Movie Review – Pi

Pi (1998) – A surrealistic look at a mathematical genius in pursuit of the irrational number known as “pi” (π).  Max (Sean Gullette) believes that he can unlock the very nature of the universe if he can just figure out the work abandoned by his mentor Sol (Mark Margolis).  Sol gave up the quest because he believed it was killing him and that it will do the same to Max.  Meanwhile Max meets Lenny (Ben Shenkman) a Hasidic Jew who uses math to try and understand the Torah. The research brings Max to a mysterious 216 digit number that may hold the key to reality, or open the way for the Jewish messiah or simply drive him insane.

I’ll admit the description above may not make you want to run right out and get a copy of “Pi”.  At the same time this movie was such a balm for me after “The Purge” (review).  Everything that movie isn’t, intellectually challenging, visually interesting, and well acted, this one is.

It is not your everyday movie fare.  The movie leans heavily on a surrealist vision of the story.  In case you’re not 100% clear on surrealism (Art Appreciation was a long time ago for some of us), it is part of the avante garde movement in the arts that focused on the creative potential of the subconscious through a sometime irrational/illogical combination of images.  In other words, this is NOT a check your brains at the door movie.

Shot on a shoestring ($60,000) and entirely in black and white, it feels a little like classic German surrealist movies.  The mood is paranoid and claustrophobic.  At the same time it is just engrossing.  Darron Aronofsky made his directorial and screenwriting debut with this film and earned himself an award at the Sundance Film Festival as well.

This is not a light bit of fluff for an afternoon’s viewing.  It is an intense and involving film with a story that can grab your imagination by the throat.

Rating – **** Recommended