Two-time Oscar winner Christoph Waltz takes an odd detour as Qohen Leth, a
bald-headed reclusive computer programmer who "crunches" data for
Mancorp, some monolithic corporation that seems to control everything. It's
putting it mildly to say that Qohen isn't much of a people person. He's a
jittery, barely-audible introvert of epic proportions, obsessed with learning
the meaning of his life. He's so consumed with it that he waits patiently by
the phone thinking someone will soon call him with the answer, and this being a
Gilliam film it may very well happen. Qohen just wants to be left alone to wait
for his call and do his work, but distractions arise after Management (Matt
Damon in an expanded cameo) assign him to solve the "zero theorem", a
math equation that proves life is meaningless. Something like would be
enough to drive a person mad, but he gets help from a gorgeous call girl
Bainsley (Melanie Thierry), Management's son (Lucas Hedges), a pesky computer psychologist (Tilda Swinton), and Qohen's boss
(David Thewlis). They don't help him crack the numbers, per se, but to maintain
his fragile sanity. 
Much of the film is set inside Qohen's home, a church of great visual
splendor but it's nothing compared to the chaos of the outside world. Gilliam
imagines a marketing nightmare-reality where commercials (featuring the
likenesses of Gwendoline Christie, Lily Cole, and Rupert Friend) literally
follow your every move. It's typical Gilliam and his fans will love the
splendor of it, but the mechanics of the world are surprisingly vague. The
focus is instead on Qohen and his quest for the meaning of life, which amounts
to him having visions of black holes and punching keys on a keyboard. It's not
terribly exciting, nor does screenwriter Pat Rushin have an original thought to
put in Qohen's head. We recognize his existential angst but never fully understand
it; the marvelous imagery proving a worthy distraction from a ho-hum plot.
Waltz isn't bad but his jittery Buddha routine comes off as too practiced, like
he's trying hard to act how a Gilliam character should act. The same goes for
much of the cast who pop in and out with a splash but little impact. Only the
effervescent Thierry, in her array of colorful outfits and hairstyles, manages
to liven things up every time she appears. Yeah, she's something of a twirling
pixie (women aren't represented well at all, by the way) but at least she's
having fun and by extension we want her around as much as possible. The Zero Theorem has a pretty big riddle at its center, but the one problem it can't solve is how to get Gilliam on the right track. It tries hard to emulate the director's most cherished films when setting out on a fresh course would have been the right answer.
Rating: 2 out of 5
