Eat Pray Love

Movie name: Eat Pray Love
Year of release: 2010
Director: Ryan Murphy
Stars: Julia Roberts, Javier Bardem, Richard Jenkins, Viola Davis, Billy Crudup, Mike O'Malley, Tuva Novotny, Luca Argentero, Andrea Di Stefano, David Lyons, Sophie Thompson, James Franco
Genre: Drama, Romance
Score out of ten (whole numbers only): 5

Synopsis:Director Ryan Murphy has had a filled career so far, with two very successful tv shows that he has created, namely "Nip/Tuck" and more recently "Glee". "Eat Pray Love" is his second feature film, following his debut, "Running with Scissors" that was an adaptation of Augusten Burroughs memoir. "Eat Pray Love" is another adaptation, of a very successful book by Elizabeth Gilbert. The film follows Liz Gilbert, an author unhappily married who decides to change her life, get a divorce and find some meaning, since most of her life has started to feel empty and hollow for her. In order to do so, Liz decides to take a year to find herself - she starts by going to Italy where she reconnects with the joy of food and friendship, following that she goes to India for a spiritual reawakening and finally goes to Bali to find the balance she so longs for. In this path she connects with different people that help her build bridges with the life she had and the one she wants. The film illustrates these travels quite literally, sadly never allowing for the character to fully experience the epiphanies that she supposedly has. Ryan Murphy again fails to develop what could have been a more rewarding film - much like what happened with "Running with Scissors", the film feels restrained and very trivial. What saves the film are the fantastic actors, namely Javier Bardem with his sad eyes, the fantastic Richard Jenkins who injects the film with a heart, Viola Davis as the great best friend and of course, Julia Roberts, who carries this film from beginning to end and who makes this character likable and tolerable (a character who could have easily be called self centered and privileged). A highlight should also be given to the stunning cinematography from Robert Richardson. A film that is forgettable but that it could have been so much more.