This film is part of Rentals
Pi
Darren Aronofsky’s magisterial monochrome mystery concerns a mathematician whose discovery of a powerful number leads to the dark side.
Director: Darren Aronofsky
Overview
Maximillian Cohen (Sean Gullette) is a secluded New York mathematician who is fixated with the beauty of numbers. He’s so obsessed that he has built a supercomputer he calls Euclid. When the computer displays a strange, 216-digit number, Max believes it useless until it accurately predicts a major factor of stock market activity. Max hastily searches for the number while the computer becomes known to a Wall Street firm and an arcane Hasidic group, in this dark psychological thriller.
As daring and dynamic as a directorial debut can be, Pi announced the arrival of a true cinematic voice in the form of Darren Aronofsky. Although he has gone on to make bigger films like Requiem for a Dream and Black Swan, Pi was the origin of his unique, dark, and psychodynamic sensibility. It’s a puzzle of a film, and art house audiences in 1998 could not deny the escalating artistic vision behind the camera.
infrequent strong languageRelated
Arrival Arrival
Science Fiction 2016 116 mins Director: Denis Villeneuve
Amy Adams and Jeremy Renner star as the humans who make first contact with extra-terrestrial visitors in this richly textured sci-fi from director Denis Villeneuve.
The Rover The Rover
Crime 2014 103 mins Director: David Michôd
Guy Pearce and Robert Pattinson star in a post-apocalyptic thriller set in the Australian outback, from the director of Animal Kingdom.
Midnight Special Midnight Special
Science Fiction 2015 112 mins Director: Jeff Nichols
Jeff Nichols, the acclaimed chronicler of American delirium, presents an imaginative sci-fi about an otherworldly child pursued by the FBI and a shadowy cult.
The Beast The Beast
Fantasy 2022 145 mins Director: Bertrand Bonello
Léa Seydoux wanders through a maze of past, present and uncertain future in Bertrand Bonello’s audacious blend of period drama and conceptual crystal-gazing.
Robot Dreams Robot Dreams
Animation & Artists Moving Image 2023 103 mins Director: Pablo Berger
Spanish director Pablo Berger delivers a rich and emotionally engaging dialogue-free animation about friendship, set in a bustling 1980s New York City.
Demon Seed Demon Seed
Science Fiction 1977 94 mins Director: Donald Cammell
Visionary Scottish filmmaker Donald Cammell directs this claustrophobic ‘home-invasion’ sci-fi thriller based upon Dean Koontz’s best-selling novel.
Eve's Bayou Eve's Bayou
Drama 1997 115 mins Director: Kasi Lemmons
Samuel L. Jackson stars in this seething slice of Southern Gothic, about the travails of a Louisiana family bedevilled by infidelity, incest and witchcraft.
Brassed Off Brassed Off
Drama 1996 107 mins Director: Mark Herman
Pete Postlethwaite stars in this emotional drama about members of a colliery brass band who learn their mine may soon be closing.
The Crying Game The Crying Game
Drama 1992 112 mins Director: Neil Jordan
Neil Jordan's acclaimed 1992 drama-mystery tells the story of Fergus (Stephen Rea), who looks after the lover (Jaye Davidson) of a British soldier he once knew. But what is Dil hiding?
Beautiful Thing Beautiful Thing
Comedy 1996 91 mins Director: Hettie Macdonald
Hettie MacDonald’s 1996 comedy tells the story of two classmates and neighbours (Glen Berry, Scott Neal) who fall in love over one summer in South East London.
Trying to Kiss the Moon Trying to Kiss the Moon
Animation & Artists Moving Image 1994 96 mins Director: Stephen Dwoskin
Autobiographical film by the veteran disabled experimental filmmaker, Steve Dwoskin.
My Own Private Idaho My Own Private Idaho
Drama 1991 104 mins Director: Gus Van Sant
A narcoleptic hustler (River Phoenix) and his friend (Keanu Reeves) hit the road in this landmark of New Queer Cinema from Gus Van Sant.
South: Sir Ernest Shackleton's Glorious Epic of the Antarctic South: Sir Ernest Shackleton's Glorious Epic of the Antarctic
Documentary 1919 81 mins Silent Director: Frank Hurley
An extraordinary story of survival in the wastes of Antarctica.
Night Courier (Mandoob) Night Courier (Mandoob)
Comedy 2023 112 mins Director: Ali Kalthami
A desperate delivery driver gets caught up in the dark underworld of Riyadh in Ali Kalthami’s gripping, pitch-black satire.
The Ballymurphy Precedent The Ballymurphy Precedent
Documentary 2018 108 mins Director: Callum Macrae
John Pilger's film on the conflict in Northern Ireland is a skilful mix of investigative journalism, documentary storytelling and reflections on contemporary history.
Utopia Utopia
Documentary 2013 111 mins Director: John Pilger and Alan Lowery
John Pilger's portrayal of the oldest continuous human culture is also an investigation into a suppressed colonial past, and rapacious present.
The Coming War on China The Coming War on China
Documentary 2016 113 mins Director: John Pilger
John Pilger’s prescient 60th film for ITV is both a warning and an inspiring story of resistance.
Girls Will Be Girls Girls Will Be Girls
Drama 2024 119 mins Director: Shuchi Talati
Teenage romance simmers in a strict Himalayan boarding school in this sublime coming-of-age tale. Winner of the 2024 Sundance audience prize.