Yin shi nan nu (Eat Drink Man Woman) (1994)

Director: Ang Lee
Writers:  Ang Lee, James Schamus, Wang Jui-Ling
Cast:      Sihung Ling, Yu-Wen Wang, Chien-lien Wu
A senior chef lives with his three grown daughters; the middle one finds her future plans affected by unexpected events and the life changes of the other household members.

The film felt like the feel good Malayalam family films of the 90s. Ang Lee could have taken intelligence of the audience for granted and made the film much more subtle. As it stands it looks a bit cliched. I saw it being compared to Edward Yang's 'Yi Yi' http://pulpfictionfilms.blogspot.in/2011/07/yi-yi-2000.html. Yang's effort  is a far superior work and a must watch.

Rating: 2.5/5

Life of Pi (2012)

Director: Ang lee
Writers:  David Magee, Yann Martel
Cast:      Suraj Sharma, Irrfan Khan, Adil Hussain, Tabu
A young man who survives a disaster at sea is hurtled into an epic journey of adventure and discovery. While cast away, he forms an unexpected connection with another survivor...a fearsome Bengal tiger.

The film is an adaptation of Yann Martel's Booker Prize winning novel with the same name. The initial part of the film is a bit weak like Roman Polanski's 'The Pianist'. The film is much better when the protagonist gets isolated from other characters. The ending failed to have as big an impact the book managed. Maybe a Tarantino style Animated violence sequence could have been used. Then again all the studio films want to be PG rating.

Word on 3D- Please go way, the stupid gimmick. The spectacles gave me headaches while watching.

Rating: 3.5/5