Life of Pi (2012)

Divine on so many levels, my experience with Life of Pi is a lot like eating at my favorite Indian restaurant. First there is the appetizer: a light, but delectable salad to introduce you to what's coming and get the stomach going. Then there is the ambrosial main course, but instead of the usual mixed sizzler of pork and lamb, entailing a side dish of garlic naan bread (mm, my mouth is watering something bad now just writing it), it's a buffet combined of the visual spice of Avatar, the powerful survival themes of Cast Away and the complex human-animal relationships of Rudyard Kipling's The Jungle Book. And yet, the parallels fall short of capturing its entire spirit and essence.

Bravely adapted to screen from Yann Martel's bestseller - which, by the way, was said to be unfilmable - the versatile Ang Lee hasn't just beautifully brought it to life, he makes it look easy. Or perhaps better said, as easy as Pi. We should all thank our deities that it was he who got the assignment and not M. Night Shyamalan, who at one point was attached to write and direct this gargantuan project. Also Jean-Pierre Jeunet was among the considered, which is kind of ironic as many of its eye-popping qualities reminded me a lot of his work.

Adventurous and deeply symbolic, it chronicles the story of Pi Patel, the son of a zookeeper who already as a child exhibits an unusual fascination for the mysteries of life, by its many faiths and religions. As narrated from his adult and present-day self, he recounts how he became multi-religious; picking meanings and parables from the various religions of the world like hors d'oeuvres from a smorgasbord. "Faith is a house with many rooms", as he explains to a young novelist who is interested in doing an adaptation of his remarkable tale.

The most essential part of the story, however, begins with a sea voyage where Pi and his family - by initiative of his rationalistic father - leave their old life behind to settle for a new home in Canada. Along for the journey is all the animals of their zoo, in what basically boils down to a metaphor for Noah's Ark (which is just one of many religious references to discover throughout the film). Their venture soon takes a dramatic turn, however, as a storm plummets the ship to a watery grave, leaving him the only survivor in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. Only human survivor that is, as he is now adrift on a lifeboat with a zebra, a hyena, an orangutan and a 450-pound Bengal tiger named Richard Parker. What sounds like the premise of a bad joke, now becomes an epic struggle to stay alive and afloat. You wonder who's gonna eat who, although if you've read the novel or seen the trailers, you should already have the answer.

Beyond the trials and tempests though, what really struck a personal chord with me was the matters of faith and inner endeavors. Juxtaposed to my own life, there was a time where I, much like Pi, was searching for the truths behind all things cosmic and earth-bound. What I discovered is that I couldn't identify myself with any one religion. By tradition, I was born and baptized as a Christian, but thankfully I lived in a family that allowed for open and critical thinking, and thus I was encouraged to form my own view and apprehension of the world.

I believe that all religions have some truth to them, but none has all the answers. For instance, I am convinced there is a spirit world and a higher power beyond our comprehension. But I don't believe in God as represented in the Bible, but in my own version of "him", as a force and greater intelligence in all things, as opposed to an old man sitting on a cloud, dealing out judgment left and right. I also, like in Hinduism, believe very strongly in past lives and that each life we live comes with important lessons, the wisdom and spiritual evolvement from which we carry into the next. I don't pretend to have found all the answers, only that this seems true in my eyes, based upon instincts and personal experiences. My mind is always open and respectful towards those who believe differently or not at all. And I think that's what I'm trying underscore here: the film's underlying message of tolerance and broader perception. It's a key most valuable, if we're ever going to find that golden balance to bring harmony to our diverse society.

I'm gonna stop there though, before this review leaps out of subject and expands into a thesis on my relations to faith. Besides, I think the 10-page essay I wrote in high school covered most of my thoughts on it. And there's so much more to this film than its compelling existentialism. Like the breathtaking visuals, which are as much a marvel to the eyes as they are to the soul. The effects conceived for Richard Parker alone is a milestone in technical wizardry. Although 86% of the tiger shots are CGI and the rest filmed with a real tiger, I honestly couldn't tell the two apart. Truly astounding, if not to say the best application of visual effects I've seen since Gollum and "Rise of the Planet of the Apes".

Grand in scope and enchanting in every step of the journey, Ang Lee has with Life of Pi created a stunningly beautiful saga, not soon to fade from memory. A tragic, touching and incredibly piece of cinematic art, which emphasizes his genuine love for transcendent and soulful storytelling. I'm literally in awe with this film, which is, hands down, his best achievement to date.

Vibrant, mesmerizing, phantasmagorical and colorful; whichever way you choose to interpret this spectacular adventure (and believe me, you will be left with a lot of thought-provoking choices), it's from any slant a gratifying magnum opus in the borderland between fantasy and reality. Not perfectly so perhaps, but what I can say with great certainty is that I - passionately and with much enthusiasm - already long to come back for another slice of celestial Pi.

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