sorry but no

Rating: 3/10 (30 November 2013)

This is one movie I was looking forward to watching so much, I plunked down full price for the 3D blu-ray version expecting my mind to be blown.
I really should have researched what the movie was about, though. I'd assumed that the marketing was accurate - that the movie would be about a boy and a tiger that survive together at sea but have fantastic adventures. Judging by the adverts, I wrongly assumed that this was more of an action/fantasy kind of movie. It is rated PG, after all.
I was not prepared for many things about this movie. I was not prepared for the case of doldrums this movie gave me. The way it ended was absolutely depressing. I was not prepared for the theological exposure, either. I don't think movie makers realize that not everyone finds religious dialog meaningful or necessary. But most of all, I'm a fan of family movies where adventures take you AWAY from all the pointless arguments of religion. As a PG-rated movie, I was expecting something more kid-friendly.
This goes to show that you should do your homework before buying a permanent copy of a movie. Had I taken ten minutes and googled and read what the book was about, I probably would have made the better decision to watch the 2D version digitally and been done with it.
I am giving this movie three stars, and here is why:
One star for superb acting - there's not a character in this movie that didn't seem real. They picked a great star for the movie. He kept me watching until the end, so that counts for something.
One star for visuals - the visuals are pretty good. I wouldn't say stunning, though. I'm beginning to learn that when a movie is marketed as a "visual masterpiece" it usually means they pull out all the stops for camera tricks and CGI to make up for other things it might lack.
And one more star for substance - yes this movie has a lot of substance. Most movies lack substance but this one has enough for at least five movies.
So I'm not giving this movie three stars because it's a bad movie. It's not completely a bad movie - but it misses the mark for entertainment. "Life of Pi" is disenchanting and depressing. It's one thing to have a movie facilitate raw human emotion, it's another to be a buzzkill.