Life of Pi

First off, this movie did not need to be in 3D. 3D is for the kind of movies that I like, Piranha, Bait, Texas Chainsaw (which I hear is doing wonders in the US box office). This movie relies heavily on it's themes and story, which are superbly told. The story is basically the early life of a young Indian teen, who gets lost at sea when the freighter that is transporting his family and all the zoo animals that they own, mysteriously sinks and Pi, short for Piscine, is set adrift in a life boat with a Bengal tiger.

So I better start by talking about how good this movie looks, even without the 3D. Ang Lee, along with cinematographer Claudio Miranda, have put together an extremely beautiful film, which is a seamless blend of live-action and CGI effects and quite honestly I found it difficult to see the distinction between the two at times. The added effect of the 3D made the visuals pop, but once again they were capable of this on their own. Only once did the 3D get to me and that was a shot in the opening credits, where a slightly too long focus pull made the background blur for a period of time that was quite unnecessary.

Ang Lee also did a great job with a small cast and, for the majority of the film it seems, a room covered completely in green. But as amazing as the visuals are, the real star is the struggle that Pi has with confronting his beliefs about God. Early on in the film, we learn that he has adopted three religions of Hinduism, Christianity and Islam. Through the course of the film, he finds that all three of those belief systems have aided him in a certain way throughout his life. There is also a scene during a storm where he confronts God. This reminded me of Forrest Gump, where LT. Dan did the exact same thing.

Another theme in this movie is that all life is is a series of encounters with various people and that when they come to an end, the best thing is being able to say goodbye to whoever that person may be. The impact of that idea hit me quite hard and it is something I am going to be able to take with me.

Verdict: Not only is this film visually spectacular, but it also has a deep and powerful message, that leaves you warm inside. I know it's way to early to say, but it might be my favourite film of the year.