Spectacular 3D, Outstanding VFX and Talented Acting!

Rating: 8/10 (13 January 2013)

Ang Lee's 3D VFX film adaptation of Yann Martel's 2001 award-winning book of the same name, "Life of Pi", is such an amazing film with stunning artwork. Sitting in the cinema last night with friends, it was quite a jaw-dropping experience. I've got to say this would be impossible to do with real animals. Richard Parker, the Bengal tiger, if he was real, not CGI, would have not been easy on set. The way they animate the tiger and background is incredible. Whenever I saw a clean shot of the boat (that Pi and Parker sail in) and the sinking ship, it reminds me of the look of the animation they do in Spielberg's Tintin.
Pi's life is told in three stages: childhood, teenage life and adult. The adult stage is quite emotional. The story is delivered by adult Pi (Irrfan Khan) retelling the story about his unbelievable past life to a writer (Rafe Spall, Prometheus).
Pi's childhood (portrayed by Gautam Belur, age 5 and Ayush Tandun, age 13) starts with him being bullied at school because of his unusual name, which then he shortens, but still causes teasing. He soon begins to become interested with different religions which causes some amusement. His father owns a zoo and he teaches Pi how to take care of the animals. These lessons Pi's been taught helps him later on in his life.
The teenage Pi's life (portrayed by Suraj Sharma) begins his perilous journey when sailing on a ship moving to Canada, when his family agree to move from India. On the way, Pi and the ship encounter a heavy storm which ends up sinking the ship and him ending up on a lifeboat, becoming the only (human) survivor. While lost at sea with no hope, he discovers that a tiger (Richard Parker) has come aboard. Although he knows the tiger wants to kill him, he eventually works out a way to control him. Thinking about Parker, he reminds me a little bit of Aslan from C.S. Lewis' Narnia series; when he walks and roars and uses tiger facial expressions, but not when he attacks. He's a lot fiercer than Aslan, who is more calm and friendly.
For Suraj Sharma (teenage Pi), this is his first ever acting debut in film and already he's received his very first Bafta nomination for the Orange Rising Star Award category (and that's what I think he deserves). He brings a touching and rewarding performance as Pi, I think he's the perfect choice for the role.
It's special effects and 3D are fantastic. Whenever you see the animals and human extras, you even wonder if their completely CGI. Of course whenever I saw Richard Parker I knew it was going to be computer-generated, but I've just learnt that four real tigers were used in some shots. and you still can't tell which is which. It would have been completely impossible to film right out at sea, so thanks to computer-generated imagery, it couldn't be easier. The 3D effects are incredible (like Martin Scorsese's Hugo but in a different way). This isn't a gimmick. No. These are unlike the other 3D films we see today in which 3D is sometimes unnecessary. Lee (I think) uses 3D almost like they use it on 3D wildlife channels on 3D TV. In this film the animals look as real as on a wildlife programme. You wonder how they manage it, and that's what gives the film an amazing look. At one point it feels like the sea will spill into the cinema. You'd be amazed.
Life of Pi is a film that should be seen in 3D to experience the special effects. It isn't the best film I've ever seen but I still think it's spectacular. A must-see!