Life of Pi

Believe The Unbelievable
Life of Pi (2012)
Timing: 2:7 (127 min)

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Release date
Genre
Budget
$120 000 000
Box office
$609 016 565
Director
Actors
Suraj Sharma, Irrfan Khan, Ayush Tandon, Gautam Belur, Adil Hussain, Tabu, Ayaan Khan, Mohd Abbas Khaleeli, Vibish Sivakumar, Rafe Spall
All actors and roles (10)
Scenario
Producer
Ang Lee, Gil Netter, David Womark, David Lee, Dean Georgaris
Camera operator
Claudio Miranda
Composer
Artist
David Gropman, Marcelo Pont Vergés, Sachin Bangera
Audition
Avy Kaufman, Surjo Deb, Zachary Luke Kislevitz
Editing
Tim Squyres
Whole Team (66)

Short description

The story of an Indian boy named Pi, a zookeeper's son who finds himself in the company of a hyena, zebra, orangutan, and a Bengal tiger after a shipwreck sets them adrift in the Pacific Ocean.

What's left behind the scenes

  • Andrew Garfield was considered for the role that eventually went to Tobey Maguire. However, although all of his scenes had been filmed, Maguire was replaced by Rafe Spall because the director felt that Maguire was too famous for such a small role.
  • Yann Martel, the author of the book, stated that the inspiration for writing the novel came to him, allegedly, after reading the book by Brazilian author Moacyr Scliar, “Max and the Cat Family” (1981), which tells the story of a Jewish-German refugee who crossed the Atlantic Ocean on the same ship as a jaguar.
  • When the tiger jumps back into the lifeboat, leaving the island, the sail does not change position in response to the load from its weight. A moment later, the boy steps on the same spot, and the sail sags.
  • There are a number of strange coincidences with the name Richard Parker: in Edgar Allan Poe's book “The Narrative of Arthur Gordon Pym of Nantucket,” published in 1838, Parker was a sailor who survived the shipwreck with three other crew members, but they ate him to avoid starvation. In 1884, a ship called Mignorette sank in the ocean, and only four people were saved, including a cabin boy named Richard Parker, who was later killed and eaten by the other three survivors. Yann Martel, the author of “Life of Pi,” named the Bengal tiger “Richard Parker” based on these events.
  • When adult Pi and the writer are talking while sitting in front of the Montreal harbor, one can notice a ship called Mignonette. This is the name of the yacht involved in the events of “R v Dudley and Stephens” (a famous English criminal case). Yann Martel took the name Richard Parker from this case.
  • Initially, it wasn't even intended for actor Suraj Sharma to audition; he was simply helping his brother during the casting process. Ultimately, Ang Lee's team chose him from more than 3,000 candidates for the lead role.
  • At one point, M. Night Shyamalan was attached to the project as writer and director. Alfonso Cuarón and Jean-Pierre Jeunet were also considered to direct the film.
  • In the trailer, during the storm scene, a modern 30,000-ton ocean freighter is visible. The ship's four cargo cranes are in working position. No ship ever goes to sea with cranes in the raised position, as this would be extremely dangerous. The cranes could break, compromising the seaworthiness of the vessel, and even lead to the death of the entire crew.
  • When the adult Pi and the writer converse while sitting before the harbor of Montreal, a ship named Mignonette can be spotted. This is the name of the yacht involved in the events of 'R v Dudley and Stephens' (a famous English criminal case). It was from this case that Yann Martel took the name Richard Parker.
  • The film is based on Yann Martel's novel 'Life of Pi' (2001).
  • Pi named his son after his brother, Ravi.
  • When the boat reaches the Mexican shore and Pi is lying unconscious, the boat gently rocks on the waves, even as the tiger walks around on it, climbs to the edge, and jumps off pushing with its paws. The boat continues to rock gently on the waves, not reacting to its weight.
  • As in the original novel, the name of the Japanese ship is 'Tsimtsum'. This is actually a Hebrew word that was used by the Kabbalist Isaac Luria in the 16th century to denote the process of compressing the infinite God, resulting in empty space. In the novel, adult Pi mentions a dissertation on Luria's ideas about creation. In the film, he simply mentions teaching a course on Kabbalah, without specifically referencing Luria.
  • The character Piscine Molitor Patel (Pi) was named after the Piscine Molitor swimming pool in France. It is located near the Bois de Boulogne park, between the Roland Garros and Parc des Princes stadiums. This pool was classified as a French historical monument on March 27, 1990, after it was closed in 1989.
  • Andrew Garfield was considered for the role that went to Tobey Maguire. But although all scenes with him were filmed, Maguire was replaced by Rafe Spall because the director felt Maguire was too well-known for such a small role.
  • As the camera pulls away, after the flying fish has gone, the raft is nowhere to be seen. However, in the next scene it is still attached to the boat.
  • The film is based on the novel 'Life of Pi' (2001) by Yann Martel.
  • On the set, Stephen Callahan, a yachtsman known for surviving a shipwreck and drifting in the ocean on a small raft for 76 days in 1982, worked as a survival consultant. Stephen described his ordeal in his book “Adrift: 76 Days Lost At Sea.”
  • Initially, actor Suraj Sharma wasn't even supposed to audition; he was simply accompanying his brother to the casting call. Ultimately, Ang Lee's team chose him from over 3,000 applicants for the lead role.
  • The character Pi, played by actor Suraj Sharma, was never actually in a boat with a live tiger. In most scenes, the tiger was created using computer graphics technology, and only some scenes, such as those where the tiger swims in the water, were filmed for real.
  • There are a number of strange coincidences regarding the name Richard Parker: in Edgar Allan Poe's 1838 book 'The Narrative of Arthur Gordon Pym of Nantucket,' Parker was a sailor who survived a shipwreck along with three other crew members, but they ate him to avoid starving to death. In 1884, a ship called the Mignonette sank in the ocean, and only four people survived; among them was a cabin boy named Richard Parker, who was subsequently killed and eaten by the three other survivors. Yann Martel, the author of the novel 'Life of Pi,' named the Bengal tiger 'Richard Parker' based on these events.
  • At some point, M. Night Shyamalan was attached to the project as a screenwriter and director. Alfonso Cuarón and Jean-Pierre Jeunet could also have become the film's directors.
  • Yann Martel, the author of the book, stated that the inspiration for the novel likely came to him after reading the book 'Max and the Cats' (1981) by Brazilian author Moacyr Scliar, which tells the story of a German-Jewish refugee who crossed the Atlantic Ocean on a ship with a jaguar.
  • As soon as the lifeboat reaches the Mexican shore, the tiger jumps into the nearest thicket, but the sand it jumps onto does not scatter from its paws.
  • The character of Pi, played by actor Suraj Sharma, was actually never in a boat with a live tiger. In most scenes, the tiger was created using CGI, and only a few scenes, such as those where the tiger is swimming in the water, were filmed for real.

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