Noah (2014 film)

Directed by Darren Aronofsky and written by Aronofsky and Ari Handel, Noah is a dramatic re-telling of Noah’s Ark in which Noah sees an apocalyptic vision as he decides to build an ark with his family before a great flood emerges. The film is a grand vision of the Noah’s Ark story where it plays into a man trying to save his family and animals from a world that is being ravaged by terror and the fault of mankind. Starring Russell Crowe, Jennifer Connelly, Emma Watson, Logan Lerman, Douglas Booth, Ray Winstone, and Anthony Hopkins. Noah is an extravagant yet intense film from Darren Aronofsky.

The story of Noah and his ark is a story that’s been told for ages as this film is a dramatic interpretation of that story where Noah (Russell Crowe) builds an ark to save his family and animals. Yet, it’s a film that explores a world where humanity has taken advantage of the world they live in as Noah and his family try to live in peace until Noah sees a vision of a world where humanity is wiped out. Once Noah builds his ark with his family and a small group of fallen angels who became stone-like creatures called the Watchers. Noah has to contend with the presence of Tubal-cain (Ray Winstone) who only sees the cruelty of the Creator as he would try to sway Noah’s young son Ham (Logan Lerman) into giving in towards temptation. What Darren Aronofsky and Ari Handel do is tell the story in a dramatic form while playing into the myth of Noah and where he’s descended from.

The film begins with a story of Adam and Eve and the three sons they created in Cain, Abel, and Seth. Tubal-cain is a descendant of Cain while Noah is a descendant of Seth as the latter would seek guidance from his grandfather Methuselah (Anthony Hopkins) who would also help the rest of his family. While the screenplay does take some liberties into the story where it would only focus on Noah, his wife Naameh (Jennifer Connelly), their three sons, and adopted daughter Ila (Emma Watson). It would play into the internal struggles that Noah deals with as he becomes confused about whether to save the rest of humanity as those he had encountered including Tubal-cain are filled with sin and temptation that had destroyed the world and ravaged the things that the Creator has made.

Aronofsky’s direction is truly vast in not just its scope but also in the way he presents the world that is coming apart by temptation and cruelty where only Noah and his family are the few who have been good towards the Earth and its surroundings. With much of the location set in Iceland with scenes of the ark construction set in upstate New York, Aronofsky goes for something that could’ve been set anywhere in the world while he does utilize visual effects for some dazzling sequences where Noah plants a seed where trees are created for the wood he needed for the ark. Much of the direction has Aronofsky go for a lot of spectacular wide shots and massive scenes involving crowds and such to play into the dark world that Noah needed to protect his family from.

The direction also includes scenes where it is set on the ark as Aronofsky wanted the ark to look as realistic as possible where it’s a place where animals and plants can be salvaged while Noah’s family can be safe and look for some message of hope after the rain dies down. Yet, there’s also a sense of tension that occurs over Noah’s sense of hopelessness and doubt as the element of suspense and drama is raised where Naameh and Ila become much more prominent in trying to get Noah to see reason. Especially when he completes his task and deals with what was gained and what got lost. Overall, Aronofsky creates a very compelling yet glorious film about the story of Noah and his ark.

Cinematographer Matthew Libatique does excellent work with the film‘s cinematography with its use of natural lights for some of the exteriors with some usage of grey in the rainy scenes along with some low-key lighting schemes and sepia tones for the scenes inside the ark. Editor Andrew Weisblum does incredible work with the editing with its use of montages, jump-cuts, and other stylistic cuts to play into the suspense and drama that occurs in the film. Production designer Mark Friedberg, with supervising art director Dan Webster and set decorators Nicholas DiBlasio and Debra Schutt, does amazing work with the set pieces from the design of the ark in its interior and exteriors to the tents that Noah and his family lived in.

Costume designer Michael Wilkinson does nice work with the costumes as it plays the ragged look of the characters as it plays into a world that is in its infancy. Visual effects supervisors Ben Snow and Joe Takai do terrific work with the visual effects for the look of the flood and the design of the creatures and Watchers though some of it does look a bit wobbly at times. Sound editor Craig Henighan does superb work with the sound from the way some of the action in the locations sound to the sounds of people screaming during the flood where Noah and his family are listening from inside. The film’s music by Clint Mansell is fantastic for its bombastic orchestral score and serene pieces to play into the drama and sense of adventure as the soundtrack includes performances by the Kronos Quartet and a closing song sung by Patti Smith.

