Movie Review: Life of Pi
Movie Review: Life of Pi (2013)
Director: Ang Lee
Cast: Suraj Sharma, Irrfan Khan, Adil Hussain
Plot: Life of Pi is the story of a boy named Pi (Sharma) whose family owns a zoo in India. They are not doing well financially, however, and decide to relocate to Canada with all of their animals in tow. However, during the boat ride there’s a horrible storm and Pi is separated from his family, left on a small boat with a tiger. Can the two of them survive the perilous ocean and get rescued?
Life of Pi was based on a book of the same name, which Beth read and loved and I had never heard of before the movie came out. It won best special effects – and deservedly so. The movie is absolutely gorgeous from start to finish. And while the story is not super exciting (it’s kind of like Castaway with Tom Hanks, only instead of a 40 year old white guy and a volley ball on an island you have a teenage Indiana kid and a tiger on a boat), the story was compelling.
It’s that survivalist mentality and what you do when you have to survive that drives this story, and it works. But the real thing that makes this movie magical is the visual feast – all of it from the special effects. The movie is just something you can’t look away from, even when the pace slows and things don’t seem like there’s anything going on – you’re still visually interested in what you’re looking at.
That said, yes – the story does drag a bit. But it kind of has to, in order for you the audience to get an idea of how this character is feeling. He’s on the ocean in a small boat with a tiger! He has to find food and water, and how to survive. It’s a situation few of us have ever had to – or ever will have to – face in our lives, but the silent moments are the ones I found myself reflecting on the most. What would I do in that situation? When confronted with impossible odds, could you pull through?
While my journey would never be as magical or visually amazing as this movie, the story does hold up well – despite some slower parts in the middle. But it’s definitely worth checking out, if for no other reason than those Oscar worthy visuals!
