The beautiful Life of Pi Paige Dahlke Life of Pi is an artistic marvel brought to life. Academy Award winning director,

Ang Lee – who is also known for directing the popular films Brokeback Mountain and

Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon –, did a stupendous job in making this fantasy adventure film one to remember. Based on the popular novel by Yann Martel, Life of Pi is about the story of a young man who encounters both perils and miracles as he tries to survive at sea with a temperamental Bengal tiger by his side.

Leading up to his time at sea, stories of Pi’s experiences are narrated by an older version of Pi, played by Slumdog Millionaire star, Irrfan Khan, as he tells a writer, portrayed by Rafe Spall, about his life: his family, his first love, and his journey across a sea with a few exotic animals. On this journey, young Pi, played brilliantly by Hollywood newbie, Suraj Sharma, faces starvation, dehydration, and extreme sunburn, all while trying not to go crazy. By being stuck on a boat with no human interaction and a view that consists of only endless horizons of undrinkable water, one is bound to loose a few of their marbles. Pi’s mental stability resembles that of Tom Hank’s character, Chuck

Noland, in Cast Away (directed by Robert Zemeckis), but instead of befriending a volleyball, Sharma’s character tries to befriend a tiger.

Tom Hanks, of course, was an experienced actor before he took on the role of

Chuck, but Saraj Sharma had no previous experience before taking part in Life of Pi. But

I must say, Sharma does an impeccable job portraying his character. Even with having no experience, his performance is one that I’d expect from seasoned actors his age, such as

Josh Hutcherson or Nicholas Hoult. All of his emotions expressed in the film are palpable, and I frankly can’t wait to see more from him. It wasn’t only Sharma’s acting that made Life of Pi a slice of genius; the work done by Claudio Miranda and Tim Squires was of equal, if not more, importance. The prior was the cinematographer for the film, while the latter was the film editor. They are the ones, alongside Ang Lee of course, who made watching this movie such a breathtaking experience. The compilation of the vibrantly colored shots along side the ravishing use of CGI throughout the film creates what seems like an alternate universe for the audience to immerse themselves in.

Something that this universe acknowledges multiple times is faith; In fact, Pi tells the writer that his story will make him believe in God, and judging by what his younger self goes through, that just might be true. Since he can’t choose between practicing the

Hindu, Muslim, or Christian religion, he worships in all of them; the notion is really quite brilliant for a boy his age, especially since his parents didn’t play a part in his decision.

At one point, Pi’s father even tells him, “If you believe in everything, you will end up not believing in anything at all,” but Pi just keeps doing his thing, practicing whatever religion he can to connect with God. He perceives religion as a means to talk to a higher power, and it shouldn’t matter the methods he uses to do so. Pi’s belief in God is one of the few things that he has to keep himself sane over the 227 days he lives at sea, and he seems to believe that it was what kept him alive.

The question of whether it was his faith that kept him alive, or his top-notch survival skills, is one that I’ll allow you to answer for yourself. The film only takes 127 minutes to watch, which is considerably shorter than the 227 days Pi spent on a lifeboat, so you might as well go and see it. After all, Life of Pi is a beautifully crafted masterpiece, one that will remain a cinematic marvel for years to come.