Life of Pi (Jo*****)

Life of Pi is quite possibly the best achievement on film this year. The story, based on the allegedly 'unfilmable' book, takes risks throughout its 2 hour running time, but the level of sophistication in the filmmaking by Ang Lee and his remarkable cast it truly astounding. Entering the film with no back story other than what I saw in the trailer, I was taken on a cinematic journey that truly rivals some of the best movies I have ever seen.

Following the recollections of a man who claims to have a story proving God exists, we learn of Pi, a young boy raised on a zoo in India. Once grown, we learn his father has decided to sell the zoo and move his family to Canada via cargo ship. The ship enters a severe storm and sinks, leaving only Pi and a handful of animals drifting in a small life boat. While the other animals fail to make the journey, the one that does is Richard Parker, a fully grown bengal tiger. And the story is set.

I won't go into details on how such a plot is able to fill a full-length movie, or what possible beauty could be found watching a starved boy floating at sea, but this is truly a film filled with the most awe-inspiring cinematography and visual effects. There is beauty to be found in the most plain settings, and Ang Lee truly understands the visual aspects of filmmaking. As does his effective use of visual effects. Of course several shots (if not all, I couldn't tell) of the tiger were digitally created, but the seams were truly invisible by the end. I wasn't watching a large cat created in a computer, rather one with weight, desires, instincts, and a soul.

This is a film I cannot wait to see again, and again. 3D, which has failed in the past, is in top form here, rivaling the stunning depth created in 'Avatar.' There aren't so many things coming out of the frame towards the audience as they are going away. The depth of the ocean and the sight of fish swimming just below the surface is so effectively rendered, and it adds just another level of realism to which such an absurd story is being told.

I doubt I will see another film that will have such an impact on me, definitely not this year. Here is a film for the ages. Forger 'Brokeback Mountain,' this is a film that Ang Lee will be remembered for.

(Awards potential: Best Picture, Best Director, Best Supporting Actor (Irrfan Khan), Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Cinematography, Best Art Direction, Best Original Score, Best Editing, Best Visual Effects, Best Sound Mixing, Best Sound Editing)