Stuck on a airplane for nine hours gives you a chance to watch some of the current movies out there….assuming you can find something halfway decent. I watched Skyfall and wasn't impressed. Was there actually a plot in that movie? It had no suspense, no surprises, no real story. But I guess if you shoot at things, get shot, blow things up, get the girl (and then another one), and look manly through it all then you have enough for another James Bond movie. It wasn't for me.
The only other movie that looked interesting was the Life of Pi. I had heard about it but I wasn't too tempted to go to the movies and watch it for $10…or even go to a Redbox and rent it for $1.29. It seemed a little weird from what I saw. But hey, it was free on the plane and I had time. So I hit "play."
I was pleasantly surprised.
It was a great story with a mix of humor, suspense, and vivid visual effects. The plot was so unique–a boy stuck on a lifeboat with a hyena, zebra, orangutan, and Bengal tiger–that it was hard not to be drawn in. And as an added bonus, it was clean and avoided needless vulgarity.
But after watching the movie…and thoroughly enjoying it…I had to stop and think about its message. The Life of Pi preaches a message that resonates with much of our culture today. But is it true?
The movie begins with a young writer visiting Pi because he hears that Pi has a story that "will make him believe in God." The young man is eager to hear the story. So a middle-aged Pi begins to tell it. (And if you haven't seen the movie, then you may want to stop here and go watch it first.)
Pi grows up in India with a sharp, curious mind and a receptive, spiritual heart. His dad owns a zoo which adds to Pi's young adventures and the beauty of his childhood. There is an innocence to Pi that is refreshing. For instance, deep down, Pi feels he can befriend the zoo's Bengal tiger. His father has to show him the the ferociousness of the tiger…and the harsh reality of life…in order to preserve his son from his own naivete.
But Pi is undeterred in his innocent optimism…especially in the spiritual realm. He embraces Hinduism and its cultural story. Then he embraces Christianity and its story of God's love. Then he embraces Islam and its discipline and devotion. His father jokes that if Pi can embrace a few more religions then he can live his whole life on holiday.
Instead of religion, Pi's dad pushes him toward reason and a rationalistic view of the universe. Only science gives practical answers to life's problems. Science operates in reality; religion in fantasy. And you have to choose in which realm you will live.
The background is set. And now the real story begins.
Due to circumstances and failing finances, Pi's family sets sail on a boat toward Canada. His dad brings the animals of the zoo to sell for income. Along the way, the boat sinks in the midst of a violent storm. Through the course of events that are too hard to explain, Pi ends up as the only survivor in a lifeboat with a wounded zebra, a tired baboon, a hungry hyena, and the aforementioned Bengal tiger. And before long, all that are left are Pi and the tiger.
The next 227 days on the lifeboat are an adventure to say the least. Deeply inspiring, wildly compelling, and rationally unbelievable.
In the end, Pi ends up half-dead on a beach in Mexico. The tiger, gaunt, bedraggled, and now befriended to Pi, disappears into the Mexican jungle before help arrives.
Pi is rescued alone.
In the hospital recovering, Pi is visited by representatives of the boat company looking to write a report on the vessel's sinking. Pi tells the story of the animals on the lifeboat but the representatives seem unable to accept it. It is simply beyond belief. So, to satisfy them, Pi tells another story, replacing the animals with human characters, and changing the wildness of the story into something easier to explain…and to believe. The representatives seem satisfied and leave.
The scene pans back to Pi talking with the young writer. "I have told you two different stories. Same basic facts. Same ending. Which do you believe?"
The writer replies, "The story with the tiger because it is the better story."
Pi says. "And so it is with God."
The writer wryly smiles. Now he understands. There are two ways of looking at the universe. Both must deal with the reality of what we see. We can either believe the rationality of science or accept the unbelievable wonder of spirituality. Pi, and now the writer, take the route of spirituality because it makes the "better story."
While the credits were rolling, I paused to think about the message of the movie.
On the surface, it seems pretty good. Through Pi's story, the young writer moved from doubtful atheism to hopeful theism. That sounds like movement in the right direction, doesn't it? There is much to like about the Life of Pi.
But then I thought a little more. Is faith merely picking the "better story"?
If so, then it really doesn't matter what you believe. Simply look for what interests you, what makes you feel inspired, what "works" for you. This is the route that Pi has taken. He embraces all religions because they simply enhance the "story." Reality is mystery. Unknowable. Unfathomable. Unattainable. So look at the facts of reality and choose to see a better story. Whatever that might be. Take your choice among the world religions. Or take them all. Or invent your own for that matter.
It's the ultimate postmodern dream. Construct your own reality. Choose your own belief. Write your own story.
But in the end, the fact remains. Either Pi was on the boat with a bunch of animals or he wasn't. Reality is reality. Anything else is delusion. Even if it is the "better story."
Either we live in a random universe with no meaning or there is a God who has created. Either the Bible tells the historical story of redemption or it is a fanciful myth. Either Christ lived, died, and rose from the dead or He didn't.
Christianity doesn't allow itself to be one of many perspectives. It claims to be reality. And its Savior claims to be the creator God…in human flesh…the only Conqueror of sin and death…in real space-time history.
Yes, faith enters the equation. We can't know all things. We have to trust some authority. We have to be willing to believe. But ultimately true faith must be tied to evidence, to truth, to reality. Otherwise, it is not faith but fantasy.
Even if it is the "better story."
We came out of the theater with the same conclusion–that it doesn't really matter what you believe. (By the way, we saw the 3-D version, which was not done very well.)
Well–written and thanks for doing so!