Life-Changing Journeys In Film and a Life of Pi Blu-ray Giveaway! - CLOSED!

LIFE-CHANGING JOURNEYS IN FILM

 Available on Blu-ray and DVD March 12

A “magnificent and moving” (Peter Travers, Rolling Stone) motion picture event that has been hailed as “a masterpiece” (Betsy Sharkey, Los Angeles Times), taking in over $500 million in worldwide box office.  LIFE OF PI follows Pi Patel, a young man on a fateful voyage who, after a spectacular disaster, is marooned on a lifeboat with the only other survivor, a fearsome 450 lb Bengal Tiger named Richard Parker. Hurtled into an epic journey of adventure and discovery Pi and his majestic companion make an amazing and unexpected connection.

Pi experiences an incredible adventure out on the open waters that forever affects his life. Here we’ll count down the Top 10 journeys in film that changed the characters’ lives, including Seven Years in Tibet, The Lord of the Rings and Into the Wild.

BATMAN BEGINS

Having grown up in Wayne Manor, where every need was catered for, Bruce Wayne’s life changed irrevocably when his parents were murdered. Unable to live with the pain Bruce ran away from Gotham and began a journey that would take him across continents and eventually to the training ground of ‘The League of Shadows’. This journey certainly changed Bruce’s life forever, forcing him to face his deepest fears. Initially keen to join the league, Bruce soon became wary of their motives and ended up returning to Gotham to create his alter ego, Batman.

SEVEN YEARS IN TIBET

Austrian Heinrich Harrer (Brad Pitt) was a skiing champion and passionate climber who decided to climb Nanga Parbat in British India. When WWII broke out, Harrer and his team were arrested and lodged in Dehra Dun's P.O.W. Camp. He successfully escaped along with Peter Aufschnaiter (David Thewlis), and they ended up in the holy city of Lhasa where Harrer befriended the Dalai Lama. He settled into this strange new way of life and he and the Dalai Lama became firm friends, but nothing prepared him for the devastation which descended when Communist China decided to attack. This true story depicts a life turned around and takes the audience on a journey they will never forget.

WALL-E

This animated film is probably not one that you expected to see in this list. However, when audiences met WALL-E in 2008 they were taken on an emotional journey which they didn’t expect. Even though he was only a small waste collecting robot, WALL-E’s journey to save his beloved EVE not only changed his life but ultimately decided the fate of mankind.

RAIN MAN

Charles Sanford Babbit is a self-centered Los Angeles-based automobile dealer at war with his own life. When he learns that his estranged father died and left his $3 million fortune to Raymond, his unknown autistic brother, he goes in search of him. When he finds Raymond, he kidnaps him and takes him on an eventful trip to the West Coast as a threat to get the $3 million inheritance. Their trip almost drives Charlie insane but by the time they arrive in L.A. their bond is unbreakable. This crazy journey that changed Charlie’s life forever earned Rainman 4 Oscars in 1988 and is viewed as one of Tom Cruise’s best performances.

THE BEACH

Danny Boyle’s cult-classic tells the story of twenty-something Richard as he travels to Thailand where he finds himself in possession of a strange map. It’s rumoured that the map leads to a solitary beach paradise. Excited and intrigued, he sets out to find it. When Richard finds this idyllic paradise he thinks his journey is at an end, but little does he know that it has only just begun. This journey of self-discovery teaches Richard lessons that he will never forget and changes his life forever.

LITTLE MISS SUNSHINE

Another surprise entry in the top-ten is Little Miss Sunshine. This quirky comedy starring Steve Carrell and Toni Collete follows a family determined to get their young daughter Olive (Abigail Breslin) into the finals of a beauty pageant. As they travel across the country in their VW bus experience adventures and challenges which bring this warring family together. Dealing with everything from heart-break to drug-addicted pensioners this unique story  won two Oscars in 2007m including Best Original Screenplay, and remains a hit among film-fans worldwide. 

THE MOTORCYCLE DIARIES

This dramatization of the motorcycle road trip Che Guevara went on in his youth was directed by Walter Salles and depicts the journey that transformed the life of this iconic figure. This epic journey filled with ups and downs in equal measure has become a must-see for film-lovers across the globe and shows how one journey can not only change one man’s life, but create a political icon whose life changed a nation.

INTO THE WILD

Into the Wild was directed by Sean Penn and was released to critical acclaim in 2007. Christopher McCandless (Emile Hirsch) is a grade-A student and athlete at Emory University with his entire life ahead of him. When he decides to abandon his possessions and gives his entire $24,000 savings account to charity so that he can hitchhike to Alaska, it comes as a shock to everyone. Along the way, Christopher encounters a series of characters that shape his life and change the way he thinks. Into the Wild is a powerful film which takes viewers on an emotional and touching journey as they share Christopher’s life-changing experience.

LORD OF THE RINGS

Peter Jackson’s Lord of the Rings trilogy made movie history when they were released between 2001-2003. The films were critically acclaimed, winning 17 Oscars in total, as well as wide praise for the cast and innovative special effects. Set in Middle-earth, the three films follow the young Hobbit Frodo Baggins (Elijah Wood) as he and a mismatched group embark on a quest to destroy the One Ring, and thus ensure the destruction of the dark Lord Sauron. This epic journey changed the lives of every character involved and remains the highest grossing movie trilogy of all time.

CAST AWAY

Tom Hanks played Chuck Noland in this tale of a modern-day Robinson Crusoe. When Noland, a FedEx executive, crash lands on a deserted island he must transform himself physically and emotionally to survive. Directed by Robert Zemeckis, Cast Away depicts the immense challenge ahead of Chuck as he engages in a battle of wits with himself and is tested mentally, physically and emotionally in order to survive. 

BUY IT:

You can purchase the Blu-ray of Life of Pi on Amazon for only $22.99!

WIN IT:

Thanks to Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment, one lucky Adventures of a Thrifty Mommy reader will win a Blu-ray copy of Life of Pi!  Click "Read more" and follow the Rafflecopter directions to enter.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received one or more of the products or services mentioned above for free in the hope that I would mention it on my blog. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising. 

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