the times of india
Eat Pray Love
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Story: Liz Gilbert (Julia Roberts) isn't too happy with her life. So what if she's married, loved and has a successful career as a New York based writer. Where's my inner balance, she asks herself and sets out in search of her true identity. Difficult job? Not really. All it takes is three stops before the lady realizes it's finally time to stop.... First stop: Gorging on pasta in Italy. Second stop: Meditating in India. Third stop: Falling in love in Bali.
Movie Review: Okay, so everybody knows the movie is based on the book that spent 150 weeks on the New York Times bestseller list. Elizabeth Gilbert's autobiographical account of the sensuous and spiritual discovery of the self has found many avid readers, the world over. India has been a special market because of its India focus.... More of that later.
Everybody also knows that the film hasn't been as popular as the book on the international circuit, with most critics panning it for its lack-lustre rendition of the written text. We'd like to tread the middle path. While it may not be as alluring as the book, the film does manage to carry you through its cross-country journey, peppered with scenic locales and attention-grabbing characters. And the credit mostly goes to Julia Roberts who adds flesh and blood to the protagonist, as only she can. Julia's Liz is actually quite adorable: confused, chaotic, intelligent, sensitive, restless, honest and sexy too. So much so, you can understand why she has all the men following her all around. If her husband ( Billy Crudup) can't get over her, despite the divorce, boyfriend David (James Franco) waits for her longingly on the doorstep when she bids him good-bye. As for the irresistible Felipe (Javier Bardem), he takes just a couple of days to shed his single-is-best mindset and propose ever-after to the reluctant pilgrim, promising to take her on a boat trip to an island with hundreds of parrots. Now who can say no to that!
Liz can. Because Liz feels she'll lose her balance (read identity) if she gives in to love. Obviously, there are still some more lessons left to learn, despite her days of introspection and meditation. All it takes is a final tete-tete with her fav guru (Hadi Subiyanto), a toothless medicine man in Bali, for Liz to realize that love and identity are hardly antagonistic. More importantly, Javier Bardem isn't someone you should send away!
Now, we come to the most important question: Does the Indian chapter rock? Sadly, it's the weakest link in the story. Julia's gastronomic exploits in Rome and her romantic liaisons in Bali have a sensuous quality to them, while her Indian encounter is brimming over with cliches. There's Tulsi, the young girl who must be married against her wishes; there are the mosquitoes that threaten to give Liz malaria and there's `Richard from Texas' who tells her to drink Thumbs Up with a straw. Why? Because in India you don't touch anything, other than yourself, he explains. Ahem! Are we forgetting the cows and beggars?
Overlook these minor irritants and you have a lot to savour. Like Julia's intense performance and Robert Richardson's rich cinematography. Go See Debate....Was the book better or the film?
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Read more: Eat Pray Love - The Times of India http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/entertainment/movie-reviews/english/Eat-Pray-Love/articleshow/6713677.cms#ixzz11mXuHRR8
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