The casting by Lindsay Graham and Mary Vernieu is great as it features voice work from Mark Margolis and Kevin Durand as a couple of Watchers, Nick Nolte as the leader of the Watchers, and Frank Langella as the voice of a Watcher who immediately recognizes Noah as a human to trust. Other notable small roles include Gavin Casalegno, Nolan Goss, and Skylar Burke in their respective roles as the younger versions of Shem, Ham, and Ila along with appearances from Marton Csokas as Noah’s father Lamech, Madison Davenport as a refugee that Ham meets, and Dakota Goyo as the young Noah. Anthony Hopkins is superb as Noah’s grandfather Methuselah as a man who often gives Noah and his family some guidance while providing some bits of humor in his craving for berries. Leo McHugh Caroll is terrific as Noah and Naameh’s young son Japheth who watches over the birds he cares for.

Douglas Booth is excellent as Noah’s eldest son Shem who tries to deal with his love for Ila and watch over the family whenever Noah does other things. Logan Lerman is fantastic as Noah’s middle son Ham who becomes lost in the idea of being alone after the flood as he becomes tempted by Tubal-cain about the realities of humanity. Ray Winstone is amazing as the very cunning Tubal-cain as a man who tries to talk to the Creator as he deals with the chaos and despair of the world where he goes after Noah and later manipulates Ham. Emma Watson is brilliant as Noah’s adopted daughter Ila as a young woman who deals with the fact that she can’t have a child as she also would later cope with some of the decisions Noah would make.

Jennifer Connelly is remarkable as Naameh as the wife of Noah who is also the voice of reason as someone who tries to get Noah to look closer at his surroundings as she knows what he’s dealing with as she also thinks about her family and their future. Finally, there’s Russell Crowe in a marvelous performance as the titular character as a man who realizes what is going to happen as he tries to salvage all that is good in the world while becoming lost over his task and what it all means as it’s a performance that has Crowe being tough but also display a sensitivity that doesn’t get seen much from him.

Noah is a phenomenal film from Darren Aronofsky that features amazing performances from Russell Crowe, Jennifer Connelly, Emma Watson, and Ray Winstone. While it does have a few flaws, it is still an engrossing story that manages to bring a lot of humanity and stakes into a story that’s been told so many times. Especially as Aronofsky infuses it with a lot of visual spectacles and ideas that will captivate a wide audience as well as bring something to religious audiences. In the end, Noah is an incredible film from Darren Aronofsky.

Darren Aronofsky Films: Pi - Requiem for a Dream - The Fountain - The Wrestler - Black Swan - mother! - The Auteurs #2: Darren Aronofsky

© thevoid99 2014

Scarface (1983 film)

Based on the 1932 film directed by Howard Hawks and screenplay by Ben Hecht from a novel by Armitage Trail, Scarface is the story of a Cuban refugee who arrives to Miami in 1980 where he works his way to the top to become a drug kingpin and later fall. Directed by Brian De Palma and screenplay by Oliver Stone, the film is a wild look into the burgeoning drug culture of the 1980s in Miami as it chronicles a man who is eager to own the world and everything else in it. Playing the role of Tony Montana is Al Pacino in one of his most defining performances of his career. Also starring Steven Bauer, Michelle Pfeiffer, Robert Loggia, Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio, F. Murray Abraham, Harris Yulin, and Paul Shenar. Scarface is a fucking wild and operatic film from Brian De Palma.

The film is a rise-and-fall tale in which a Cuban exile in Tony Montana as he arrives in Miami as part of the Mariel boatlift of 1980 with some of his friends as he starts off as a small hood for the drug dealer Frank Lopez (Robert Loggia) to becoming the top drug dealer of Miami as he yearns to own the world and everything else in it. The film takes place in a period where the cocaine trade in the early 80s was starting to rise involving Latin American drug dealers as they rose to the top where Tony Montana is part of that world as he decides to go for something much bigger as he kills, schemes, and does everything to get to the top. Along the way, there’s sacrifices and such where he would have allies and later enemies that would play to his downfall as well as his growing addiction to cocaine.

Oliver Stone’s screenplay definitely takes the idea of the rise-and-fall of a drug dealer to showcase a world in which a man starts off at the bottom and work his way to the top. While his journey doesn’t make Montana a honest man, it does give him some ounce of respect in the way he does things as well as making deals and such. The people around Montana like his best friend Manny Ribera (Steven Bauer), Lopez’s mistress Elvira (Michelle Pfeiffer), and his young sister Gina (Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio) would all play part in Montana’s rise-and-fall as they would help in his journey but also would experience downfalls of their own. There is a complexity to Stone’s script as he explores this man’s sense of ambition where Montana is given a set of rules by Lopez of how to do things but Montana would go way overboard as it would lead to his downfall.

