Max is a lonely loser and maths savant. I know, unlikely combination, but let’s move on…
So Max gets the occasional headache. But don’t we all? He knows that maths isn’t the questions, but the answer to everything. And while he hasn’t yet locked in on the answer, by gosh he is close.
In fact Max is very close to formulating an equation to crack the movements of the stock market, and who knows what else thereafter. Others are impressed with his abilities, but dubious as to the value of his effort, seeing as the stock market is an unpredictable series of numbers and occasionally random fluctuations. Isn’t it?
Only one day Max’s theory starts making sense. The numbers and projections start stacking up. Is he validated? Or just lucky a couple times?
All of a sudden random people from Max’s recent past start appearing with more frequency and urgency. They ‘just want to talk’ to Max about his equations and theories.
For his part Max just wonders if he is onto something real, and why won’t these headaches abate for just a day or two…
Pi is extremely creative and fast moving, creating an ever increasing sense of urgency and a claustrophobic environment for Max that almost entirely takes place between his ears. It’s almost as if he goes from lonely nerd wallowing in his own thoughts, to someone whose thoughts are incredibly in demand. And in fact that is true.
Filmed in black and white for about seventeen bucks, Pi is an exceptional portrait of the power of paranoia and the impact upon even someone of superior intellect when even a single synapse isn’t firing smoothly.
Similar to Primer, you might not – and needn’t – get all of the technical info and goings on to be engrossed in the action. Pi isn’t a world beater or a genre classic, but it is a prime example of how clever plotting and a keen sense of maintaining tone can effect an audience, even when the subject matter might be over their heads…
Final Rating – 8 / 10. Unlike almost every math related thing I’ve ever been exposed to, Pi will get in your head and stay with you for days.
