Search - Pi on DVD

Kate S. from ROSEVILLE, CA
Reviewed on 4/2/2012...

Very unusual movie. Not my usual choice, but I did enjoy it. It is in black and white.

4 of 6 member(s) found this review helpful.

Joanna E. (Violeta) from SAN FRANCISCO, CA
Reviewed on 6/30/2010...

Pi is a marginally sci-fi, cerebral film in black and white with the film score by Clint Mansell. Very compelling, with interesting visuals and patterns. The music is great! It's about a math genius searching for patterns in the world through numbers. The ending was a little unexpected. I recommend highly for those that can focus, and enjoy thoughtful silences. Though there is some action, it is not a big explosion kind of film.

6 of 6 member(s) found this review helpful.

Brad S. (Snibot) from DALLAS, TX
Reviewed on 1/27/2010...

Pi is the kind of movie that you will either really like or really hate.

This is one of the few truly original movies that has come along in some time, I was very impressed at how a movie about mathematics (which I admittedly really enjoy) can be so tense and gripping. The writing was spot on, a little profane but fit within context, genius is usually rather extreme and eccentric.

Sean Gullette is truly believable in this role, amazing performance. Samia Shoaib gives us a welcome break from the tense nature of the movie with a playful part that she is perfect for. Mark Margolis stands out in his role as an adviser, and as always is a pleasure to see on screen.

The filming techniques are way ahead of their time, and provide a punch to some very tense moments. The score is a little annoying at times, but that is the point. Choosing to shoot the film in black and white is pure genius, it adds to the depth and feel of the movie.

This is a fantastic watch.

6 of 6 member(s) found this review helpful.

Lesley P. from RENO, NV
Reviewed on 3/15/2009...

Pi is a fantastic film about a man searching for the ultimate secret of the language of numbers by doing numerology and various other mathmatical equations with numbers that seem to magically come to him and as far as he knows, no one but him. Pretty soon, he begins to come to the understanding that while this knowledge is amazing, it's also very destructive for him to have such a power. When word of mouth spreads of his Numerology work, the main character (very well played by the way, nicely rounded and believable, very realistic man) soon begins to realize that this new knowledge of numbers may be some sort of key, but to open this door could cause his demise... A must see for any fans of films about quantum Physics, Supernatural, Thrillers, and a film that's not afraid to make you think. Fantastic, I give it 5 out of 5 stars!

7 of 7 member(s) found this review helpful.

May we have your gematria, please?

Rev. E. A. Hernandez | 04/11/2010

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Lord, over 400 reviews! It is my great displeasure to have missed the chance at reviewing this when it was new. So I can add a few points for the newcomer to the film, and perhaps answer queries about the movie itself.

What begins with the mathematician fishing for the solution to the stock exchange ends in his discovery of God. That's right: he discovers God. When his PC and then even his electrical system begin creating life, which somehow attracts carpenter ants, we know he's got more than just a spooky number in there.

It is very, very clever of the makers never to show the audience this number. A good thing.

Paranoid, suffering blinding migraines and other sensory disturbances, the mathematician finds a certain release--and this is how the film introduces some to the results of studying the Kabalah. This man is clearly not so religious, he's not studying the Kabalah. He's gone beyond that.

In the stunning, noir thriller, the mathematician is pursued by a silly girl who really likes him, by the government who really wants his work (the men in black pursue him, but it is a black lady!), and by a knowledge-hungry Hasidic Jewish community who is trying to lure him back into the fold. They are the most interesting, for they have revealed to the mathematician that he has found God--who is HE to deserve that knowledge all for himself? Who is he to hoard it all forever?

Well, he is the discoverer...or is he the Chosen One??

I think the actor Gulette is very sexy in this film. A few shots of him are quite sexual and provocative, and I wonder to this day why that was done. A very revealing shot of him sitting in a chair finds the camera nestled neatly in his crotch. Personally, I loved it. I still don't get it.

His final solution is to drill a hole in his skull--or cause a superficial wound, I'm not clear what he did. This relieves his migraines and possibly erases his incessant genius with numbers. The allegory, of turning away and paying a small price in exchange for what would have been a very high price, is a life lesson.

This film is unforgettable; over the years I've had pals ask me, "What the heck is that movie called, the one with the crazy scientist whose computer comes to life?"--and I always know which film they mean. There are some younger people who think the film dates back to the 1970s. There is a 1970s quality to it, and that is a part I love. I love this film with a finality that is rarely given, and so will you...whether you 'get it' or not."