It’s not just the structure of Stone’s script that helps flesh out the formula of the rise-and-fall but also the dialogue which is very confrontational and very frank as it features 187 uses of the word “fuck”. It’s all very stylized as it plays to a world where it’s very seedy and unforgiving as Montana is very upfront that he’s not a nice guy and he can admit that he lies. Yet, it’s part of his flaws as he would take credit for his own rise as he would be his own undoing through a series of bad decisions, paranoia, and selfishness that would also be driven by his own escalating addiction to cocaine.

The direction of Brian de Palma is very grand and operatic as it plays to a period of decadence where people go to discos, do cocaine, have sex in bathrooms, and do all sorts of crazy shit. While de Palma does create some interesting compositions including Montana’s interrogation scene where there’s an eerie intimacy to that scene as well as a few other scenes. There’s also an element of suspense where de Palma just build things up very slowly where it will have some kind of violent conclusion. It is all part of de Palma wanting to create something that is gritty and realistic but also not be afraid to exaggerate things. Notably some very gruesome moments where Montana is forced to watch one of his friends be killed by a chainsaw.

It’s not just the film’s violence that is excessive and operatic that includes the film’s climatic showdown between Montana and a Colombian cartel. It’s also the world that de Palma sets up as he uses some very stylish crane shots and other camera tricks to play up this world of decadence. Even in a montage to establish Tony’s rise where it is quite excessive from the clothes the characters wear to the cars that they drive as well as the fact that Montana has two tigers as pets. Still, there is that sense of intrigue and danger in the third act where de Palma goes all out and more as it includes some very chilling moments where Montana is clearly hitting his bottom as well as the fate that is set for him. Overall, de Palma creates an outrageous and confrontational film about greed and ambition in the eyes of a man named Tony Montana.

Cinematographer John A. Alonzo does amazing work with the film’s colorful cinematography from the very sunny, colorful look of Miami’s exteriors and beaches to some scenes set in Los Angeles as part of South America as well as some of the dark interiors to set the chilling mood for the film. Editors Jerry Greenberg and David Ray do excellent work with the editing to create a very stylish approach to the cutting from the rhythm of the violence and some montages to some slower cuts in the film’s suspenseful moments. Production designer Ferdinando Scarfiotti, with set decorator Bruce Weintraub and art director Edward Richardson, does fantastic work with the look of the mansions the characters stay in to the Babylon club that definitely has an air of excess.

Costume designer Patricia Norris does wonderful work with the costumes from the stylish dresses the women wear to the colorful suits the guys wear to play up that decade of decadence. Sound editor Edward Beyer does superb work with the sound from the way the gunfire sounds to some of the chilling moments in the film. The film’s score by Giorgio Moroder is brilliant for its eerie, electronic-driven score filled with some ominous themes and arrangements to play up the sense of coldness in the world as well as some pieces to play up the world of decadence. The film’s soundtrack consists largely of music from pulsating synth-pop and disco from Elizabeth Daily, Paul Engemann, Beth Anderson, and Debbie Harry to a Latin-pop song from Maria Conchita Alonso.

The casting by Alixe Gordon is just phenomenal for the ensemble that was created for the film that would include a lot of memorable appearances for the actors that appeared in this film. Among these notable small roles include Pepe Serna and Angel Salazar as a couple of Tony’s friends in Angel Fernandez and Chi Chi, Mark Margolis as Sosa’s devious henchman Alberto, Geno Silva as Sosa’s assassin the Skull, Richard Belzer as a comedian at the Babylon Club, Miriam Colon as Tony’s mother who despises Tony, Michael Alldredge as Tony’s banker George Sheffield, Harris Yulin as the corrupt detective Mel Bernstein, and Paul Shenar as the Colombian drug lord Alejandro Sosa who becomes an ally of Tony’s until an assignment gone wrong leads to trouble.

