100 Greatest Cult Films by Christopher J. Olson

Author:Christopher J. Olson [Olson, Christopher J.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers
Published: 2018-02-26T16:00:00+00:00

Lenny Meyer (Ben Shenkman, right) confronts Max Cohen (Sean Gullette) about the number that could unlock the secrets of the universe. Live Entertainment / Photofest © Live Entertainment

Commentary

Aronofsy’s keen eye for detail and unique approach to storytelling ensure that Pi remains riveting from beginning to end. He loads Pi with surrealistic touches that frequently recall Luis Buñuel and Salvador Dali’s 1929 silent masterpiece Un Chien Andalou, and uses repetitive imagery and dialogue to generate a feeling of oppressive tension. Meanwhile, the cramped set design and Libatique’s gritty black-and-white cinematography create a brutal visual aesthetic, while the gripping narrative offers up a heady mixture of psychological terror and Kabbalistic mysticism, all set to an eerie, propulsive score by Clint Mansell. Sound designer Brian Emrich punctuates everything with a cacophony of dissonant, atonal noises designed to leave some viewers feeling disoriented and abused. Nevertheless, Pi stands as a rewarding film that features an engrossing story and plenty of visual inventiveness.

Pi also serves as a showcase for Gullette, who delivers a powerful performance, instilling Max with a quiet intensity that hides an explosive anger. At the same time, he ensures that the character remains sympathetic throughout the film, particularly during scenes when he falls prey to devastating headaches that leave him writhing in pain on the floor. The rest of the cast all turn in fine supporting performances, particularly Mark Margolis as Max’s mentor, Sol, but the acting takes a back seat to the visceral filmmaking and highly stylized production design, which generates a feeling of claustrophobia even during the sequences when Max ventures outside his apartment. Overall, Pi remains an audacious exercise in style that features exhilarating filmmaking and strong performances, not to mention one of the most thrilling debut films ever made.

See also Fight Club (1999), Memento (2000), Requiem for a Dream (2000), Donnie Darko (2001), Primer (2004).

Spotlight: Darren Aronofsky (1969–)

Born in Brooklyn, New York, Darren Aronofsky studied film at Harvard University. In 1991, his senior thesis film became a finalist for the National Student Academy Award. Five years later, Aronofsky set out to make his first feature film, Pi, which became a hit at the 1998 Sundance Film Festival and thrust Aronofsky into the spotlight. He followed it up with Requiem for a Dream, a harrowing drama about addiction based on a novel by Hubert Selby Jr., that opened to great acclaim in October of 2000. Aronofsky spent the next six years developing his third film, The Fountain, which debuted to mixed reviews and disastrous box office on November 22, 2006. Aronofsky rebounded with The Wrestler and Black Swan, two critically acclaimed hits that earned numerous award nominations. In 2011, Aronofsky embarked on his biggest production yet with Noah, an unconventional retelling of Noah’s Ark that grossed over $362 million worldwide. He followed this up with Mother!, a claustrophobic and darkly comic retelling of the Old Testament released in 2017. Aronofsky also wrote the screenplay for director David Twohy’s horror film Below and served as executive producer on director David O.

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