Pi lives in Pondicherry, India. His family owns a zoo and he is surrounded by animals in idyllic surroundings. However, when he is a teenager, his father announces he is selling the zoo and moving the family to Canada. They board a Japanese freighter with a few of their most valuable animals and set off across the Pacific. One night, Pi hears a loud noise, goes above deck to investigate, and discovers that the ship is about to sink. He is tossed into a lifeboat, accompanied by a zebra and hyena that have managed to get loose from the cargo hold. A little while later, he unwittingly rescues Richard Parker, the zoo's Bengal tiger. An orangutan named Orange Juice also arrives floating on some bananas. By day break, the ship is completely submerged, and Pi is the only human survivor.
The first few days are what you would expect when you have a bunch of animals on a boat. The hyena first attacks the wounded zebra, and then goes for the orangutan. When it looks like he might attack Pi, Richard Parker intervenes. Now Pi is alone with a tiger and we follow the next 227 days of his journey. His primary concern is establishing control over Richard Parker, and there are numerous training sequences as he attempts to tame this carnivorous beast and sate their appetites with fish from the bountiful ocean. The lifeboat has a survival kit with various foodstuffs and devices that come in handy. There is a spectacular sequence at night as the ocean teems with phosphorescent jellyfish and Pi has visions of all the things he has loved and lost. Pi's deep religiosity means that he keeps alternating between hope and despair, as he and Richard Parker endure all manner of adventures on their ocean voyage.
Suraj Sharma is simply wonderful as Pi Patel and undergoes a jawdropping transformation over the course of this ocean voyage. Tabu and Adil Hussain, who play Pi's parents, and Irrfan Khan, who plays the adult Pi, are equally engaging for the short time that they are on screen. Richard Parker never feels like a CGI tiger (I believe a real tiger was used in some sequences, but certainly not throughout the movie), and the special effects team deserves all manner of awards. The middle section does feel overlong but really, that's as it should be. The scenes start to feel repetitive and unnecessary, but perhaps that is just a subtle way of putting you into Pi's shoes. If you can't endure a 2-hour movie about someone at sea, how would you endure 227 days of endless ocean?
The book has several graphic elements, but the movie only has a PG rating. It shies away considerably from the novel's darker moments and expands on the moments of beauty. That is a choice that pays off visually, but doesn't particularly work emotionally. I was disturbed by the book but the movie didn't evoke much of an emotional response. Watch Life of Pi in theaters and witness the visual marvel for yourself, then launch into a debate about the ending. The story ends with a twist that I will not divulge here. Suffice to say, it requires rearranging the way you view the entire story, and choosing which version of the tale you prefer. Like most things, it is a choice between reason and faith.
The first few days are what you would expect when you have a bunch of animals on a boat. The hyena first attacks the wounded zebra, and then goes for the orangutan. When it looks like he might attack Pi, Richard Parker intervenes. Now Pi is alone with a tiger and we follow the next 227 days of his journey. His primary concern is establishing control over Richard Parker, and there are numerous training sequences as he attempts to tame this carnivorous beast and sate their appetites with fish from the bountiful ocean. The lifeboat has a survival kit with various foodstuffs and devices that come in handy. There is a spectacular sequence at night as the ocean teems with phosphorescent jellyfish and Pi has visions of all the things he has loved and lost. Pi's deep religiosity means that he keeps alternating between hope and despair, as he and Richard Parker endure all manner of adventures on their ocean voyage.
Suraj Sharma is simply wonderful as Pi Patel and undergoes a jawdropping transformation over the course of this ocean voyage. Tabu and Adil Hussain, who play Pi's parents, and Irrfan Khan, who plays the adult Pi, are equally engaging for the short time that they are on screen. Richard Parker never feels like a CGI tiger (I believe a real tiger was used in some sequences, but certainly not throughout the movie), and the special effects team deserves all manner of awards. The middle section does feel overlong but really, that's as it should be. The scenes start to feel repetitive and unnecessary, but perhaps that is just a subtle way of putting you into Pi's shoes. If you can't endure a 2-hour movie about someone at sea, how would you endure 227 days of endless ocean?
The book has several graphic elements, but the movie only has a PG rating. It shies away considerably from the novel's darker moments and expands on the moments of beauty. That is a choice that pays off visually, but doesn't particularly work emotionally. I was disturbed by the book but the movie didn't evoke much of an emotional response. Watch Life of Pi in theaters and witness the visual marvel for yourself, then launch into a debate about the ending. The story ends with a twist that I will not divulge here. Suffice to say, it requires rearranging the way you view the entire story, and choosing which version of the tale you prefer. Like most things, it is a choice between reason and faith.
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