Review of Pi (1998) by Robin W — 01 Dec 2013

Extreme complexity and simplicity both put to use in the same film, Darren Aronofsky's "Pi" is eerie, forceful and incredibly grasping. The film depicts mathematician Maximillian Cohen's descent into madness during his project to find a pattern in the stock market and as his work progresses so does his paranoia, anxiety and hallucinations. Max soon starts to see parallels between his own work, his mentor Sol's work with the irrational constant pi and religious number theorist Lenny Meyer's work which is an attempt to find a 216-digit code in the Torah. Because of Max's condition I was always in a state where I didn't know what was real and what was only part of Max's delusions, making this surreal psychological thriller all the more suspenseful and brilliant.

Lead actor and co-writer of the film, Sean Gullette, is extraordinary as Max Cohen, skillfully playing the odd and eccentric character more vividly than most other actors would be capable of doing. Otherwise the film uses a small, but solid supporting cast with memorable performances from Mark Margolis as Sol and Ben Shenkman as Lenny Meyer. The plot is delightfully complex and very thin on dialog at times, but instead Max's recorded research logs and inner monologue is utilized as part of the narrative. The visual elements on the other hand has been kept simplistic using high-contrast black and white, this is one of those stylistic independent films everyone should give a chance.