[popdisaster00]

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Pi Patel is an unusual boy. The son of a zookeeper, he has an encyclopedic knowledge of animal behavior, a fervent love of stories, and practices not only his native Hinduism, but also Christianity and Islam. When Pi is sixteen, his family emigrates from India to North America aboard a Japanese cargo ship, along with their zoo animals bound for new homes.

The ship sinks. Pi finds himself alone in a lifeboat, his only companions a hyena, an orangutan, a wounded zebra, and Richard Parker, a 450-pound Bengal tiger. Soon the tiger has dispatched all but Pi, whose fear, knowledge, and cunning allow him to coexist with Richard Parker for 227 days lost at sea. When they finally reach the coast of Mexico, Richard Parker flees to the jungle, never to be seen again. The Japanese authorities who interrogate Pi refuse to believe his story and press him to tell them “the truth.” After hours of coercion, Pi tells a second story, a story much less fantastical, much more conventional-but is it more true?

Life of Pi has taken its good sweet time journeying from the bookshelf to the box office. First published in 2001, Yann Martel‘s novel passed through the hands of M. Night Shyamalan, Alfonso Cuarón, and Jean-Pierre Jeunet before ultimately ending up with Ang Lee in 2009. A tricky adaptation process and budgetary woes helped keep the film in development hell a few years longer, but Lee struggled through and at long last, we finally have our first little peek at the new movie. Hit the jump for a still.

The Man Booker Prize winner centers around Pi Patel (newcomer Suraj Sharma), the teenaged son of a zookeeper. He and his family board a ship headed toward North America, but a wreck leaves Pi stranded in a lifeboat with a hyena, an orangutan, a zebra, and a Bengal tiger named Richard Parker.

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Along with Sharma, who beat out more than 3,000 hopefuls to land the lead role, Life of Pi also stars Irrfan Khan as the grown-up Pi, Adil Hussain and Tabu as Pi’s parents, Gérard Depardieu as “The Chef,” and Tobey Maguire as a journalist named — surprise — Yann Martel. The film hits December 21.

I read this book for a class in college, and I'm really interested/excited to see how it translates over to film.

[I am Mick]

Really liked the book, hope this is good

[SlappedActor]

Such a good book.

[zion the lion]

I've been considering reading the book, I guess I should now.

[brandon_260]

My 12th grade class had a choice of a few novels to read, and this was one of them. I chose Death of a Salesman over this, but everyone who reported on it made it sound very good. I'll definitely be seeing this.

[popdisaster00]

The picture looks great. Really pretty.

[the sky below]

This adaption appears to have lost me at Tobey Maguire.

Book was great. If you find the illustrated version in your bookstore, I highly suggest adding it to your bookshelf.

[ChaplainTappman]

Loved the book. This should be cool.

[the seventeenth]

Read the book last year and enjoyed it. I'm not sure how I feel about that still shot, but I think the movie will be good anyhow.

[8SlicesOfPie]

That still looks really cool. Heard great things about the book but never read it...

[mbarney82]

read the book in high school for humanities. not a bad read. the tiger looks photoshopped in the picture. and on a side not...THANK GOD m. night shyamalan isnt directing. the movie would have been awful if that was the case

[Spencer Control]

The book is amazing, and there are definitely ways to make it work well for a film. It looks like they're on the right track with that still.

[amii_G]

The book is one of my favourites. Not particularly fussed about Ang Lee, but it has to be said Alfonso Cuarón would've been a very interesting choice in direction. It's basically an introverted character study, so I don't know how it'll turn out in film, but I'm definitely looking forward to it.

And for some reason I read Tobey Maguire as Timothy Spall.

[I am Mick]

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Footage from Ang Lee's Life of Pi screened at CinemaCon: full of cinematic magic, wonder. Underwater 3d stuff looks amazing...I know it's too early and stupid to make such claims but I'd be amazed if Life of Pi isn't nominated for Best Picture.

From /Film

[popdisaster00]

It's Ang Lee. He's definitely capable of producing BP-material films.