Pi (DVD)

...DVD.

When Pi was released it caused something of a stir in the film world. A low budget (make that VERY low) movie from a bunch of unknown film makers that used an unknown cast and dealt with mathematics. Well I don't know about you but I'm sold already. Just tell when and where it's on and I'll make sure that I'm not within 40 billion miles of it. Come on, low budget films (outside of the 60's) are mind numbingly awful, and who in ...
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To say that Pi is a strange movie is like saying that fat people drive small cars (they do - usually much to amusement of Mrs TheNeil and my good self). Shot in grainy 16mm black and white, it instantly looks different and this is just the start.

The story that would initially appear to be so concerned with mathematics is in fact nothing of the sort. Yes it contemplates the patterns in the seemingly random universe and the ... more

Apologies in advance but this is a review of the film itself NOT the DVD.

When Pi was released it caused something of a stir in the film world. A low budget (make that VERY low) movie from a bunch of unknown film makers that used an unknown cast and dealt with mathematics. Well I don't know about you but I'm sold already. Just tell when and where it's on and I'll make sure that I'm not within 40 billion miles of it. Come on, low budget films (outside of the 60's) are mind numbingly awful, and who in their right mind wants to watch a film about maths? Whatever was passing through most people's minds I simply don't know but in the fantasy land between my two ears, I kept picturing something along the lines of Eraserhead crossed with an Open University lecture - Thank you and good night.

Locked away in his tiny apartment, 'genius' Max Cohen has built a machine that he is hoping to predict the stock market with. He has problems though and in the machine's last dying breath it produces a 216 digit number. A chance meeting in a simply coffee shop makes Max believe that this 216 digit may not be just random chance as it seems that a group of Jewish scholars are attempting to discover a 'mythical' 216 digit number that will fulfil some prophecy. When a high powered corporation takes an interest in Max's work, his own paranoia sets his mind racing. What IS so important? What has he stumbled onto? Is this 216 digit number more than a mere series of numbers? For Max, there might not be time to find the answer.

To say that Pi is a strange movie is like saying that fat people drive small cars (they do - usually much to amusement of Mrs TheNeil and my good self). Shot in grainy 16mm black and white, it instantly looks different and this is just the start.

The story that would initially appear to be so concerned with mathematics is in fact nothing of the sort. Yes it contemplates the patterns in the seemingly random universe and the mathematics that could make this all predictable (and we're not talking chaos theory here) but instead it concerns itself with far more metaphysical concepts. Obsession, paranoia, and even mental illness are all central to Pi and here it manages to achieve what it sets out to do.

The usual Hollywood elements are thrown straight out of the window and that's the best thing that could have happened to it. With a list of 'stars' and a mega bucks budget, Pi would have become facile, mindless pap, but instead it does a far better job than most films with a thousand times it's finance (it only cost $60,000 in total). As it stands, it explores the inner problems of the mind.

Max's obsession with this 'mythical' number are brilliantly realised and his constant battle with neurological illness is wonderfully realised. Despite zero budget, the effect of a debilitating 'headache' (term used reservedly) is startlingly shocking. We experience the same emotions and terrifying realities that Max as a character must face every time he has an 'attack'. The camera work and editing make these scenes work fabulously and it shows what skill and talent can do given a chance.

Pi though is a difficult film to analyse. It has no real beginning and no real end. It merely opens a window onto the world of an obsessive genius and closes it when this particular vignette has finished. There are no definite answers, no conclusions, and no hard and fast guidelines for us as an audience to exist within. We're simply granted a brief insight into the life of this closet genius and then...go away again. Even the story itself is not all that complex and you can very much ignore much of it, focusing instead on the issues that it raises.

The cast of unknowns is led by Sean Gullette as the tortured genius Max, and Gullette has total focus throughout. He brings such conviction to the role that you sit almost open jawed, entranced by his performance. He's not a name that you've probably ever even heard of but he puts in a devastating performance none the less and is utterly convincing. I'm not even going to discuss individual cast members further as they all feel secondary to Gullette and the film itself. It's strange, and that's pretty much all you need to know (that and none of the cast do a bad job in the slightest).

Directed and written by unknown Darren Aronofsky, Pi is not a film that you can relax in front of. It asks questions, it dares to shock us, and it will leave you feeling decidedly uncomfortable. This is one of the great paradoxes about the film though - we're uncomfortable but we don't want to stop watching. It's low budget but it's dripping with style and quality. Should we just put it down to talent, conviction, and a whole load of style?

It's not a film for everybody though. Anyone looking for the bright lights, and 'pretty' people of 'regular' Hollywood will be instantly turned off. There are no car chases, big explosions, or lovey dovey romances to 'improve' things. It's an enigma of a film and anyone who chooses their filmic selections by who has the biggest muscles (Arnie or Sly) had better jump into their Ford Escort and floor the accelerator.

Anyone wanting to go beyond a mere picture on a screen though and wants to challenge their perceptions about things, might want to give it a try. It's not a pretty film or a rewarding film but it is a though provoking film and in this day and age that seems to be a long lost art. I don't even know if I'd watch it again, but I'm certainly glad I watched it at least once 

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