I am about to violate one of my cardinal rules: Never recommend anything to anybody in case they don't like it.
I've followed that rule most of my life with rare exceptions. Of course if I'm asked about this particular restaurant or that particular recording, I'll state my honest opinion if I have one. But I usually don't volunteer the information without a prompt.
I may have made an exception for presidential candidates recently, but I am the kind of person who feels that my opinions are my opinions and have been molded and formed by my particular set of experiences in this life; therefore, how should I expect that they would match your opinions which have been formed by an entirely different set of circumstances?
Plus I want people to like me. People who have lots of opinions are harder to like in my opinion.
I make a little joke.
With this in mind, after carefully thinking about what I am set to do, please let me recommend that everyone out there, I mean in the world, ages 13 and above, see The Life of Pi in 3D today. I mean now, people.
You will thank me later.
Unless you don't like it.
I saw it yesterday on a dreary, rainy day in NW Florida and I'm pretty sure I'm not the same person today that I was before I saw it.
For one thing, I snagged a pair of 3D glasses and didn't recycle them so that I can pay for a cheap movie and sneak into a 3D one in the future.
Hey, I'm a movie critic, not a saint! Besides, you're getting all these gems for free. I've got to make ends meet somehow.
The biggest change in me however is not quite so easy to define, especially without "giving the movie away." Let's just say that there are some BIG QUESTIONS that I and just about everybody else have which, if not answered entirely, are at least provided with some very helpful insights by this cinematic masterpiece.
I was moved to see this film for two reasons. One was that Ada and I listened to the book on one of our long road trips to Florida years ago. I remembered some of the story but not all of it, but knew that I had found it fascinating. Also, a couple of weeks ago the CBS movie critic on the wonderful "Sunday Morning" show gave it his highest recommendation. Unlike me, he actually knows what he's talking about.
Visually, this is the most stunning movie I have ever seen. The 3D only adds to the spectacular beauty of this movie. I remember being blown away by the visuals and colors in James Cameron's Avatar and all of the Lord of the Rings films, but Pi is even more impressive. I believe the reason for this is that this film takes place in our own natural world not on Middle Earth or a far flung planet. These visual wonders are OUR wonders, part of OUR experience and that makes the striking beauty of this film's images that much more powerful. Sure colors are enhanced and things are digitized but all of it COULD happen. There's the difference.
That's only half of the reason to see this movie, although that alone would be worth the price of admission. (An amazing $10.75 for a matinee! This damn well better be good, Getman). This is also a movie of ideas that can be enjoyed and mulled over on many different levels. Hey, if it got me to thinkin', imagine how a smart person will react. The film is the opposite of preachy; the ideas and propositions set forth are done in a gentle, kind manner, like a bowl of ripe fruit on a front porch table. Eat or not, it's up to you. There is no pressure at all. If you decide you don't want to go any deeper than the story on the surface, it will still be a memorable film.
It's funny, but I don't remember being this moved and inspired when Ada and I listened to the book years ago. Maybe this is because the visuals contribute so much to this story.
Or maybe it's because life and circumstances have made me a very different person than I was before.
I guess it's all a matter of opinion.
Ain't life grand?
J
