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Julia Roberts plays Liz, the central role in Eat Pray Love, the film adaptation of Elizabeth Gilbert’s novel of the same name, and she is still as charming as ever to watch. Liz, having ended an unhappy marriage, and an even unhappier relationship, whisks herself off on a tour of Italy, India and Bali in an attempt to recover her soul. Yes, this is a slightly self-indulgent premise, but Roberts’ charm makes it much more acceptable than it could be. And after all, it is ‘about the author’ so one might well expect a little ‘Me Me Me’, as one critic puts it.
As a film about the wonders of travel, it does very well at providing some truly stunning footage. From the hustle, bustle and colourful characters of Rome, to an Ashram in India this is film is a sensory delight. The food looks beautiful, the weather is fabulous – it’s all very glossy magazine. In reality, it’s more than likely (from personal experience) that anyone travelling for a year would pick up at least one really disgusting gastric flu, and probably an exotic venereal disease, but we’ll have none of that here, thank you very much. This is the trip where the rest of this woman’s life will be shaped after all, and besides, it’s Julia Roberts: she has standards. This is not a nitty-gritty travelogue, but as a result of that, it is very, very pretty to look at, and rather relaxing. In theory, it is also potentially empowering.
However, there is one big problem with seeing this as a ‘self-help’ documentary. Liz is supposed to be discovering her soul, and that it is possible to be happy without a man. But what do we find? Well, shockingly enough, all her efforts and self-improvements seem only to go to making her an even more attractive and acceptable mate. Personally, I think that it is a shame that this woman travels the world only to find that she just wanted to make herself a better person for the eventual benefit of someone else.
It seems likely though, that the importance of the relationship has been over emphasised by the film makers. A book is probably a better medium for the kind of self-contemplation which is being sold here, but if you want to chill out with the pretty pictures, Julia Roberts’s winning smile, and an elephant, then Eat Pray Love is the film for you.
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