Terry Gilliam is well-known for making films with plots that are slightly off the wall and quirky. Therefore I wasn't too bothered by the fact that the film seemed to move slowly (Brazil and 12 monkeys were both slow moving and yet both of these films were still brilliant). The problem with The Zero Theorem is that it's a film that moves very slowly without really going anywhere.
There were a few things that were good about it; first and foremost are the visuals & cinematography which were absolutely gorgeous. The second thing that I liked about this film is that the characters were shrouded in mystery and were quite intriguing (particularly Waltz's character). Whilst the aforementioned elements of the film were really good, sadly the same can't be said for the story which I found to be convoluted, lacking in energy and quite dull if I'm honest. I was hoping that my patience would be rewarded by some great plot twist or a 'Wow' moment at the end, but even this curiosity wasn't satisfied. In fact, I found the ending to be a bit disappointing and anti-climactic.
The Zero Theroem plays with some interesting concepts such as Mind Control, Bureaucracy, & searching for meaning in one's life, but only the latter is really explored, but even that aspect is covered in a rather dull and ponderous way.
Qohen constantly says 'We' instead of 'I' when he answers any questions. He also mentions the fact that we are all dying constantly throughout the film. These were potentially interesting threads that seemed to get opened, but never expanded upon which again was disappointing.
I thought that this was an OK film. Waltz once again puts in an excellent performance and his interesting character did make the somewhat dull story just about tolerable. However, I'd take Brazil or 12 monkeys over this film any time.
There were a few things that were good about it; first and foremost are the visuals & cinematography which were absolutely gorgeous. The second thing that I liked about this film is that the characters were shrouded in mystery and were quite intriguing (particularly Waltz's character). Whilst the aforementioned elements of the film were really good, sadly the same can't be said for the story which I found to be convoluted, lacking in energy and quite dull if I'm honest. I was hoping that my patience would be rewarded by some great plot twist or a 'Wow' moment at the end, but even this curiosity wasn't satisfied. In fact, I found the ending to be a bit disappointing and anti-climactic.
The Zero Theroem plays with some interesting concepts such as Mind Control, Bureaucracy, & searching for meaning in one's life, but only the latter is really explored, but even that aspect is covered in a rather dull and ponderous way.
Qohen constantly says 'We' instead of 'I' when he answers any questions. He also mentions the fact that we are all dying constantly throughout the film. These were potentially interesting threads that seemed to get opened, but never expanded upon which again was disappointing.
I thought that this was an OK film. Waltz once again puts in an excellent performance and his interesting character did make the somewhat dull story just about tolerable. However, I'd take Brazil or 12 monkeys over this film any time.