The Zero Theorem ***

Terry Gilliam returns to his Brazil ideas in his latest film, The Zero Theorem, such as Big Brother watching/controlling, quirky romance and even quirkier surroundings that scream of escapism from the throng of daily life’s burden. All set in a future of some description – though hopefully, not one we have to look forward to, there are a lot of current themes that ring true here, such as our increasingly alienated lifestyle as we plug in and reinvent ourselves online. The Zero Theorem trips itself up, plot-wise, but is nevertheless, fascinating and endearing, with a part made for multi-talented lead Christoph Waltz.

Waltz plays loner computer hacker Qohen Leth, a man so solitary that he speaks about himself in the Royal ‘We’. Leth is obsessed with finding the meaning of life and our existence, but is constantly interrupted by Management (Matt Damon) who throws projects at him to distract him from his goal – the task of Joby the supervisor (David Thewlis), such as the boss’s smart teenage son, Bob (Lucas Hedges), and call girl love interest Bainsley (Mélanie Thierry).

Gilliam gets full marks for imagination and choice of cast again, but this never quite elevates the film enough to the extraordinary and memorable. Much of the film’s positive effect is due to Waltz’s nuanced performance of a ‘trapped man’, his highs and lows and his journey back into the land of the living as he tries to reach out to Bainsley for human affection he so craves. There are a lot of valuable themes running through this hackneyed plot that help give the status quo more gravitas than it probably deserves. There is also a sense of urgency to creep in change before the powers find out, so it’s a little revolutionary in nature and consuming in this sense as you back Leth’s determination.

Waltz’s Leth is like an autistic person, making him compelling to watch as he interprets events around him. Waltz taps into the character’s good–bad sides, resulting in us never quite knowing how such a conditioned individual will react to the increasing invasion into his little world. Waltz also brings out a gentle man-child persona to Leth, coupled with natural sexual instincts awakened after a drug-fuelled party. Leth is often out of his comfort zone and detached, but the irony is the reality of being connected is not ideal either. Gilliam’s conundrums tease and question that of ‘the ideal’, making the ‘real’ seem ‘surreal’ with hindsight.

With some great supporting acts from Thierry, Damon and a live-wired Thewlis, The Zero Theorem is a satisfying and oddly zany plunge into dark satire and despair. It’s also another shout-out to us all to step back and reassess our technology-driven lives, before it’s too late – even the shrink, Dr. Shrink-Rom (Tilda Swinton), is running out of decent ideas. So too, perhaps, is Gilliam who may well have created some magical set design here, but needs something really fresh to animate life’s most troublesome woes.

3/5 stars

By @FilmGazer

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