Writers: Darren Aronofsky, Sean Gullete, Eric Watson
Released: July 10, 1998
Genre: Sci-Fi, Thriller
Budget: $60,000
Gross: $3,216,970
Production Companies: Harvest Filmworks, Truth and Soul Pictures, Plantain Films, Protozoa Pictures
Runtime: 84 minutes
Rating: R
Sound mix: Dolby
Aspect Ratio: 1.66: 1
Synopsis:
Max Cohen(Sean Gullete) is a genius. He has a great understanding of numbers and believes three things:
1. Mathematics is the language of the universe.
2. Nature can be expressed in numbers.
3. There are patterns in nature everywhere.
In the film Pi, Max Cohen--the protagonist, is an introvert. He avoids human interaction at all costs with the exception of his friend and old teacher Sol Robeson(Mark Margolis).
In the beginning of the film it is clear he is genius because a little girl with a calculator asks him to solve an equation to which he knows the answer off the top of his head.
Max then uses his computer, Euclid, to make stock predictions. The computer crashes and prints out a 216 digit number. He tosses the number out thinking it wasn't of importance. However, The next day he comes to find that the predictions he calculated on his computer where in fact correct. After finding this out he searches for the number in the trash but cannot find it. He even confronts Sol about the number but Sol urges him he must stop, "take a bath", and relax. Sol tells him that he had come across the number years ago and it meant nothing.
Then at a coffee shop Max meets Lenny Meyer(Ben Shenkman). Lenny tells Max of the relationship between the hebrew alphabet and numbers. He tells him how it is believed that these numbers are believed to be a code sent from God. Max is fascinated and says that it reminds him of other mathematical theories.
Max also is offered a computer chip called "Ming Mecca" in return for the results to which he finds. He uses the computer chip and writes down the number his computer displays. It is then when he realizes that he knows the number and the pattern of the 216 digit number.
He wakes up from passing out after his epiphany and finds a vein bulging out of his head over his temple. After a visit with Sol he again urges Max to quit his work. This makes Max angry and him and Sol do not speak again.
Max, on his way back home, is then chased and held at gunpoint by the people who gave him the computer chip. He is, however, saved by Lenny who takes him to people he works with. These people then reveal Lenny's secret agenda. Lenny and these people what to know the number because they believe it is the name of God.
Max escapes and goes to find Sol who unfortunately has passed away from a second stroke. He returns to his apartment frustrated and angry and destroys Euclid, his computer.
After concluding that the headaches he has been experiencing are due to the number, Max drills into his skull exactly where the vein protruded.
Then at the end of the film Max is at peace and when asked the number of Pi by a little girl with a calculator, he smirks and tells her he does not know the number.
Commentary:
What I found interesting about this film was the fact that it had no color. Especially in this day and age where color is enhanced in films to make them more attractive to the audiences eye. Although I do believe there was some solid reasoning behind Darren Aronofsky's decision to make the film completely black and white. The use of black and white not only added to the atmosphere but it also added to the films overall meaning.
The black and white filter gives the film a confused and dark atmosphere which gives insight on how the protagonist feels. When Max is in his room where he works on his computer, Euclid, the room feels congested. It's hard to even make out a lot of objects in the film because of the contrast and the black and white colors. It gives you a sense of how Max feels inside his own mind. Everything is blurred and difficult to make out. This effect the film carries resembles symptoms of a headache and Max has been tormented by headache's frequently since the young age of six.
The black and white filter used in Pi also works as a metaphor for how many people view mathematics. A lot of people claim mathematics to be very "black and white" meaning there's no grey areas or no in betweens. They see math as being singular to a solution. However, in the film when Lenny and his colleagues are asking Max to reveal the number he claims it's not just the number that's important but it's the pattern and the reading in between the lines. He says it is how you interpret the number that's important. The film makes the statement that everything is up for interpretation. There is no right or wrong answer.
Max Cohen(Sean Gullete) is a genius. He has a great understanding of numbers and believes three things:
1. Mathematics is the language of the universe.
2. Nature can be expressed in numbers.
3. There are patterns in nature everywhere.
In the film Pi, Max Cohen--the protagonist, is an introvert. He avoids human interaction at all costs with the exception of his friend and old teacher Sol Robeson(Mark Margolis).
In the beginning of the film it is clear he is genius because a little girl with a calculator asks him to solve an equation to which he knows the answer off the top of his head.
Max then uses his computer, Euclid, to make stock predictions. The computer crashes and prints out a 216 digit number. He tosses the number out thinking it wasn't of importance. However, The next day he comes to find that the predictions he calculated on his computer where in fact correct. After finding this out he searches for the number in the trash but cannot find it. He even confronts Sol about the number but Sol urges him he must stop, "take a bath", and relax. Sol tells him that he had come across the number years ago and it meant nothing.
Then at a coffee shop Max meets Lenny Meyer(Ben Shenkman). Lenny tells Max of the relationship between the hebrew alphabet and numbers. He tells him how it is believed that these numbers are believed to be a code sent from God. Max is fascinated and says that it reminds him of other mathematical theories.
Max also is offered a computer chip called "Ming Mecca" in return for the results to which he finds. He uses the computer chip and writes down the number his computer displays. It is then when he realizes that he knows the number and the pattern of the 216 digit number.
He wakes up from passing out after his epiphany and finds a vein bulging out of his head over his temple. After a visit with Sol he again urges Max to quit his work. This makes Max angry and him and Sol do not speak again.
Max, on his way back home, is then chased and held at gunpoint by the people who gave him the computer chip. He is, however, saved by Lenny who takes him to people he works with. These people then reveal Lenny's secret agenda. Lenny and these people what to know the number because they believe it is the name of God.
Max escapes and goes to find Sol who unfortunately has passed away from a second stroke. He returns to his apartment frustrated and angry and destroys Euclid, his computer.
After concluding that the headaches he has been experiencing are due to the number, Max drills into his skull exactly where the vein protruded.
Then at the end of the film Max is at peace and when asked the number of Pi by a little girl with a calculator, he smirks and tells her he does not know the number.
Commentary:
What I found interesting about this film was the fact that it had no color. Especially in this day and age where color is enhanced in films to make them more attractive to the audiences eye. Although I do believe there was some solid reasoning behind Darren Aronofsky's decision to make the film completely black and white. The use of black and white not only added to the atmosphere but it also added to the films overall meaning.
The black and white filter gives the film a confused and dark atmosphere which gives insight on how the protagonist feels. When Max is in his room where he works on his computer, Euclid, the room feels congested. It's hard to even make out a lot of objects in the film because of the contrast and the black and white colors. It gives you a sense of how Max feels inside his own mind. Everything is blurred and difficult to make out. This effect the film carries resembles symptoms of a headache and Max has been tormented by headache's frequently since the young age of six.
The black and white filter used in Pi also works as a metaphor for how many people view mathematics. A lot of people claim mathematics to be very "black and white" meaning there's no grey areas or no in betweens. They see math as being singular to a solution. However, in the film when Lenny and his colleagues are asking Max to reveal the number he claims it's not just the number that's important but it's the pattern and the reading in between the lines. He says it is how you interpret the number that's important. The film makes the statement that everything is up for interpretation. There is no right or wrong answer.
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