Mathematics + Religion x 3.14 = Avant-Garde Classic.

Rating: 7/10 (22 June 1999)

Pi is one insane film. I thought college algebra was tough and thank God there are crazy mathematical wizards like Max (Sean Gullette) to take care of digits and theorems that mean nothing to the common man. This is not really the point of Pi, an artistic masterwork made on a $60,000 budget, meant to put the viewer through a paranoid nightmare.
I was reminded of films made in the same vein like Welles' THE TRIAL, or Soderbergh's KAFKA, both black and white films with a frenetic pace and distorted narrative. Pi is hypnotic filmmaking not meant for all tastes (by any means) and it is a wonder how writer-director Darren Aronofsky got any kind of financial backing. His relatives probably did not see the picture until it was in the can or they may have pulled out. This is not a knock. I found the film to be a true work of genius in an avant-garde manner, something you don't see much in American cinema these days.
Here is a film that exists entirely within the main character's state of mind. He is a math freak whose passion, or should I say obsession, is killing him literally. To top it off, some sinister people from a religious cult want some answers through numbers and some Wall Street people are out for blood and money. Forget plot, forget character, forget narrative. This film is a nightmare in structure and appearance. I would not have been surprised to find the action took place in some netherworld.
Why see Pi? I guess the same reason we had to learn some of this mathematical crap in high school. There are no redeeming qualities or any revelations made. Just some grainy, often stunning black and white images and situations that knocks the wind out of you. If you see it, don't look to deep for any religious or scientific symbolism, at least on first viewing. Pi will absorb you whether you hate it or not. This is a very ambitious outing from first-time filmmakers Aronofsky and Gullette and I give them much credit for creating a work of art I've never seen the likes of before.
RATING: UNCLASSIFIABLY Good