Life of Pi Film Review

Posted: April 11th, 2022

write a 800-1000 word film review of the 2012 Life of Pi film directed by Ang Lee.

While there is no one-size-fits-all way to write a film review, there are a few common elements that you should include:

1. Introduction: in the opening paragraph, you should offer some basic information about both the film and the novel you are addressing. Include the film’s name, year of release, and director. Include the novel’s title, year of original publication, and author. Your introduction should lead into what the central focus of your review is: a film review does not need to contain a thesis statement in the same way that an academic essay does, but it should offer an assessment of the film—in other words, evaluate how and to what extent the film succeeds in translating the book into a film.

2. Plot Summary: Just like in an academic essay, you can assume that your reader is familiar with the basic plot outline of the novel/film, so while you should not spend too much space summarizing the plot, it will likely be important to your analysis to establish where the film deviates from the novel’s plot, and to describe the effects of these differences. Briefly point out the similarities between them, but focus more on the differences between the book and the movie.

3. Personal Response: In a film review, it is often appropriate to provide details of what your particular cinematic experience of viewing the film involved: this might include your sense of what the film looks, feels, and sounds like. What stood out to you? What kind of emotional response did the director’s choices pull from you? How did the cinematography, editing, lighting, sound mixing, or screenwriting affect your viewing experience?

4. Analysis: Finally, the core of your review is your analysis of how well the film was able to translate the book to a cinematic medium: how was the thematic content of the book affected by the director’s treatment of it? Did the film add anything to the book? Did it take anything significant away? Your analysis should conclude with a statement about whether or not you recommend the film to other viewers. Is this film worth seeing? Explain why or why not.