Mesmerizing, contemplative and enjoyable

Rating: 9/10 (12 December 2012)

For years, a best-selling novel was deemed to be non-filmable due to its sheer scale of fantasy involving a boy's struggle to survive a shipwreck. Until a visionary film-maker adapted every element and enriched it with today's latest computer-generated imagery to give us yet another masterpiece. In what could be one of the best adaptations of a fantasy novel, director Ang Lee celebrates with the modernity of cinema to tell a compelling tale that captivates one's imagination. Yann Martel's 'Life of Pi' is brilliantly visualized while maintaining a powerful narrative in spiritual and emotional harmony.
The writer (Rafe Spall) meets Piscine Patel (Irrfan Khan) in the charming backdrop of Pondicherry where he inquires about Piscine's origins. In a most natural manner, Khan narrates his childhood and upbringing, including the origins of his eccentric name, how it evolved to 'Pi', his religious explorations and his father's principles. ]The writer then inquires about the most interesting part of Pi's life. In the tumultuous period of emergency that was declared in India, Pi's father decides to move to Canada while selling off all their animals from the zoo they managed.They set sail on the Tsimtsum with its kind Buddhist sailor and brash cook. Woken by a thunderstorm, Pi's initial enthusiasm about it is soon turned into a nightmare as the ship begins to capsize and he is left stranded on a boat, watching the vessel take his family down into the ocean with it. Pi has no time to react to such tragedy in the storm as soon enough, he realizes that he isn't alone on the lifeboat. While the Hyena kills off the zebra and orangutan, the Tiger named Richard Parker (clerical error at the Zoo) overcomes the vile creature and becomes the King of the boat. Pi's struggle to survive off the boat, safely distant from Richard Parker poses emotional, logistical and mental challenges. Below that surface level though, we witness Pi's determination to get rescued, his will to keep the tiger alive to give purpose to his own existence and his mental strength that made him resourceful in every circumstance. Spiritually, Pi suffers it all and through hunger, pain, fear, dejection and eventually determination, he sees the work of God in everything around him. Yet, Ang Lee's version does not dive deep into the spiritual realm. Nor does it portray the extreme harshness of being stranded in the middle of the Pacific ocean. The film's strength is in its tender moments of silence between Pi and Richard Parker as they witness the different tides together. Ang Lee chose to overpower the viewer by immersing into the sea of visual artistry rather than have a debate over God and food on a boat; And it worked.
Ang Lee has most effectively used three elements to dazzle the viewer. Water, light and life. Never before has the ocean looked so daunting, rough, dark, transparent and serene, all in one movie. Through Pi's rigorous struggle to survive storms, we witness the ocean take on a ferocious form which is captured in a spectacular manner by Claudio Miranda. Then we witness the beautiful marine life in tranquil waters that are phosphorescent (the whale shot was phenomenal) and the serene waters when the Tiger and Pi are simply staring into the depths of the ocean. Then of course, the CGI of the animals and especially that of the Bengal Tiger. Someone would have to tell you that it wasn't real. That's how good the CGI work on Richard Parker was and every expression, reaction and movement was very real-like. A refinement that we had last witnessed in 'The Rise of the Planet of the Apes'. The hyena, the millions of meerkats on the carnivorous island and the flying fish were equally stunning creations. In the midst of all this, there were some beautiful 3D elements that were dancing and moving on the screen which gave us a sense of 'Avatar'. Overall, the film is a must watch in 3D because there is just so much creativity that sets a benchmark for future productions that indulge in fantasies.
Irrfan Khan is just splendid. His narrative comes so naturally as though it was his personal story. The narrative is so finely balanced between fact and allegory and Khan never gives you a chance to choose one over the other, thus leaving an Inception kind of ending to ponder over. Adil Hussain was impressive as Pi's father with a versatile performance whereas Tabu did not have a role that would challenge her by any means. Andrea Di Stefano as the priest who introduces Pi to the son of God was remarkable in a cameo. But the film is heavily dependent on Suraj Sharma to carry the various emotions that a survivor of a shipwreck would have to exhibit in various circumstances at sea. Suraj easily relates to Pi's trauma upon being stranded, his desperation to live, his fear of the Tiger, his anger with the Tiger, his determination to survive, his despair at losing hope and his regaining of hope. His is one of the finest debut performances we have seen in a very long time and the credit goes to Ang Lee and David Magee's screenplay for extracting such brilliance from him.
"Maybe Richard Parker can't be tamed," Pi tells himself, "but with God's will he can be trained." Ang Lee refrains from being preachy about Pi's religious sentiments in a storm or in solitude. Instead, he highlights the face of humanity in adversity. He touches upon various religions but the importance of having one is seldom the focus. The older Pi may have narrated the story of him and the Tiger to the writer to make him believe in God but the audience is never driven to it. Spirituality lingers in the background, never being direct. Perhaps that subtlety is the reason Life of Pi is such a universally enjoyable film.
8.85 on a scale of 1-10.