of history and a lover of films, I would highly recommend this film to both history and film buffs. All three of the main characters give well rounded performances, but I was equally impressed with the Cinematography and Musical Score. In my opinion, there are not enough Independent, low budget films like "Against the Sun", let alone historically accurate ones. Its unfortunate that films like this don't get the larger theatrical release that they so richly deserve. It is my understanding that the film's main audience will come as a result of it's digital release so hopefully it will get the recognition it deserves.