Life of Pi

Watched in the Cinema: Sunday 10th March 2013

Rating: PG

Genre: Adventure, Drama

Runtime: 2hrs 7mins

IMDb Plot Synopsis: A young man who survives a disaster at sea is hurtled into an epic journey of adventure and discovery. While cast away, he forms an unexpected connection with another survivor: a fearsome Bengal tiger.

My Review: As expected, Life of Pi was a delicious visual feast, which kept me enthralled from start to finish. I wasn’t sure if I’d like the film as I have little patience for over-the-top, cheesy, feel-good films but this had so much more to it that it’s almost hard to put into words. That’s because it’s a cinematic experience something which is so often unheard of. Sure a lot of blockbuster films sell it as that but it rarely relishes the medium of the big screen in the way that Life of Pi does.

I think it also helped that I knew relatively little about the film going into it, other than it was quite long and Ang Lee won best director at the Oscars for it. Firstly, it flew by as you were so intensely enraptured by the story and absolutely gorgeous special effects, and secondly, it most definitely deserved that award along with the special effects ones. In terms of 3D films, this is by far the best that I’ve seen and has restored my faith in the medium somewhat as it was just perfect; I felt like you were right there - first in India in the zoo, then in the middle of the ocean storm as the ship sank, and lastly during the long journey of the tiger, Richard Parker and Pi, a young man, struggling to survive in the middle of the pacific ocean. That tiger was just a visual masterpiece and at times I completely forgot it wasn’t a real animal as the connection between Suraj Sharma and him was so tender and realistic. 

Ultimately I believe it to be a modern classic and truly something that everyone of all ages should experience for themselves, due not only to it’s masterful use of effects interwoven with human emotion, but also due to it’s deeper pondering. The ending was unexpected to me, as it really leaves you thinking about religion, the world and the reality of life. It’s a work of art.

Score: 9.5/10