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Pi

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Pi (1997)

83%
67%
81%
N/A
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N/A
83 %
Reviews Counted: 42 Fresh: 35  Rotten:7 Average Rating: 7.2/10
 
Consensus: Dramatically gripping and frighteningly smart, this Lynchian thriller does wonders with its unlikely subject and shoestring budget.
 

How does the Tomatometer work?

The Tomatometer measures the percentage of positive reviews from Approved Tomatometer Critics for a certain movie.[-]

Runtime: 85 mins

Synopsis: Low-budget film that won Darren Aronofsky "Best Director" at 1998's Sundance Film Festival. Gritty, inventive black-and-white photography drives this story of genius mathematician Max Cohen who is exploring the possible existence of discernible patterns in the stock market. With the... Low-budget film that won Darren Aronofsky "Best Director" at 1998's Sundance Film Festival. Gritty, inventive black-and-white photography drives this story of genius mathematician Max Cohen who is exploring the possible existence of discernible patterns in the stock market. With the aid of Euclid, his home grown supercomputer, Max stumbles upon a bug that crashes his system and spits out a seemingly meaningless number. A knowledgeable friend gives him insight using the ancient game of Go and warns of the spiritual ramifications of powerful numbers. A Hasidic cabalistic sect and representatives from an extremely powerful Wall Street firm then attempt to extract the number from him, by whatever means necessary, for their own ill-gotten gains. [More]

Genre: Science-Fiction/Fantasy

Starring: Sean Gullette, Ben Shenkman, Mark Margolis, Pamela Hart, Lauren Fox

Director: Darren Aronofsky
Screenwriter: Darren Aronofsky
Producer: Eric Watson, Scott Vogel
Composer: Clint Mansell

DVD Info

Release:

Jan 12, 1999

[DVD Details]

DVD Features:

  • Region 1
  • Letterboxed - 1.66

Audio:

  • Dolby Digital 2.0 - English

Additional Release Material:

  • Audio Commentary - 1. Darren Aronofsky - Director
  • Bonus Footage - 1. Behind-the-Scenes
  • 2. Lost Scenes
  • Music Video
  • Trailer - 1. Original Theatrical

Interactive Features:

  • Interactive Menus
  • Scene Access

Text/Photo Galleries:

  • Production Notes
  • Biographies - 1. Cast & Crew

Buy It On DVD

Reviews

 
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Click to read the article

Full Review | comment Comment
02/29/08
Time Out
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N/A

It's remarkable to what extent Aronofsky has rendered the cerebral kinetically intense. The film's imaginative, diverse images create a mind's-eye urban claustrophobia.

Full Review | comment Comment
06/06/07
Dennis Harvey
Variety
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
Ratings Image
3/4

Clever and creepy as hell.

Full Review | comment Comment
06/06/07
Maitland McDonagh
TV Guide's Movie Guide
Ratings Image
1.5/4

...a frustrating and maddeningly confounding piece of work...

Full Review | comment 3 Comments
11/23/06
David Nusair
Reel Film Reviews
Ratings Image
3/5

Director Darren Aronofsky creates an eerie Eraserhead-like world that keeps the film compelling.

Full Review | comment Comment
12/06/05
Tom Meek
Film Threat
Ratings Image
B

An ambitious, stylish and intriguing first effort by Aronofsky and director of photography Matthew Libatique. If you're of a mind for an offbeat but fascinating film, give it a shot.

Full Review | comment Comment
04/09/05
Robin Clifford
Reeling Reviews
Ratings Image
61/100

Pi is an interesting film. Not a particularly good one, but interesting nonetheless.

Full Review | comment 3 Comments
05/09/04
Guy MacPherson
Apollo Guide
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4/5

Embora Aronofsky cometa excessos visuais em alguns momentos (tendência comprovada em seu trabalho seguinte, Réquiem para um Sonho), sua eficiente direção, a ótima edição e o inteligente roteiro transformam Pi em um filme singular.

comment Comment
08/07/03
Pablo Villaca
Cinema em Cena
Ratings Image
3/4

Shot in blotchy, grimy black-and-white and edited in a style almost reminiscent of the French New Wave, 'Pi' is as jarring to the eye as it is enticing to the mind.

Full Review | comment Comment
07/31/03
James Sanford
Kalamazoo Gazette
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3.5/4

Destined to pick up a cult following.

Full Review | comment Comment
01/17/03
Jeffrey M. Anderson
Combustible Celluloid
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5/5

Pi is like a Cronenberg film of the mind, where the unsettling images and lusts are driven by a desire for knowledge, not flesh.

Full Review | comment Comment
11/07/02
James Rocchi
Netflix
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3.5/4

Film fans who long for intellectual muscle have reason to hail Mr. Aronofsky for plunging into the mysteries of knowledge, power and the nature of God.

Full Review | comment 1 Comment
10/15/02
Margaret A. McGurk
Cincinnati Enquirer
Ratings Image
3/5

No review available.

comment Comment
09/03/02
Jeffrey Westhoff
Northwest Herald (Crystal Lake, IL)
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3/4

Audacious and bursting with ideas.

Full Review | comment Comment
07/12/02
Liam Lacey
Globe and Mail
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
Ratings Image
N/A

Delivers some thought-provoking questions about our digital age, numerology, and the hubris involved in all projects designed to decode the mystery of the universe.

Full Review | comment Comment
03/02/02
Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat
Spirituality and Practice
Ratings Image
N/A

The movie's low-budget look neatly matches the claustrophobia of Max's life, but the filmmakers have also devised some special shooting methods for certain scenes. These sequences -- breathless and jangly chases, for the most part -- look terrific.

Full Review | comment Comment
12/19/01
Laura Miller
Salon.com
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
Ratings Image
7/10

...like the value for pi, which has been calculated to one billion decimal places and counting, it does not fail to generate curiosity and speculation.

Full Review | comment Comment
05/07/01
John J. Puccio
DVDTown.com
Ratings Image
5/5

Pi is a lesson to aspiring film makers everywhere: perfect your skills, be original, be bold. It's a pity young British directors aren't making films as unique and imaginative as this. Startlingly good cinema.

Full Review | comment Comment
04/17/01
Martyn Glanville
BBC
Ratings Image
2/5

Features too many half-formed ideas to live up to its potential.

Full Review | comment 1 Comment
02/27/01
Mike Bracken
Mike Bracken's Horror Films
Ratings Image
8/10

I found Cohen's quest to be interesting, but it sure made me uncomfortable to watch him writing around and screaming in pain every few minutes. Then again, then the search for truth is often painful, and so is math, for some of us.

Full Review | comment Comment
01/01/01
Robert Roten
Laramie Movie Scope
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