F. Murray Abraham is terrific as Lopez’s henchman Omar Suarez who is wary about Montana as he is uneasy about Montana’s ambition. Robert Loggia is great as the crime boss Frank Lopez as a man who is full of wisdom as well as being a fun guy who later feels threatened by Tony’s ambition as he tries to warn him about what will happen. Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio is wonderful as Tony’s sister Gina who is intrigued by the world of excess as she becomes an object of affection for Manny despite Tony’s over protectiveness towards her. Michelle Pfeiffer is amazing as Lopez’s mistress Elvira who later becomes Tony’s wife as a woman who knows a lot more than everyone else as she later succumbs to her own drug addiction. Steven Bauer is superb as Tony’s friend Manny who is a man that wants to have fun and enjoy the good life while wanting to do things to help out as he later becomes alienated by Tony’s ambition and paranoia.

Finally, there’s Al Pacino in one of his most iconic performances of his career as Tony Montana. The film has Pacino go all out and more as a man who is willing to do whatever it takes to succeed. It’s a performance that is full of swagger, bravado, humor, and extremely confrontational. Pacino not only is given some of the best one-liners of all-time but he really means it when he says those things. It’s also him just commanding the moment including the film’s final shootout with Sosa’s men as he utters out some of the best one-liners ever as it’s a role that only he can play.

Scarface is a magnificent film from Brian de Palma featuring an outstanding performance from Al Pacino. Along with a great supporting cast, a cool soundtrack, and a wild script by Oliver Stone. It’s a film that is still wild nearly 30 years since its release as it still holds up and more. Filled with lots of dead bodies, mountains of cocaine, 187 “fucks”, and lots of more crazy shit. It’s a film that is very unapologetic in being excessive and extravagant. In the end, Scarface is a triumphant achievement from Brian de Palma.

Related: Scarface (1932 film)

Brian De Palma Films: (Murder a la Mod) - (Greetings) - (The Wedding Party) - (Dionysus in ‘69) - (Hi Mom!) - (Get to Know Your Rabbit) - Sisters - Phantom of the Paradise - Obsession - Carrie - The Fury - (Home Movies) - Dressed to Kill - Blow Out - Body Double - (Wise Guys) - The Untouchables - Casualties of War - The Bonfire of the Vanities - Raising Cain - Carlito’s Way - Mission: Impossible - Snake Eyes - Mission to Mars - Femme Fatale - The Black Dahlia - (Redacted) - Passion (2012 film) - (Domino (2018 film)

© thevoid99 2013

The Fountain

After two back-to-back acclaim hits and a devoted cult following, Darren Aronofsky was becoming the hot director of the moment. Even as his 2000 film Requiem for a Dream became a massive hit, Aronofsky was attached to a number of projects including a chance to revive the Batman franchise. Though Aronofsky was involved as a producer and writer in a project called Below for David Twohy in 2002. He was focused on making an ambitious project called The Fountain that was to star Brad Pitt and Cate Blanchett with Warner Brothers studio backing him. Yet, production issues and cost overruns led to the departures of Pitt and Blanchett. In 2004, the project was revived on a much smaller scale for a $35 million budget with Hugh Jackman taking on the lead role with Aronofsky’s then-girlfriend Rachel Weisz as the female lead.

Directed and scribed by Darren Aronofsky with a story co-written with Ari Handel. The Fountain tells three different stories that all parallel through different time periods. The first tells the story of a conquistador searching for the Tree of Life for his queen while in 2005, a man is trying to find a cure for his wife’s illness. The third storyline revolves around the future as the same man is trying to revive the Tree of Life through outer space. Recalling on Aronofsky’s themes of struggle, ambition, and fear of death. The film is considered to be Aronofsky’s most personal work at the time. Also starring Aronofsky regulars Ellen Burstyn and Mark Margolis plus Cliff Curtis, Stephen McHattie, Donna Murphy, Sean Patrick Thomas, and Ethan Suplee. The Fountain, despite its ambitions, is a film that falls flat on its ideas.

In the 16th Century, an inquisitor named Silecio (Stephen McHattie) is planning a coup against Queen Isabella of Spain (Rachel Weisz) as her captain Tomas (Hugh Jackman) is sent on a mission. Along with Captain Ariel (Cliff Curtis) and a Franciscan priest named Avila (Mark Margolis), they go on a quest to find the Tree of Life in order to stop Silecio. Meanwhile in 2005, a doctor named Tommy (Hugh Jackman) is trying to find a cure to stop a brain tumor that is wife Izzi (Rachel Weisz). With Izzi trying to finish a story, Tommy finds a breakthrough with his associates through an experiment on a chimpanzee. Still, the experiments become controversial as a fellow surgeon in Dr. Lillian Guzetti (Ellen Burstyn) believes Tommy is going too far.

