Life of Pi (2012)

A young writer from Montreal visits the residence of Piscine Molitor Patel, a man who as a young lad found himself adrift in the middle of the Pacific ocean and made it through to tell the story. It is very early when - upon recounting segments of his past - the film's exotic presentational tone and storytelling aesthetics are revealed. Satisfying the story's thematic necessities, consequence of inspired direction, and special thanks to the beautiful actors on one end and a very well done computer graphics implementation on the other. There is an exquisite balance at play and the overall atmosphere feels subtly and efficiently conveyed. The introduction drags unnecessarily as a background setup for the main character and before long, it gives way to an ensnaring non-action oriented adventure which paces steadily for the remainder of the film's 116' runtime. Exciting, mesmerizing, esoteric, at times spectacular, for a while superfluous, Life of Pi is Ang Lee's "Big Fish" and a film which surpasses expectations. Highly recommended.