I happily skipped off to the movies on Tuesday afternoon to see a film I had been waiting a while to see, namely, Eat Pray Love. Having read the book 2 years ago while in Bangkok after finishing my second yoga teacher training with YogaWorks, I was definitely in the right frame of mind to read one woman’s travels to 3 beautiful places in the world.
Eat Pray Love is Elizabeth Gilbert’s experiences over a year. She spent 4 months in each country, embracing the lifestyle. So, she eats her way around Italy, prays her way through India and loves life in many ways in Bali. It was the journey of “I”, the looking for yourself that many of us wish to do.
Now, reading someone’s experiences allows for you to use your imagination, to visualise colours and scenes through your ideas of what they saw. Film, on the other hand, is someone else’s visual interpretation of yet someone else’s experience.
Often, when you love a book, there tends to be a disappointment when you see that book put to film as it never quite meets your expectations and imagination. To this, I ask “Does the film still have the essence of what you loved about the book?”
For Eat Pray Love I say “Yes!” Now, I know there were characters and events cut or condensed for artistic license which may annoy some people. Yet for me, the joy and wonder still remained, particularly in the scene in India with the elephant. I giggled a lot and wept a few tears along the way. I feel Julia Roberts was great casting, the cinematography was wonderful and, overall, the love of living was expressed well. And, from a yogic perspective, I was impressed with Julia’s Padmasana (lotus pose)!
So, for anyone who has read the book and is wondering if they should see the film, then wonder no more. I think you will enjoy it.
Blessings,
Rain
om shanti
