LIFE OF PI - Review

Life of Pi

2 hours, 7 minutes

Adventure/Drama, 2012

Directed by Ang Lee

Starring
Suraj Sharma as Young Pi Patel
Irrfan Khan as Adult Pi Patel
Rafe Spall as the Author


"I can eat biscuits, but God made tigers carnivorous, so I must learn to catch fish. If I don't, I'm afraid his last meal would be a skinny vegetarian boy."


I've never read Life of Pi, but I've heard good things about it. I've also heard that it was considered to be unfilmable, much like Zack Snyder's adaptation of Watchmen.
Ang Lee gave naysayers a good ol "fuck you" and made one of the finest movies of the year.
While the set up for the story isn't perfect (just a conversation between Pi and a writer) the story itself is beautiful. Pi, our hero, begins his journey as a child in India. His family owns a local zoo. So when his family has to leave the country and take their animals, the boat capsizes, leaving Pi and a Bengal tiger aptly named Richard Parker on a lifeboat, lost at sea.
The movie takes a while to get to this part of the movie, about 30 minutes or so. It takes its time to set up Pi's story as a child. He discovers Christianity, Hinduism, and Islam, and practices all three. He even has a brief run in with a young Richard Parker.
It doesn't get really good until Pi becomes stranded with Richard Parker on the boat. The two use each other to survive at sea, and the two form an unusual bond in their journey home.
I'd be lying if I said that there were a few moments, especially early on, in which I just wanted them to just get to the lifeboat scenes. And while it takes up about 75% of the movie, it can feel a bit lengthy and maybe a little unnecessary in the first 25%.
But what impressed me most about Life of Pi was its use of incredible CGI the animals are gorgeously animated. There were a few times when I had to stop and remind myself that they weren't real. The special effects crew absolutely deserves recognition for their outstanding work.
Life of Pi is outstanding, and I would definitely recommend it to those who have their doubts. It's a beautiful story about courage, hope, and friendship with gorgeous visuals. It's definitely worth the price of admission.

Score - 9.4/10