Life of Pi review

Rating: 8/10 (21 January 2020)

Ang Lee's "Life of Pi" is a beautiful adaptation of a bestselling novel by Yann Martel. It chronicles a young mansu journey to survive after a storm leaves him stranded in the middle of the ocean. The film is colorful and draws the viewer in from the beginning.
The story starts as the young Pi is a child in India. His family owns a zoo. Early on we see the dangers of how fierce these animals can be and why they are in cages. Pi father makes the difficult decision to close the zoo when it goes broke. The family and a few precious animals board a ship headed to Canada. Along the way a storm sinks the ship leaving Pi as the only survivor along with a few of the zoo animals. They are cast adrift in the ocean and forced to survive with the hopes of being rescued. This reminds me of James Cameron's "Titanic" (1997), when Leo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet we're clinging to life in the cold Atlantic waiting for a rescue boat.
The director and cinematographer use several camera angles and CGI (computer generated images) to detail the boys journey. The tiger is obviously CGI although some real animals were used in close up shots. The camera appears to be in the water following the boy, this is the viewpoint we see. Almost all of the movie takes place on open water. They do land on a floating island with trees and plenty of food to eat.
The script is relatively short on dialogue. 75% of the movie I'd Pi on his own. The story gets detailed on how he adapts to life on a raft with a bengal tiger named Richard Parker. Due to natural selection the tiger is the last remaining animal. He and Pi end up having a mutual respect and understanding while adrift. Most of the script is told in the narration of Pi's journey.
The young actor does a great job of seeming unmoved by the events that happened to him. One would think he is either in shock or somehow accepting of what happened to his family. Never once does he give up. He makes the view believe he is confident in finding a way to survive. In the end you feel his sadness when his companion, the bengal tiger, walks away into the jungle.
The movie does move along slowly, but I blame that on screenwriter David Magees lack of material. The bulk of the story takes place at sea and perhaps it could've moved along faster if the director and writer would've used flashbacks to Pi's life. This could've been used to move the journey along and also give viewers a chance to connect with Pi on a more human level by showing how important his family was.
I highly recommend "Life of Pi" for its beautiful cinematography and endearing story. The young actor is bold and believable and the CGI did a good job of showing the viewer this fierce beast. It's 127 minutes which could've been shortened up with a few changes in script but overall one of the best movies of 2012.