The tiger isn't friendly

Rating: 6/10 (8 August 2019)

A reporter, Rafe Spall, comes to interview Irrfan Khan about his experiences. Told in chunks of flashbacks, we learn the extraordinary story about how he survived a shipwreck and floated along on the ocean on a little raft. By all accounts, he should have died, but since we know he didn't, any suspense we could have felt is replaced by sheer curiosity. The younger Irrfan is played by Suraj Sharma, and in his scenes, he has to interact with tons of computer graphics. Tumbled into the lifeboat with him are a ménage of animals: a zebra, a monkey, a hyena, and a tiger. In order to survive, he's forced to eat the animals until only the tiger is left for company. As the movie shows, with a tiger and a tiny survival manual, a man can weather any storm.
Life of Pi is visually pleasing, but the symbolism won't appeal to everyone. If you're the type of person who really loves deep, symbolic stories that you can talk about for hours or weeks, you'll probably really love this movie. I haven't read the original novel, but friends of mine who have were very pleased by the film adaptation.
I was completely taken aback by this movie and had no idea it would be so dramatic. After seeing the vague preview, I thought it was going to be a cheerful cartoon with a talking tiger, like The Jungle Book set in a lifeboat. You can imagine how surprised I was as the movie unfolded and not only did the tiger not talk, but it wasn't very friendly. However, even I ended up appreciating the film. Even I ended up in tears at the end.
Give it a shot if you want to, as long as you know the tiger doesn't talk. After all, you've got to see what everyone's been talking about for seven years, right?
DLM warning: If you suffer from vertigo or dizzy spells, like my mom does, this movie might not be your friend. Since most of this movie takes place on the water, be prepared for some camera bobbing that will make you sick. In other words, "Don't Look, Mom!"