Loving while eating and praying is a winning combo

   From Elizabeth Gilbert's real-life experience which became a NY Times bestseller and now a summer blockbuster, Eat Pray Love follows one woman's journey of understanding herself and learning how to live life to the fullest.

   Julia Roberts flawlessly portrays Liz Gilbert through her mid-life crisis and subsequent journey learning to eat in Italy, pray in India, and eventually love in Bali.

   Though breaking the rule of thumb and not reading the book first, Eat Pray Love filled the not so big shoes of summer romances. Julia Roberts (Erin Brockovich) in her usual style became integrated with the heroine's character providing a convincing, and at moments, mesmerizing performance.

   Viola Davis (Doubt) gives a small but memorable show as Liz's best friend, Delia. Billy Crudup (Public Enemies) decently played the desperate ex-husband, James Franco (Pineapple Express) put in a surprisingly emotional show as the ex-boyfriend, and Javier Bardem (No Country For Old Men) graced the audience with his suave and tear jerking performance as the Liz's love interest in Bali.

   Director Ryan Murphy (Glee) does a masterful job of integrating the breathtaking sights in Italy, India and Bali with the depressing and at times slow progression of Liz's breakthroughs. However, Murphy also used comic relief to help balance the somewhat depressing tune of the plot. In one scene, Liz laughs and runs from the young, naked Australian boy on the beach who is attempting to seduce her.

   One drawback to the film is its apparent length.  It seems that an unnecessarily long portion of the film is spent developing the back-story leaving the audience to wonder when during the 2 hour and 20 minutes the film will move to Italy.  Within the first 10 minutes, the audience understands Liz's plight; it is completely unnecessary to prolong it.

   Overall, the film provides the audience with an inspiring tale of self-realization while adding beautiful camera work and an excellent supporting cast.