Pi
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Movie Reviews of Pi
Movie Review: demanding, but worth the effort
Summary: 5 Stars
Certainly much more original and engaging than Aranofsky's subsequent "Requiem for a Dream."
Max Cohen is probably a totally made-up character (I haven't bothered to Google him yet) but the skill and power of this film is evidenced by the fact that I would actually want to check up on him before saying whether he is or is not fictional.
Aranofsky's camera and visual style is ideal for the subject matter at hand: he takes us inside the mind and daily experience of an isolated, obsessive-compulsive, paranoid, borderline schizoid, physically and mentally unwell mathematical prodigy who is consumed by his quest to find The Ultimate (Mathematical) Formula Behind All Existence. A sort of Holy Grail if you wish, only derived by indecipherable walls of numbers and equations flashing through Max's head and his computer which he has relentlessly crunching numbers 24/7.
Unlike "Requiem For A Dream," this is pretty original stuff and Aranofsky manages to pull off a resolution which is sufficiently ambiguous to avoid being glib or trite but still fairly satisfying for the viewer.
Worth several watches, maybe with a fair amount of slow-mo to capture much of the light-speed imagery and jump cuts.
Movie Review: Vivid depiction of insanity.
Summary: 5 Stars
I got this movie a while ago and never got around to really watching it. So I turn it on to hear some very dark sounding technoish music. Then, in your face, the pi symbol. Numbers go flying by in an amazing opening scene not drawn out but will give you a good feel of whats ahead.
The movie takes you through a short period of life of a paranoid genius on the edge of complete insanity. Contantly needing pills to control himself, he ends up going on odd trips that you don't know if they are real, or in his head. He has spent years looking for patterns in the stock market, hoping to find a pattern that will help him unlock the key to the world. Others want what is in his head just as much as he does, money hungry stock brokers and a group of Jewish mathmaticians.
This entire film is in black and white, and grainy black and white. You can't always tell what is going on but it really adds to the movie as a whole. The camera works is amazingly creative. The angles and shots used are phenominal and make you feel like you are inside his mind.
Bottom line, great movie. Not reccomended for those who are easily disturbed as this movie can get disturbing as his insanity progresses.
Movie Review: like watching Eraserhead in fast forward
Summary: 5 Stars
Loved the way this movie was filmed. Very pretty to look at.Here's what I got. This wacked out guy who has really bad headaches sits in his apartment all day with this junky Cro-Magnon homemade computer and does some big math problems and gets nowhere. He likes to squash ants and whenever someone comes to his door he acts like they are going to kill him.
He goes on a subway to this bar or something and reads the stock market while drinking coffee and observing spirals and this jewish guy comes up to him and blabs to him about secret godly messages hidden in numbers then he usually freaks out and has natural acid trips and wakes up with bloody noses. These wall street goons keep calling him asking him to decode something and they offer him a chip for doing and he goes through his usual routine of freaking out and headaches and ant sqaushing. This happens for 90 minutes then he drills a hole in his head and forgets everything he knows about math. THE END.
Meaning?
I don't know but I like watching this film. I just forget all the math jumble and symbolism and just enjoy and good picture.
This movie, to me, is like looking at your favorite painting. I like to look at it alot.
Movie Review: 3
Summary: 5 Stars
An astonishing film, often unfairly compared to David Lynch's 'Eraserhead' by people who have only seen stills. Uniquely, it's an intelligent taught thriller about number theory, with a gritty visual style, accomplished with a tiny budget and lots of dedication. The stark, black-and-white footage and apocalyptic plot (with a nod to Arthur C. Clarke's 'The Nine Billion Names of God') seem to set the film in a strange otherworld in which big business and religion combine to drive a mathematician to the brink of insanity. The acting is fine - naturalistic, with no scenery-chewing (and any bad performances can be written off as the warped perceptions of the lead character), and the script, whilst being very functional, nonetheless conveys an impression of a mental world ruled by numbers. The soundtrack is fantastic, too - lots of edgy 'braindance' from Warp-esque artists, available on a great CD. On DVD you get two commentaries, a music video, some trailers, some cut bits (although they are nothing special) and a preview of the graphic novel - a 'Matrix-esque multimedia blitz. It sticks in the mind and you won't forget it - try not to watch whilst suffering from a toothache, either.Movie Review: Dark & Enigmatic
Summary: 5 Stars
Max Cohen is a mathematical genius. He can instantly calculate any sum he is asked. He is fascinated by numbers. He is on the verge of uncovering a code related to the stock market. Others are interested in his findings; a Kabbalah sect, who think he is discovering numbers releated to their holy text, and a powerful Wall Street film are on his trail. All the while, Max is being enveloped by his own paranoia and delusion with the world. Shot in black & white, this is an effective first feature from Aronofsky.The DVD is great. The menus have the pounding bass music from the film playing on them. The picture is a good transfer in 1.66:1 ratio, and the sound is excellent in Dolby surround 2.0. The extras are plentiful. There are two seperate commentaries from director and lead actor, both good. There's a documentary behind the scenes of the film. This shows the making the film on a tight budget, and Arononofsky receiving his best new director award at the Sundance Film Festival. There's some deleted scenes, a music video from one of the songs from the film, a trailer, and cast and crew bios. Overall, a dark, enigmatic little film, given an excellent DVD transfer.