Ang Lee is good at expressing the conflict between two ideas. The early "Father Trilogy" typically showed the cultural conflict between the East and the West and the intergenerational conflict. In Juvenile pi, this kind of conflict has expanded into the conflict between religion and science, and the conflict between reason and the evil of human nature is more universal. In terms of expression, the film continues the metaphor of the novel in many ways. For example, Bai He, Furong and his mother indirectly reflect human nature, desires and beliefs.
This film has three stories. The first is the story told by Pai and Richard Parker, the second is the story of a cook, a sailor and his mother, and the third is the truth metaphorically through the camera: Pai ate his mother's body, so he survived. The film focuses on the first narrative. After the shipwreck, the tiger and Pai were in the same boat. Pai was always afraid of the tiger and tried to get rid of it and tame it, but it was this fear that kept Pai from giving up and finally survived. The tiger's name is Richard Parker, which comes from an absurd misunderstanding. But in fact, it is no coincidence to choose this name. There are several people named "Richard Parker" in history, all of whom are related to shipwrecks and cannibalism. The first Richard Parker is a character in Poe's novels. After the shipwreck, his companions came up with a way to decide who to eat by drawing lots. Unfortunately, Richard Parker drew the shortest one and became food for his companions. The second Richard Parker is a real person. Like the characters in the novel, he was eaten by his companions after the shipwreck. In the movie Pi, Richard Parker became the name of the tiger. It is no longer a victim, but a hunter. This transformation shows the unity of opposites between hunters and prey, and also reveals the gray area between human nature and animal nature.
The process of getting along with tigers is actually the conflict between human nature and animal nature, and the conflict between rationality and irrationality. When I was a teenager, Pie wanted to feed the tiger meat. His father denounced his behavior and told him that all you saw was your reflection. The tiger is the reflection of the pie and the tiger is the pie itself. After the shipwreck, someone shouted, "Who let the animals out?" In fact, no one let it go at all, but after the disaster, everyone's animal nature was aroused. Pai tried to save others with paddles, but found it was Richard Parker the tiger. He drove Richard Parker away in fear, which is actually a manifestation of his subconscious fear of irrational reason. The tiger finally climbed onto the boat, and Pai was forced to get along with him. The humanity and animality of this school have gone through three stages. In the first stage, human nature wants to stay away from animals. I tied a raft for nothing and dared not go near the tiger. From the later narrative, the school at this stage was aroused by the chef, which was completely different from his religious education. He struggled with human nature and animal nature.
? ? In the second stage, human nature hopes to draw a clear line with animal nature and suppress animal nature. Pai tried countless ways to keep Richard Parker in his field and not threaten him, but the result still failed. At this time, animality has become a necessary part of survival, and the two are inseparable. Without animality, pies can't survive. Bai had a chance to kill the tiger, but he couldn't bear to do so, because if he did, only death would wait for him.
At the end of the road, Pai killed a fish. The moment he saw the fish's eyes, he cried sadly and said sadly, Vishnu, thank you for cooking fish and saving me. He hopes to comfort himself through this kind of rhetoric. At this time, the school's animality has gradually grown, and it is evenly matched with human nature, but the relationship between them is still antagonistic.
? ? In the third stage, human nature and animal nature are integrated and interdependent. This stage is the climax of this film. In the storm, the sun appeared at first sight, and the tiger was too scared to come out. Pie asked angrily why God scared him and made him lose his family. The relationship between tigers and factions has changed from confrontation to dependence. He gently put the tiger's head on his knee to comfort him. Animals really became a part of the school, and he finally recognized his existence.
The film ends with the tiger walking into the jungle. Pai thought the tiger would look back at him, and he left without looking back. After returning to normal society, the animality that once helped factions survive must leave, which is the requirement of society.
? The film conveys the change of school human nature and animal relationship in a metaphorical way. In addition, the film also shows endless thinking about life through metaphor. First of all, the name of Pai changed from "swimming pool" to "peeing" until it became "Pai", which is an infinite and acyclic decimal in mathematics. Its characteristics are as varied and endless as life. In addition, all kinds of adventures at sea also symbolize the changes of life. Pie tied the jar to the raft. At night, he paddled happily and beautiful blue whales crossed the sky. It was a surprise in the dark, but the blue whale immediately overturned his raft and threw all his food into the water. Just when Pai was desperate, a fish suddenly flew out of the sky and saved him from hunger. So is life. The joy of the last moment turns into the sadness of the next moment, but there are new opportunities in desperate places.
? The "lotus" that appears many times in the film symbolizes the mother, that is, reproduction. At first, the fairy tale told by my mother began with a lotus flower. Pai followed his girlfriend, and when he was found out, he asked his girlfriend what "Lotus in the Woods" meant. On the cannibal island, Pai found the tooth in the lotus and escaped from the cannibal island. "Lotus" looks like female genitalia and is a metaphor for human reproduction.
? Since the birth of mankind, we have been thinking about human nature and the realization form of life. This kind of thinking is passed down from generation to generation with the reproduction of human beings, just like the "pie" in mathematics, which is endless.
? The fantasy drifting of Juvenile School skillfully uses metaphor. Some people see faith, some people see reason, some people see adventure, some people see life. Like all previous films, Ang Lee didn't give an answer. He threw the question to the audience and let us find the answer ourselves.