Dir. Darren Aronofsky
USA, 1998
Aronofsky's premiere film starts off his auteur tradition with a strong tour de force. "Pi", like most of his films, has the central theme of obsession at the core of the piece. Following a brilliant but paranoid mathematician driven mad by the search for the number at the soul of the universe. The chaotic and erratic cinematography is complemented by a storyline that's disruptive and thought-provoking. With hints of Lynch, Dali and even "Harrison Bergeron", Aronofsky creates a voice particular to his storytelling.
Filmed in black and white with contorted spliced editing and over the shoulder/in front of the character second person filming, the movie quickly becomes personal and uncomfortable. The over voiced thoughts and auditory themes (which can be seen online under Aronofsky sounds) create an atmosphere of being in the characters head. This is doubled by the chronic migraines he experiences, the panic/paranoid attacks and the moments of madness and genius. In all, the film is a brilliant depiction of a character study and that character's obsession with the tangentially intangible.
With shades of the surrealistically familiar: Lynch's "Eraserhead" and Dali's "Un Chien Andalou" as well as the auteur driven fantasies of Aronofsky, "Pi", is a psychological surreal thriller that's worthy of any film fan.