Movie Review: Life of Pi

Life of Pi has long been in my radar, but my list of unread books continues to grow. I haven’t read the book yet so I’ll never say the famous the-book-is-way-better-than-the-movie cliché in this post. I was a little apprehensive at first because I’ve seen tons of films that brags of being nominated for the Oscars but left me disappointed because of being overrated. But after all the online buzz, I gave in and convinced my husband to watch it.

I entered the theater without any expectations yet with the hope of simply being entertained. It is after all an Ang Lee film, and we paid PHP300 each for a 3D screening. A couple of hours after, I went out with a deeper appreciation of my faith.

Pi survived a shipwreck which killed his own family. If being alone in the middle of the sea after a tragedy seems to be difficult, imagine how it would be if you get to share a boat with an adult Bengal tiger and stumble upon a “carnivorous” island. Narrative films (my dad calls it puro kwentuhan) usually bore me to death. Surprisingly, Life of Pi had my 101% attention. I loved how the movie made me THINK. I loved how it gives the audience the liberty to choose what to believe in. It somehow gave me a more profound understanding of what faith is all about. Life of Pi illustrates what I have always believed in: You will not find EVERYTHING in just a SINGLE religion. Religion is not perfect, but God’s love is.

The conversation between Pi and the writer at the last part was my favorite. It left me thinking even after I left the theater. The writer went to Pi expecting that his story will make him believe in God. Pi’s two versions of the story along with the writer’s choice of what to believe in is the perfect representation of faith – believing the unbelievable.

Pi: So which story do you prefer?
Writer: The one with the tiger. That's the better story.
Pi: Thank you. And so it goes with God.
Writer: It's an amazing story.  

More than a visual journey (a lot of scenes left me breathless), Life of Pi makes you think about the unthinkable and imagine the unimaginable. And most of all, it gives us HOPE.

There are a lot of good movies this 2013 so make sure to start the year right by watching Life of Pi. Promise, super sulit! :)