Life of Pi – Shipwreck with Tiger

Ang Lee’s latest film is a true adventure. After all, it’s not every day you experience shipwreck with a tiger. With impressive, fairytale-like images, the film not only attracts 3D fans to the cinema, but also hobby philosophers. After all, everything revolves around religion, friendship and the bare struggle for survival.

A Canadian writer (Rafe Spall) wants to write the book of his life. On his trip around the world in India, he hears an incredible story about a boy who, after a shipwreck, shared a lifeboat with a tiger and survived. He wants to find this man and write down his story. So he goes in Canada in search of Piscine Molitor Patel (Suraj Sharma, Irrfan KahnAyush Tandon), also known as Pi, and hears a fascinating story.

Raised in Pondicherry, India in the 1970s, Pi is a boy with dreams, fascinated by religion and always questioning life. Not only his thinking is atypical for a little boy, but also the environment in which he grows up. The zoo owned by his father is home to many exotic animals that Pi spends a lot of time with and befriends. He even offers his friendship to the newly drafted Bengal tiger named Richard Parker. He is unaware of the danger posed by the animal until his father demonstrates to him that a tiger is not a friend but a wild beast. This experience shapes Pi and completely overturns his outlook on life. He loses faith in God and that animals also have souls. At the age of 17, his parents decide to emigrate to Canada because thefamily faces financial ruin. A Japanese freighter is supposed to bring her and a few of the animals across the ocean to their new home. But in the middle of the Pacific, the ship gets caught in a devastating storm that kills all people and animals. All except Pi, who escapes to a small boat. But he is far from saved.

Pi finds out that the tiger is also stuck on the lifeboat. So Piscine not only has to defy the danger of the sea, but also has to assert himself against a wild predator. The pure fear of the tiger later turns into a dependency, maybe even a friendship, which somehow keeps both of them alive. The struggle for survival on the ocean is rough and the two are repeatedly surprised by wind storms. But they also encounter fascinating natural phenomena: jellyfish that glow in the moonlight, rainbow-colored flying fish, schools of dolphins. The latter give Pi hope and restore his faith in God. After a failed attempt to attract the attention of a ship and a night on a carnivorous island, he ends up stranded with his companion on the coast of Mexico and survives.

Reality and fairy tales merge

Based on the book of the same name by Yann Martels, director Ang Lee (Brokeback Mountain) has conjured up an exciting story with wonderful pictures on the screen. The new 3D technology used in this film makes the images almost come to life. Hummingbirds, zebras and dolphins look close enough to touch. The film convinces not only with the brilliance of the pictures, but above all with its moving story. Truth and fable become increasingly blurred as the film progresses. The fight for survival with a tiger in the lifeboat initially seems plausible and exciting. But at the latest when Pi and Richard Parker are stranded on a flesh-eating island, the viewer is immersed in a fairy tale.

Theatrical release is December 26, 2012

Crystal Waston MD

Crystal Waston has a degree in Cross Media Production and Publishing. At vital.de she gives everyday tips and deals with topics related to women's health, sport, and nutrition.

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