Yet, Izzi’s illness is worsening as Tommy wants to know more about the progress of the experiment. Meanwhile, in the future, a man named Tom (Hugh Jackman) is traveling inside a bubble with the Tree of Life in hopes to revive the Tree to a nebula.

While the film does recall many themes that Aronofsky has explored in the past. It’s the theme of death and how to live with it that is very prominent throughout the film. Even as its key protagonist is desperate to bring life to the ailing woman that he loves. With Aronofsky using the legend of the Tree of Life with relations to the Mayans and Spain’s search for the New World. All of these ideas seem very promising. The problem is that there’s not a lot of weight to the legend of the Tree of Life and some of the ideas end up becoming comical. For a film that is meant to be dramatic with all of these science fiction ideas. It seems like whatever ideas the film had in its earlier incarnation got stripped down to give audiences a story that ends up not saying very much.

Though the love story between Tom and Izzi, in their various incarnations, does drive the motivation of its protagonist. Aronofsky does make the love story compelling but it ends up being bogged down a bit by the typical romantic formula. For the audience, they pretty much know what will happen and what will be the outcome which ends up being very unsatisfying. Notably when part of the film has Tom trying to discover a cure through elements from the Tree of Life. The legend of the Tree of Life is sort of wasted though its climatic ending through the incarnation of Tomas is presented in such a bad way that it ends up being unintentionally funny.

It’s not just Aronofsky’s screenplay that has some issues with what kind of story it wants to tell. His direction, though often engaging and filled with dazzling visuals, is sort of flat in the presentation. Notably for the staging of scenes in some parts of the film. While the camera does move quite seamlessly at times along with moments to just stop and observe the performance. There’s times when the zooms and close-ups become quite repetitive as if he’s trying to make some stylistic choices that don’t work. While he does create some fascinating scenes and visual cues for the film. It’s also an indication of Aronofsky playing it safe for a film that is meant to be high concept only to fall very short.

Cinematographer Matthew Libatique creates a look to the film that is filled with not much light except yellowish hues and candles to encompass a very eerie atmosphere. The problem is that the look ends up being annoying at times where some scenes needed to be brightened where the audience isn’t sure where they’re at. When the white light does come in, the look of the film does improve though its stylization really hurts the film. Editor Jay Rabinowitz does a nice job with the editing though the pacing of the film lags at time while some of the transitions from period to period isn’t as smooth in some parts.

Production designer James Chinlund, along with a team of set decorators and art directors, do an excellent job in creating a regal look for Queen Isabella’s palace along with the hospital and home that Tommy frequents. Even the look of the Tree of Life is extraordinary with help from visual effects producers Keith Cooper and Rob Myers as the look of the outer space sequences are great. Costume designer Renee April does some spectacular work with the dress of Queen Isabella as well as the period costumes for the 16th Century sequence while the costumes for everything else is very good also. Sound designers Stephen Barden, Brian Emrich, and Craig Henighan do a fantastic job in creating layers of sound for each period sequence where the 16th is quiet and unsettling while the future scenes are nearly silent throughout..

Longtime Aronofsky collaborator Clint Mansell creates a score that is definitely one of the film‘s highlights. Performed by the Kronos Quartet and the indie-rock group Mogwai. The score is a mixture of melancholic orchestral pieces to play up to the film’s emotions along with bombastic arrangements for the more intense scenes. While it isn’t up to par with Mansell’s other work for Aronofsky’s films, it is a fantastic score.

The casting by Mary Vernieu is another of the film’s highlights as the film does have some memorable small performances. Among them are Ethan Suplee, Donna Murphy, and Sean Patrick Thomas as fellow surgeons of Tommy who are baffled by his experiments. Stephen McHattie is very good as fearsome inquisitor who is threatening the Queen while Mark Margolis is also good as Father Avila. Cliff Curtis is excellent as Captain Ariel who is convinced that the quest for the Tree of Life is a curse while Ellen Burstyn is superb in a memorable supporting role as Tommy’s lead surgeon who pleads with him to stop with the experiments.

Rachel Weisz is wonderful in her roles as Queen Isabella and Izzi. For Queen Isabella, she displays a regality that is stunning to watch while being mysterious. For Izzi, Weisz displays a bit of humor and innocence while showing great strength in her vulnerability as it’s one of her more underrated performances. Hugh Jackman gives, what is probably his most overlooked performance as Tomas/Tommy/Tom. Jackman’s performance is really the heart and soul of the film as a man hell-bent on a quest to save his beloved while having troubles to really be there for that person. Jackman really shows great dramatic weight to the role despite the lack of weight in the screenplay. It’s still one of his finest performances of his career.

