A Happy Pi Day to everybody. May you eat some pie, do some equations involving circles (perhaps on the pie itself) and watch the movie Pi. In case you don’t get the reference the mathematical symbol Pi that is approximately equal to 3.14 (hence 3/14 being Pi Day). Every year for probably the last 5 years I’ve tried watching the movie Pi on this pseudo holiday. The problem arises when 3/14 lands on a weekday and I can’t find the time to watch it (I have the same problem trying to watch V for Vendetta on the 5th of November). The past few years I’ve had trouble since I only owned the movie on VHS and my VCR broke. Luckily for me, this year Pi is available on Netflix Instant Watch.
“A paranoid mathematician searches for a key number that will unlock the universal patterns found in nature.” (Thank you IMDB.com) This movie is written and directed by Darren Aronofsky (Black Swan, Requiem for a Dream). Pi was his first feature length movie.
The film itself is an independent movie and definitely has the feel of one, so if that sort of thing bores you I would suggest you avoid the movie. The movie uses black and white film as it’s medium effectively. We are given a gritty, dark atmosphere that makes you feel slightly uncomfortable for most of the film. The acting is not top grade, but since it is an independent film it’s actually not too bad. If you could make it through Clerks fine then you’ll have no problem watching this movie. If you have any fondness (or even slight interest) for mathematical theory this film is right up your alley since I’ve never watched a movie that tackled the subject as coherently as this film.
Here’s the trailer:
Now I’m off to eat some Pie.
Windy City Nerd 