Life Of 3.14159265359......

Based on a multi-award winning and bestselling book, today's film has it all. Water, water, water, water, er... water, and a tiger. It's nominated for 11 Oscars (Just behind Lincoln with 12) and Obama described the book as,  "an elegant proof of God, and the power of storytelling." [x] On a personal note, I adored the book and would recommend it to anyone who enjoys reading - or anyone who can read. It is truly a fantastic read. This is Life Of Pi.

The story of Piscine Molitor Patel, otherwise known as Pi after he was called 'Pissing' for years. As a young boy, Pi took up some strange interests such as swimming and finding out as much as he could about different religions until he is a practising Hindu, Muslim, and Christian. Pi's family own a zoo in Pondicherry, India, but as times get harder, the Patel family decide they have to give up the zoo, sell the animals to other establishments around the world, and move to Canada. But disaster literally strikes when a storm causes the boat that the whole family and half the zoo animals are on to sink. Pi is lucky enough (some may argue) to be thrown into a life boat, which is soon invaded by a zebra and a handful of other animals. The ship sinks to the bottom of the ocean and Pi fearfully clings to the side of the lifeboat; a horrible way to start 227 days at sea. Pi prays that his faith, knowledge of animals, and intelligence will bring him to safety.

'I believe I can fly' was always Pi's favourite song.

Being, essentially, a one man film - minus small scenes with the family and the future Pi - the whole film hangs on one actor: Suraj Sharma. Not only does the entire movie rest on his shoulders, it is his debut. This is his first appearance in any form of filmed media and it is impossible to tell. His performance is ridiculously solid and unfaltering. Acting to nothing for the majority of the film - his only companions being the sea and a CGI tiger - he takes 2 hours of what should surely be dull and dragging and makes it completely engaging. And since there is very little else to talk about in terms of acting, let us look at the special effects of Pi's pals. Watch the film and try and tell the computer generated tiger from the real one. You will be wrong most of the time. The special effects on the animals is absolutely outstanding. Richard Parker, the tiger, in particular, is a piece of technical wizardry. 

Pi starts his own Mexican wave.

But the animals are not the only special effects that are worthy of mention. The film, as a whole, is a collectio of some of the best visual creations in film to date. Think Avatar, but rather than creating a new world, it perfectly, and breathtakingly, captures our own. Thousands of fish flying over and around the boat, whales soaring out of the water, glowing sea dwelling creatures galore, Life Of Pi, simply astounds in every visual aspect it possibly can. Ang Lee has solidified the title of master behind the camera as he presents one of the most visually astounding and captivating films of recent years. Better yet, he did it with a premise that was described as unfilmable. All this combined with an emotionally developed script and heart wrenching score creates a beautifully moving piece of cinema that captures the themes of the book to a tee: faith, miracles, and strength in human determination. Some damn fine editing brings everything together perfectly.

 An incredibly shot film. Not just a masterful story, but also one that touches on the important things in life. And on top of that, it is simply beautiful. Fans of the book may be slightly disappointed due to missing scenes and the extent of Pi's suffering, but the film is wonderful in its own right.

Best Bit? Two breathtaking moments are the second storm and the arrival of the flying fish. Both will leave you speechless. Incredible film making.

Again, on a more personal note, read the book. The book is seven times as good as the film. It's incredible. Don't worry about seeing the film after the book or vice versa, just read the book at some point.

From Book to Stage to Screen 2: The Horror

The second input into our 'From a book to a stage show to the screen day' originally comes from a book by Susan Hill and then went to the West End and is one of the longest running productions there. It now comes to screen in Hammer's return to the top of horror. How will one of the most famous and terrifying stage shows of all time compare on the screen? Let's take a break from the Oscars; let's look at The Woman In Black.

Lawyer, Arthur Kipps (Daniel Radcliffe), is being sent to investigate all the papers of the recently deceased Alice Drablow in her home, Eel Marsh House. The house is on a small island and separated from the mainland by a causeway which gets flooded when the tide comes in. The marshes surrounded the causeway are deadly and so it is only safe to travel it at low tide. Kipps' arrival in the village is unwelcome and the locals are less than warm towards him, but he soon befriends Sam Daily (Ciarán Hinds), who offers him food and a bed while he carries out his work. However, it seems there is a less friendly welcome for Kipps at the house and it seems he is not alone on the deserted island. The locals become even more wary of Kipps and it appears there's a dark curse over the village in the form of a vengeful ghost. Kipps takes matters into his own hands in the hope he can return to his son happily.

Kipps thought taking out a ghost would be child's play.

As his first big performance on screen since the end of Harry Potter, many people were questioning whether he was going to stand up to the challenge and not be Harry. I'm pleased to announce that he is not Harry Potter any more. That being said, he is still a very British character who is unfortunate circumstances and fighting a force that has powers beyond his comprehension. So you will be forgiven if you find it too Harry Potter-ish. Also a great performance from Ciarán Hinds as the upbeat but secretive Daily who helps Kipps out. Though the best turns come from Liz White as Jennet Humfrye (a.k.a. the woman in black), who is genuinely chilling throughout the movie, and all the villagers who show their fear, frustration, and anger in every line, every word, and every action. Nothing to criticise really in the form of acting, however nothing outstanding.

Daily finally discovered 'The Scary Door'

Like a lot of horrors, it is made or ruined in the handling of the technical elements. The building of suspense, the catharsis, the jump scares, and the way these are created. Fortunately, Woman in Black nails almost all of these on the head. The tension created in the long, dark pauses when we see a shadow or hear a noise and adventure with Kipps to find out what it was. The dramatic irony was used to a brilliant standard and the feel of classic horror throbbed throughout the movie. However, it also fell at a couple of hurdles. The fear of the unknown, to my mind, is the most prominent fear. That's what makes audio scares so effective: you don't know what's causing the sound. this movie relied to heavily on visual scares and obvious scares every now and then and at those points, the whole building of suspension was wasted.

The film is really chilling and will more than likely make you jump or have trouble sleeping. While there is much to improve on, as far as modern horrors go, it is an outstanding achievement. A definite recommendation for horror fans. Fans of the book or stage show will leave wanting to re-visit those previous areas of media. Just don't expect the same story. It is the definition of adaptation of a text.

Best Bit? I feel in a horror, the best bit is the scariest. The bit that made me jump most involved a single hand print on a window. Go see it to see what I mean.