The 2007 Region 1 DVD from Warner Brothers presents the film in both the full-screen format and the 1:85:1 aspect ratio for widescreen. Also in 5.1 Dolby Surround sound for French and English plus English, French, and Spanish subtitles. The special features in the DVD include the theatrical trailer and a one-hour six-part special featurette called Inside The Fountain: Death & Rebirth. The documentary is essentially a making of the film of sorts where Darren Aronofsky and various crew members dwell into the early stages of the film. The original idea was to shoot the film in Australia following a trip to Central America for a look into the ruins. When that early stage into the production fell apart, it took Aronofsky two more years to get it going. The documentary is pretty entertaining in some parts as it includes some funny moments as well as great insight into what the production could’ve been in its first incarnation.

Despite some of its shortcomings in the story and in the direction of Darren Aronofsky. The Fountain is an interesting film with some great visual effects and some great performances of Hugh Jackman and Rachel Weisz. Fans of Aronofsky, no doubt, will be divided about this film as some might think it’s a fantastic meditation on death while others might find it to be overly-pretentious. There’s even room for those in the middle who are unsure about the film. It’s not a failure nor is it a triumph either. In the end, The Fountain is a decent film from Darren Aronofsky that just falls very short on the themes it tried to explore.

Darren Aronofsky Reviews: Pi - Requiem for a Dream - The Wrestler - Black Swan - Noah - mother!

Related: The Auteurs # 2: Darren Aronofsky

© thevoid99 2010

Pi

Originally Written and Posted at 12/28/08 w/ Additional Edits & New Content.

Science fiction has always been a genre known for big-budget special effects and high ambitions. Then in 1998, a little-known film made for $60,000 became a cult hit that year while establishing a director who would later become one of the most exciting directors of his generation. His name is Darren Aronofsky, a Brooklyn-born director whose love for films and the mind created a movie about a math prodigy who finds himself dealing with the headaches that has affected him as a child. The movie was called Pi after the mathematical symbol that equals to 3.14 estimate. Directed by Aronofsky with his own script with story credit also going to Sean Gullette and Eric Watson. The film stars Sean Gullette, Mark Margolis, Ben Shenkman, Pamela Hart, and Stephen Pearlman. Pi is an eerie, suspenseful, and chilling debut from Darren Aronofksy.

Maximilian Cohen (Sean Gullette) is a math prodigy who is obsessed with finding variables and numbers based on the mathematical symbol equal to the 3.14 estimate with an infinity amount of numbers. Working as a recluse with his homemade computer, Max often suffers from headaches that he's had since he was a child after staring at the sun for far too long. Rarely contacting people that includes a little girl named Jenna (Kristyn Mae-Anne Lao), a neighbor named Devi (Samia Shoaib), and an old mentor named Sol (Mark Margolis). Max prefers to work alone as he finds patterns relating to the stock market. After having encounters with a Hasidic Jew named Lenny Meyer (Ben Shenkman) and being pursued by a Wall Street representative named Marcy Dawson (Pamela Hart). Max continues to work on his work with numbers.

Then one day, a breakthrough comes in during a crash where it spits out 216 numbers. Feeling that it's just random data, he later checks through the stock numbers from a newspaper realizing that his predictions were correct. Turning to Sol for answers, Sol suggests that Max should stop before it would make him go insane as Sol gave up his mathematic obsessions that lead him to have a stroke. Max forges ahead where a meeting with Lenny about the numbers might be a big clue to what Lenny is looking for in relation to text in the Torah that Lenny's Hasidic Jewish priests are looking for. Max decides to help Lenny but his headaches start to increase pushing him on the brink of madness. When Marcy finally contacts him, she wants to give him a chip so he can rebuild his computer to find the numbers that they needed.

During the moment he tries to predict stock patterns with the chip and computer, another breakthrough emerges as well as a terrible discovery. Even as a vein pops up in his head as Max becomes more obsessed and paranoid. After consulting with Sol, Sol suggests that Max should stop for good as it would lead him to the same troubles that Sol went through. Max ignores Sol's advice where he is encountered by Marcy and her Wall Street agents where he's saved by Lenny. Yet, Max is taken to meet the Hasidic Jewish priest Rabbi Cohen (Stephen Pearlman) who reveals what the 216 digits might mean. For Max, it's more than he bargains for as he knows what the numbers are as his mind blurs in the idea of both reality and fantasy.

