“…I’ve come to believe that there exists in the universe something I call “The Physics of The Quest” – a force of nature governed by laws as real as the laws gravity or momentum. And the rule of Quest Physics maybe goes like this: “If you are brave enough to leave behind everything familiar and comforting (which can be anything from your house to your bitter old resentments) and set out on a truth-seeking journey (either externally or internally), and if you are truly willing to regard everything that happens to you on that journey as a clue, and if you accept everyone you meet along the way as a teacher, and if you are prepared – most of all – to face (and forgive) some very difficult realities about yourself….then truth will not be withheld from you.” Or so I’ve come to believe.”
- Elizabeth Gilbert, Eat Pray Love.
I bought the book last April, but decided not to continue reading it after chapter 4 or 5. 'just got married that time and I found the character of Liz very selfish and ungrateful (having a good husband, career home,friends) but still choose to end her marriage. I really thought I wouldn't like the book at all. The author sounded whiny and self-indulgent to me so I put off reading it for a while.
I thought I better not continue reading the book, just in time when I've learned that they made a movie out of it. I can't wait to see the movie. It's bound to be cheesy but I am going to embrace the cheese..and I did yesterday! My sister in law Alice, wanted to see it badly and there's no way of saying "NO" to her.
Well I understand that every once in a while, most people think about pushing the eject button on their life and doing something completely different.. personally, I wouldn't go that far to find inner peace :) Its a great movie though, made me crave for pasta and pizza after the movie :p
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I've never understood why so many people were able to connect with Gilbert's book. True, we all face pain and heartbreak much like she does, but that's precisely where the similarities come to a screeching halt. Whereas Gilbert convinced her publisher to finance a year-long journey through Italy, India, and Bali, the rest of us have to make do with whatever spiritual growth and self-discovery comes from slogging to our jobs each day and watching TV on the couch each night.
Do I sound jealous? Good! Because that's exactly my point: Gilbert's journey is so very particular and so fantastical that while I may have found it an interesting read, I couldn't relate to her life because I was too busy wanting it for my own.
My other problem with the book -- and this is hard to admit -- was Gilbert herself. Simply put, in this book, she's difficult to like. It's hard to get past the fact that's she so self-involved and at times borderline histrionic. I found making it through a 300-plus-page book in which the author takes herself sooooo seriously -- seriously exhausting.
The movie, however, is a different story because it succeeds where the book fails. Instead of telling the story about one woman's very specific path to spiritual enlightenment and self-discovery, it imparts a more universal tale about the search for love. More specifically, Eat Pray Love (the movie) is a snapshot of that precious yet uncomfortable space in time that falls in between losing love and finding it again -- and who can't relate to that?
Moreover, Julia Roberts makes Liz Gilbert likable by bringing lightness and a sense of humor to the role. We actually want to hear what this character has to say instead of frustraingly flipping to the end just so we can get some peace and quiet.
Throw in some hot Hollywood men (Javier Bardem, James Franco, Billy Crudup), breathtaking shots of Italy, India, and Bali, some serious food porn, and a slew of "no carb left beind" and "I'm having a relationship with my pizza" jokes, and you've got yourself the quintessential summer chick flick. It's romantic, touching, and fun with just enough substance to not make you hate yourself the morning after.
Are you going to see Eat Pray Love?
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