Louie Zamperini: A Life Of Perseverance And Hope

Louis (Louie) Zamperini was born in 1917 and was raised in a low-income household. Growing up as a poor immigrant kid caused Louie to rebel and become an outcast, but he was always very strong willed. Pete, his older brother, saw potential in him and knew there had to be more for him, so he convinced Louie to run track. He poured all of his will and determination into running, and Pete allowed Louis find this passion for running. He was nicknamed in his hometown “The Torrance Tornado.” Louie blows everyone away breaking high school records, and qualifies for the 1936 Berlin Olympics at age 19. Despite getting 8th place in his event, he set a world record in his final lap of the 5,000 meter race of 56 seconds. After the Olympics he went to University of Southern California (USC) on scholarship and set a record mile time of 4:08.

Shortly after attending USC, his career was cut short when he enlisted into the Airforce as a bombardier. Louis’s squad is sent on a mission on a plane that is definitely not capable of safely flying. While flying over the ocean, one of the engines fail that forces the plane to strike the water and crash. Only three men survive, Louie, Mac, and Phil are forced to take cover in two inflatable life rafts. The three face unbearable conditions and are faced to endure severe hunger, thirst, and dehydration. After struggling to eat raw birds and fish, one of the men, Mac, dies from these conditions. On the 47th day at sea, Louie and Mac are captured by Japanese sailors and are forced to become Prisoners of war. They are sent to different POW camps, and the leader of Louie’s camp was Mutsuhiro (the Bird) Watanabe, a psychotic corporal that had it out for Louis the day he got there. He constantly singled Louis out and tortured him in unbearable ways. He was a POW for two years until American troops liberated the camp. Louis Zamperini made an appearance at the 1998 Olympics in Japan where he ran with the torch at age 81. In this essay, I am going to discuss the film’s message about perseverance, how the film highlights determination and willpower, and the theme of never giving up despite all of the hardships.

Louis Zamperini went through about five lifetimes of horror, and faced more obstacles than the average person ever could imagine. There were many drawbacks in his life, with the first one being during his childhood. His parents were poor Italian immigrants that moved their family to California to have a better life. He was constantly bullied, because he didn’t speak the best English and was poor. This angered Louie as a child and caused him to defy everyone and become a troublemaker. Despite coming from a less fortunate background, Louis was able to overcome that with running. He made a name for himself and received a full ride scholarship to USC for track. This is a great example of akid born into poverty crawling out of the depths of the never ending cycle of the working class. My favorite scene from the movie encompasses the theme of perseverance perfectly. It’s two years after Louis has been at the camp, and the Bird strikes Louie’s ankle while he was carrying heaps of coal and badly injures him. He then forces the feeble and exhausted Louie to hold a 200lb railroad beam above his head, and is told if he drops it that he will be shot. He stands for what seems like forever with everyone watching and praying he doesn’t drop it. Louie screams in strength and might and pushes the beam way above his head defying the Bird. The Bird falls to his knees in humiliation and embarrassment realizing Louis has more strength then he ever would.

Louie had always been determined and full of willpower, it even showed at the times he was a rebel as a child. He bounced back from all of this and made a name for himself. This willpower and determination is a big reason why he was tortured by the sadistic “Bird.” It angered him that Louie was a famous Olympic athlete in America, as there was definitely envy. He continually challenged Louie, and Louie never backed down, always standing his ground. He told Louie, nearly naked and skin and bones, to run against one of the guards outside in the snow. Not wanting to break his spirits, Louie runs against the guard, obviously losing due to his current state. Additionally, Louie also stood his ground when he was faced with a major decision between luxury or his country. Many Japanese officials heard of his fame and wanted to use him as a propaganda tool, so they took him to a nice radio station. They fed him steak and desserts, and gave him a choice. He could live a luxurious life, as long as he would say anti-american propaganda over the radio. It wasn’t even a choice for him, Louie would never abandon and denounce his country like that. This just proves his character and the true courage he had to stand up and decline a life of luxury and return to a life of inhumane torture.Louie remains a prime example of why a person should never give up hope. He went against all odds many times in his life. He remained strong and full of faith every time he competed in a race. He never quit training with Pete, because he thought he wasn’t good enough, he always was hopeful and had that passion he could be the best. This movie teaches troublemaker kids to never give up, because the future's not set in stone.

Even in the Olympics when he was behind other runners, he didn’t let that get to his head. He didn’t slow down or give up, he had hope that encouraged him to give it his all, and ended up being the fastest record finish. There were so many times during the film that Louie could have given up like the average person would’ve. For example, being bullied as a kid, surviving a plane crash and having to fight off hunger, thirst, dehydration, and even sharks for 47 days, and becoming a target of cruel punishment and torture, and having to live with post traumatic stress disorder. These are just a few instances where Louie could’ve been defeat, but he never lost faith. Despite everything he went through, he never gave up on his captors either. After the war and many years of anger and hatred, he decided he was letting go of revenge, and would embrace forgiveness. He returned to Japan and made peace with his old captors, but one man refused to meet with him: The Bird. Louie forgave him despite the hell he put Louie through. Louie never gave up on his dream, and finally returned to the Olympics in Japan in 1998. He ran and carried the Olympic torch at age 80. This story teaches us that no matter what barriers in life we are forced to endure, push through and never give up, because it will ultimately make you a stronger person.

The film’s core message: perseverance, determination, willpower, and never giving up made this film a powerful story. Louis Zamperini beat all odds and persevered every hindrance that came his way.Despite the torture and hardships Louis Zamperini went through, he continued to have incredible willpower, and remains a role model andhero for anyone to never give up on their dreams. I think the title is a perfect representation of his life, because Louie’s determination and spirit remained “unbroken”. Louie Zamperini passed away in 2014 at the age of 97, and he will always be remembered as an American hero.