The film is essentially a paranoia thriller about a math genius' obsession with number patterns and a discovery that would eventually get him in trouble. Yet, it's a film that's definitely original due to its mathematical contexts and black-and-white look that gives it a loose feel. Aronofsky's screenplay does start out slow in revealing the reclusive world that Max lives in. When the second act begins with his discovery, it becomes this suspenseful yet sci-fi thriller that's more in tune with films like The Conversation instead of a traditional sci-fi film like 2001: A Space Odyssey. Yet, it's still a sci-fi film in an unconventional sense due to its mathematical components, emphasis on numbers, and claustrophobic feel. The sense of paranoia in the script is driven by the voice-over narration of Max with dialogue that repeatedly tells the story of Max's experience in staring at the sun. It's repetition reveals the pattern in Max's mind like the numbers he's obsessed about.

Aronofsky's direction is definitely in a closed, claustrophobic style with hand-held cameras to create a looseness as if the audience is inside the head of Max Cohen. The shakiness of the camera with its spiral effect helps with the mood given Max's obsessions with spirals. Yet, the cinematic style is really an ode to the look of David Lynch's first film Eraserhead while having a low-budget feel that proves that works in its raw, grainy style. Aronofsky's approach to suspense is more about a low build-up or seeing something that's about to happen in the mind of Max. It works through its emotion and Aronofsky's direction where the result is truly magnificent with so little money put into the film.

Cinematographer Matthew Libatique does brilliant work with the film's black-and-white, grainy camera work. With its loose, hand-held style, Libatique's cinematography is wonderfully rough in its dirty, grimy look throughout several of the film's interior settings. With little lights in the nighttime exterior and in Max's own apartment, some of the imagery that Libatique create are beautiful including a shot of the beach at Coney Island and a dream sequence as the cinematography is definitely mystifying to watch. Editor Oren Sarch does great work with the film's swift, rhythmic editing to play up to the film's sense of suspense. Sarch's editing is fast but never to the point where it's too fast in some sequences as its cutting and transitions create a tone that is startling yet hypnotic to watch.

Production designer Matthew Maraffi does excellent work in the look of Max's apartment filled with computer equipment and such to create a claustrophobia around Max's world that is all about numbers. Sound designer Brian Emrich does fantastic work with the sound in creating suspense in the subway scenes along with the noise of computers and buzzes around Max's world along with screeches in his head. The film's score is mostly driven by electronic music from acts like Massive Attack, Autechre, and Orbital along with other styles of music supervised by Sioux Zimmerman, a former publicist for Trent Reznor and his band Nine Inch Nails. Yet, the film's score in its drum-n-bass sound with fast, kinetic beats are from former Pop Will Eat Itself vocalist Clint Mansell. Mansell's score works in its swift, paranoia-driven tone with its beats as it gave the former PWEI vocalist a new life as a film composer following the band's break-up in 1996.

The casting by Denise Fitzgerald is excellent with small appearances and performances from editor Oren Sarch as a Hasidic priest, Clint Mansell as a photographer, Lauren Fox as Sol's daughter, Joanne Gordon as Max's landlady, Ajay Naidu as Devi's boyfriend, Abraham Aronofsky (Darren's father) as a suitcase deliverer, and Stanley Herman as a man in a suit Max sees at the subway train. Stephen Pearlman is excellent as the Hasidic priest Rabbi Cohen who reveals the source of what the numbers mean only to get into a philosophical argument with Max over purity. Kristyn Mae-Anne Lao is wonderful as Jenna, a little neighbor girl who asks Max math questions while Samia Shoaib is very good as Max's attractive yet caring neighbor Devi. Pamela Hart is really good as Marcy Dawson, the sleazy Wall Street agent who only wants Max for financial reasons as she follows him everywhere he goes.

Ben Shenkman is great as Lenny, the Hasidic Jew who takes Max in to the world of Kabbalah and Jewish number theories only to put Max in danger for his people. Mark Margolis is brilliant as Sol, Max's old mentor who warns him about what Max might be in for. Margolis brings a lot of wisdom to his performance as a man now experiencing life for the first time after a stroke that was caused by his own mathematical obsessions as he pleas to Max to find a life outside of mathematics. Sean Gullette is amazing as Max Cohen, the obsessed mathematician who makes a discovery only to go mad in his discovery due to his headache. Gullette's performance is a marvel to watch as he displays a sense of paranoia and sympathy to a man driven by madness while dealing with headaches and the discovery that people want to know from him.

