Christian Retailing

Mixed Messages Mars Visually Stunning 'Life of Pi' Print Email
Written by Eric Tiansay   
Wednesday, 06 March 2013 11:55 AM America/New_York

By Joe Deleon and Eric Tiansay

The Bible says there is a way that seems right to a man, but in the end it leads to death. In Oscar-winning director Ang Lee's epic Life of Pi, all roads lead to heaven.

Based on the best-selling novel by Yann Martel, the film is a magical adventure story centering on an Indian boy named Pi Patel, the precocious son of a zoo keeper. Inhabitants of Pondicherry, India, the family decides to move to Canada, hitching a ride on a huge freighter.

After a shipwreck, Pi finds himself adrift in the Pacific Ocean on a 26-foot lifeboat in the company of a zebra, a hyena, an orangutan and a 450-pound Bengal tiger named Richard Parker—all fighting for survival.

Visually captivating from start to finish of its 127-minute running time, Life of Pi is more than just another pretty film, though the 3D is perfectly done. It's a movie that ponders life and death intentionally, pushing the limited boundaries of American moviegoers.

Life of Pi starts with a journalist visiting an adult Pi after hearing that the man had "a story that would make me believe in God." The movie features a spiritual mish-mash at its core. Pi is a Catholic, a Hindu and a Muslim, but his mother is a Hindu and his father an atheist.

"Believing in everything is the same as believing in nothing," the businessman points out.

The movie about a young boy who goes on an incredible adventure is definitely worth seeing. For Christian families, it's a great opportunity to discuss Christianity's unwavering truths and that each person does not get to know God in his or her own personal way.

The Life of Pi 3D Blu-ray combo pack, which includes Blu-ray 3D, Blu-ray, DVD and digital copy, features lots of bonus material, including storyboards and deleted scenes, and the documentaries A Remarkable Vision, A Filmmaker's Epic Journey and Tiger, Tiger Burning Bright.

Content Watch: Rated PG for emotional thematic content throughout, and some scary action sequences and peril, Life of Pi doesn't feature gratuitous violence, sex, nudity or foul language. The movie, though, could be frightening for small children as several animals are killed, so caution is advised. Parents should exercise strong caution because of the film's mixed, syncretistic messages.