Hello readers, I'm writing this blog as an assignment given by the Department of English, MKBU. Here, I'm trying to apply transcendentalism in the movie 'Eat, Pray, Love'.
Directed by Ryan Murphy
Screenplay by Ryan Murphy
Jennifer Salt
Based on "Eat, Pray, Love" by Elizabeth Gilbert
Produced by Dede Gardner
Starring:
- Julia Roberts as Elizabeth "Liz" Gilbert
- James Franco as David, the man Gilbert has an intense relationship with while she is finalizing her divorce
- Richard Jenkins as Richard, a Texan Liz befriends at an Indian ashram
- Viola Davis as Delia Shiraz, Gilbert's best friend
- Billy Crudup as Steven, Gilbert's ex-husband
- Javier Bardem as Felipe, a Brazilian businessman Gilbert falls in love with on her journey
'Eat,Pray,Love':
"Eat, Pray, Love" is a 2010 film directed by Ryan Murphy and starring Julia Roberts. The movie is based on the bestselling memoir of the same name by Elizabeth Gilbert. The film tells the story of Gilbert's journey of self-discovery and healing as she embarks on a year-long journey to Italy, India, and Bali, where she learns to appreciate the simple pleasures of life, and finds love and inner peace.
The movie is considered a "transcendental" film because it explores themes of spiritual growth and self-discovery. Gilbert's journey is a personal one, as she struggles with a difficult divorce and a sense of unhappiness and lack of fulfillment in her life. She decides to take a year off and travel to different parts of the world, where she learns to find joy in the present moment, appreciate the beauty of the natural world, and connect with her inner self.
The film's portrayal of different cultures and traditions is also noteworthy. Gilbert's time in India is particularly impactful, as she learns about the spiritual practices of yoga and meditation, and finds solace in the teachings of her guru. The film also explores the theme of love and relationships, as Gilbert eventually finds a new partner in Bali.
Elizabeth Gilbert's book "Eat, Pray, Love," unread by me, spent 150 weeks on the New York Times best seller list and is by some accounts a good one.
We can say that, It is also movie material, concerning as it does a tall blond who ditches a failing marriage and a disastrous love affair to spend a year living in Italy, India and Bali seeking to find the balance of body, mind and spirit.
During this journey, great-looking men are platooned at her, and a wise man, who has to be reminded who she is, remembers instantly, although what he remembers is only what she's just told him.
Here is a movie about Liz Gilbert. About her quest, her ambition, her good luck in finding only nice men, including the ones she dumps. She funds her entire trip, including scenic accommodations, ashram, medicine man, guru, spa fees and wardrobe, on her advance to write this book. Well, the publisher obviously made a wise investment. It's all about her, and a lot of readers can really identify with that. Her first marriage apparently broke down primarily because she was tired of it, although Roberts at (a sexy and attractive) 43 makes an actor's brave stab at explaining they were "young and immature." She walks out on the guy (Billy Crudup) and he still likes her and reads her on the Web.
In Italy, she eats such Pavarottian plates of pasta that I hope one of the things she prayed for in India was deliverance from the sin of gluttony. At one trattoria she apparently orders the entire menu, and I am not making this up. She meets a man played by James Franco, about whom, enough said. She shows moral fibre by leaving such a dreamboat for India, where her quest involves discipline in meditation, for which she allotted three months rather than the recommended lifetime. There she meets a tall, bearded, bespectacled older Texan (Richard Jenkins) who is without question the most interesting and attractive man in the movie, and like all of the others seems innocent of lust.
In Bali she revisits her beloved adviser Ketut Liyer (Hadi Subiyanto), who is a master of truisms known to us all. Although he connects her with a healer who can mend a nasty cut with a leaf applied for a few hours, his own skills seem limited to the divinations anyone could make after looking at her, and telling her things about herself after she has already revealed them.
Now she has found Balance, and begins to dance on the high wire of her life. She meets Felipe (Javier Bardem), another divorced exile, who is handsome, charming, tactful, forgiving and a good kisser. He explains that he lives in Bali because his business is import-export, "which you can do anywhere" although later, he explains she must move to Bali because "I live in Bali because my business is here." They've both forgotten what he said earlier. "Unless perhaps you can do import-export anywhere, but you can only import and export from Bali when you live there. That would certainly be my alibi."
So, The protagonist from Eat Pray Love, Elizabeth Gilbert, a self-explorative woman, spent her entire year traveling to find her inner self and purpose through the emotions and experiences learned along her journey. She left her hometown in the United States to be intellectually alone and to explore the meaning of herself. Along the way she tried to maintain spiritual discipline and balance between her, God, and the world. The places she visited and the people she communicated with helped her learn to find her true self. Throughout her immersing journey, the actions and thoughts Gilbert dealt with have considered her to be a transcendentalist: a confident, nonconforming, and individualistic person. Somewhere within her, she was able to rise up and find herself in the mess of her deep problems.
On the night of her last encounter with Depression and Loneliness, she had the courage to write to herself in her journal, “There’s nothing you can ever do to lose my love. I will protect you until you die, and after your death I will still protect you. I am stronger than Depression and I am braver than Loneliness and nothing will ever exhaust me.” She slowly became an individualist, nonconforming to the impressions of her and people around her. She was guiding herself - through meditation and prayer - on what she believed was true, and had said, “I can only say how I feel now - grateful to be on my own.”
As a matter of fact, shown in the Eat Pray Love film, Gilbert was portrayed as a transcendentalist. She did not conform to what others thought of her. She was self-reliant by believing in only herself and what she wanted to accomplish rather than succumbing to other people's opinions of her. Gilbert was not influenced by the other characters' doubtful thoughts on her leaving work and her relationship in search for her life purpose. She had a strong sense of confidence to share her own ideas on what she wanted to do for a whole year.
Overall, "Eat, Pray, Love" is a thought-provoking and uplifting film that encourages viewers to take a step back from their busy lives and focus on their own personal growth and happiness. Its themes of self-discovery, spiritual growth, and appreciation for different cultures and traditions make it a transcendental movie experience.
Word Count: 1230
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