***Additional DVD Content Written on 11/29/10***

The 2001 Region 1 DVD for Pi released by Artisan presents the film in its original theatrical widescreen presentation of the aspect ratio of 1:66:1. Along with Dolby Surround Sound, the film features numerous special features for its DVD release. Among them are two commentary tracks. The first is from director Darren Aronofsky. Aronofsky’s commentary is an engaging insight into the making of the film as well as Aronofsky revealing some of the things that happened. Notably talking about how he used some of his own personal experiences to create the character of Mark. Aronofsky also cites directors like Terry Gilliam and Sergio Leone as influences for a few ideas while revealing something that happened to him when he was shooting the scene of the brain at the subway station.

During the shooting of that scene, Aronofsky and crew were confronted by the police since Aronofsky didn’t have a permit. Yet, the police did nothing because they thought that Aronofsky and his crew were a second unit crew for Woody Allen, who was shooting a film nearby. Aronofsky talks about a lot of the mathematical elements in the film which were scripted as he remembered based on his own experiences traveling. He also talks about the cast, notably the late Stephen Pearlman who had died a week before Aronofsky did the commentary. It’s an enjoyable commentary as Aronofsky sounds relaxed and excited while reminding the viewer to watch the special features on the DVD.

The second commentary track comes from actor Sean Gullette who reflects on his experience making the film. Gullette also goes into deep about the ideas of Pi and its connection with religion along with his own character. Gullette is more relaxed and calm than Aronofsky while he also goes into detail about the migraines his character Max suffers from. Gullette reveals that since this was his first feature film as an actor, it wasn’t easy at times. Even when Aronofsky was trying to get him mad for several scenes. Gullette also talks about Mark Margolis, who was a revered veteran while revealing that Mark would often improvise in his takes. Gullette’s commentary is insightful though not as humorous as Aronofsky’s.

Four deleted scenes appear on the DVD special features. The first is a scene where Farrouhk confronts Max about the way he eyes Devi. The second is Max trying to find monitors through a small hill of broken computers. The third is Max returning to his apartment where a slinky is falling down to the stairs near his floor. The fourth and final deleted scene is a test scene where Sean Gullette is walking with a camera is shot in front of him to test the way he walks throughout. All of these scenes would feature a commentary track from Aronofsky where he revealed that they were cut largely due to pacing issues.

The eight-and-a-half minute behind the scenes montage reveals the making of the film through a colored video camera with commentary by Aronofsky and Gullette. Shot by The Thin Red Line/The New World co-editor Saar Klein for the on-set scenes, the commentary features appearances from Aronofsky’s mother and the making of the door-opening scene during Max’s migraines. Also featured was the whole cast and crew at Sundance which concluded with Aronofsky winning the Best Director Award presented to him by Paul Schrader. Two trailers appear for the DVD. The first is the theatrical trailer and the other is a homemade trailer by Aronofsky and producer Eric Watson that featured one of the deleted scenes. Another feature is a music video for Clint Mansell’s main theme for the film featuring footage of the film plus ants to the hyperactive, drum n’ bass style track.

Also in the DVD are cast and crew information for Darren Aronofsky, Sean Gullette, Mark Margolis, and Stephen Pearlman. Notes about the numerical mythology on Pi, production notes about the film and how it was made, and a sample of the Book of Ants graphic novel written by Aronofsky. Overall, the DVD is a must-have for fans of the film as well as those interested in the work of Darren Aronofsky.

***End of DVD Tidbits***

The film premiered at the 1998 Sundance Film Festival where it was a hit as it won Darren Aronofsky a directing award. The film was bought by Artisan as the $60,000 film grossed $3.2 million in the box office as it became a cult success and winning several film prizes. It provided Aronofsky a career where he would be attached to several projects until he decided to do an adaptation of Herbert Selby Jr.'s acclaimed novel Requiem for a Dream that was released in 2000. Pi meanwhile, became a cult film as it remains one of 1990s best debut feature films.

Pi is a truly original, suspenseful, and eerie debut feature from Darren Aronofsky and company. Featuring a superb cast led by Sean Gullette, Mark Margolis, and Ben Shenkman, it's a film that is definitely complex and intelligent with stylish editing, fantastic cinematography, and Clint Mansell's intense score. Fans of low-budget, sci-fi films will enjoy the raw look of the film while mainstream audiences might be confused by its mathematical-driven plot though will enjoy its suspenseful tone. In the end, Darren Aronofsky's Pi is a spectacular debut film that warps the mind as it gives suspense a new shot in the arm.

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