Qohen Leth (Christoph Waltz) crunches data for Mancom, a gigantic corporation in a not-too-distant future. He struggles with human interaction, refers to himself as 'we', longs to be able to work from the fire-damaged former church he calls home, and is concerned about his potentially impending demise.


Thanks to his supervisor Joby (David Thewlis) and some chance meetings with the Management (Matt Damon), Qohen is given a new job to work on, the titular theorem. His progress in completing his task is hampered by a psycho-analytic data program (Tilda Swinton), a summer intern called Bob (Lucas Hedges) who - to save time and brain cells - calls everyone Bob , and the rather aggressively amorous Bainsley (Mélanie Thierry).


Terry Gilliam's 11th film in a directorial career spanning 37 years is a slight return to the bureaucratic nightmares of Brazil, plunged - in garish, screaming colours - into the 21st century. Gilliam takes anarchistic glee in parodying modern culture, from the smartphone and tablet obsessed partygoers who snap photos of Qohen as he nearly chokes to death, to the ticker-tape news and advertising that snakes around the city streets. Gilliam's concerns, as they often are, focus on how humanity becomes lost in the ignorant, apathetic march of "progress".

There's much within The Zero Theorem worthy of discussion and disection, but within the film itself much of this gets pushed to the side, trampled over, juggled and dropped in favour of a somewhat clunky narrative, itself, ironically, struggling to engage with the humanity of its characters.


The cast are - as ever with Gilliam - stupendously game, plunging into this scrappy, eccentric world with gusto and Waltz's child-like performance makes for an intriguing lead character, much like Jonathan Pryce in Brazil mashed up with Bruce Willis in 12 Monkeys. Whilst Thierry gives her - occasionally thankless role - the occasional, grateful, injection of fragility. David Thewlis and Matt Damon have the most fun, playing different rungs of authority on the corporate ladder, the former a scrappy, desperate supervisor eager for a connection of any kind, the latter an immaculate, disinterested CEO.


Ultimately though the film is a wayward splurge of ideas, a cocktail of delicious ingredients that never coalesces. Moments of wonder and brilliance splutter out on occasion, and whilst it feels unkind to fault the energy and daffy ambition on display, it's ultimately a doughy, flacid hodge-podge of unfocused existentialism.

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