La cellule de Fermat

This freaky and clever film chronicles fear , suspicion , desperation , paranoia of four mathematics (Elena Ballesteros , Alejo Sauras , Santi Millan and Luis Homar) completely strangers who are reunited in a Kafkaesque room by a mysterious host named Fermat (Federico Luppi) on the pretext of resolving a great enigma . Each one plays a part in their thrilling quest to find answers to why they've been imprisoned . The widely varying personality characteristics work together utilizing their given abilities and talents to survive the deadly trap which guards the colored room . The room in which they find themselves turns out to be a shrinking room that will crush them if they do not discover in time what connects them all and why someone might wish to murder them.

The picture succeeds because the thriller , tension , suspense , as well as a superbly written script delving into the human psyche in such extreme situation and ours instinctive urges for survival . Despite its low budget the picture manages to be intelligent , intriguing and thrilling . The good thing about this film is that the directors made it on a shoestring budget only having to do one set , yet the movie works on many levels but is constantly reconfigured . ¨Fermat's room¨ bears special resemblance to ¨The cube¨ (by Vicenzo Natali) , as there's also a dangerously premise about strangers closed attempting to find an exit and resolving enigmas and using their mathematical skills they press forward and backward through the walls to avoid get smashed because the room is reducing itself . Cast is frankly well giving fine performances , though little known with exception the veterans Federico Luppi (Cronos) who holds a strong Argetinean accent and Luis Homar (Backwoods , Los Borgia) . This motion picture relatively cheap was tautly directed by Luis Piedrahita and Rodrigo Sopeña in his first and only movie because they're usually writers for television . This is without a doubt a thought-provoking and mysterious film to be liked for suspense fans , turning out to be one of the most original Spanish movies of the last years . Rating : Better than average .

"Fermat's room" ("La habitación de Fermat") is a Spanish thriller, in the spirit of some recent American blockbusters, where maths are supposed to play an important role. But do not expect anything close to "Numbers" in terms of scientific depth. Maths here are only an anecdote.

In fact, this movie is for everyone but mathematicians, who will probably find that the challenges the characters have to face are too trivial and the alleged screw turns of the plot are quite predictable.

The script and the direction are basically OK, but the acting is quite irregular. While Lluís Homar and Santi Millán (especially Santi Millán, who clearly steals the show) are rather convincing and solid, I do not buy Alejo Sauras and Elena Ballesteros as young math geniuses. Maybe it is not all their fault, as their characters are arguably more stereotypical than the other two.

In the end, an entertaining popcorn movie for a rainy fall evening... as long as you do not know enough maths.

I heard about this film ages ago in Empire Magazine in an article that was really talking it up in regards the use of mathematics as the base for the plot and how smart the film was, like the geek of the school was also the captain of the football team. It was a long time before I got to see it for myself but I was looking forward to it because the article had made me interested in it. In reality the film is not this math and theory heavy film that the magazine had suggested because, although it does use this as its base, it is quite superficially done. This sounds like a criticism but it is not because the veneer of maths makes the film feel smarter and the novelty makes it feel more engaging and it works because it draws the viewer into the world without making one feel like an idiot for not being a genius mathematician. What it then builds on this is essentially a Saw movie but aimed at those who long ago gave up on that franchise for simply being one cruel gory sequence after another.

The plot is engaging because it doesn't give you a gory release but rather keeps the pressure mounting in the same way as the moving walls keep the pressure mounting on the characters. Instead it gives you the overall mystery of why the characters are in the room and who put them in there but also keeps things pressurised by throwing puzzles at the characters as they move along. These puzzles do have an element of "magazine puzzler" about them rather than being mathematical formulae but again this keeps the film accessible for the viewer. OK the puzzles are maybe a bit in contrast with this bed of mathematics but the general tension of the film stops you picking holes in this regard. Meanwhile the walls keep closing and the characters are constantly reacting to the pressure, while the audience do the same. I'm not sure how many repeat viewings it would stand up to and, to be honest, I'm not totally sure that the whole plot would stand up in the cold light of day either but what it works the tension really well so that, on your fist viewing, it is a gripping and engaging affair.

The director makes very good use of the room, always managing to make us feel like we are in there even as the room shrinks. There are also a couple of cool shots such as the couple of times the camera looks from directly above, pulling away to show things in a different way. The cast are a driving force within the film. OK perhaps their reactions are not always totally realistic within the context of the situation but they are almost always realistic by virtue of how well they deliver. As the pressure mounts in the room they do a good job of showing it and they stay reasonably true to their characters. Are they Oscar-winning performances? Well, no, but they are very good at doing what the film demands and doing their bit to add to and increase the tension which is what hooks the viewer.

Fermat's Room is not a brilliant film because it is not without its flaws but it covers them really well by delivering in the key area of tension. The concept is simple but effective and is built on by several layers of mystery and good performances; these suck the viewer in and prevent you picking too many holes while you are watching it. Comparing it to the Saw franchise is perhaps not a fair comparison because the two are only similar in concept but it does make for an easy tag because Fermat's Room is a smarter and more enjoyable version of the Saw movies – with real tension instead of just gore, it engages the audience rather than trying to gross them out and we care about the characters rather than just wishing to see how they are killed. It is perhaps not as smart as it would like to be but it is still an enjoyable and engaging film.

This spanish movie start really good. The characters are clearly defined, and the mystery hooks you in really quickly. Despite its low budget, the single room trick works really well, as it quickly turns from a nice and cozy place to a death trap, and basically that's all you need.

Sadly, the resolution of the movie doesn't make much sense, and to be honest the whole plot is overly complicated, I'm not going to get into details in order to avoid spoilers. My main gripe is that the movie doesn't exploit the mathematicians enough, you barely know what the extent of their skills are and the riddles aren't all really... mathematics. Still, they get you on your toes, which it's what they're for, so they do the job.

It's a rather short movie so it's good for a quick and fun ride, check it out.

Gets off to a great start.... BUT...........

FIRST... Let us FOCUS on the Title´s Content and Context:

Fermat's Room is a Psychological Mystery/Thriller offering from Spain that gets off to a very sure-footed start and seemed to hold out the promise of a very fast-paced and taut film!

The storyline itself is entertaining enough, but the characters never really flagged my interest. Basically, the chemistry was lacking!

FERMAT certainly did have its moments.... but fell considerably short of its potential. It really grabbed me from the opening credits, although hours later a little cerebral ricocheting had me recalling other films that had similar opening credit scenes. Unfortunately, no titles come to mind. If you watch it, let me know if your memory serves you better than mine!

Its not often you see a film that is both Co-Directed AND Co-Written by 2 young men (both 30 at the time) from different small towns in Spain. Luis Piedrahita, who gets top-billing both as Co-Director and Co-Writer, is a real Renaissance man. IMDb lists him as a Writer, Director, Actor, Comedian and award-winning Magician....of all things!

Ah, and therein lies the rub! Like its #1 Co-Director, FERMAT is just TOO busy, trying to pack in too much, too quickly, in its 85 minutes! At times, it wants to go in 5 different directions all at once!

To save themselves, four Math prodigies are forced to solve a slew of math problems/riddles. Another reviewer mentioned the problems shift gradually from left(logic) to right (intuitive) brain function...Yes, that's right, but I didn't really get it during the film...and I am still in higher Math overload! Of course, when it comes to Math, I make Forrest Gump look like Stephen Hawkings!

FERMAT needed another 20 minutes for more character development and to re-work its pace so that viewers could better absorb more of what's going on without feeling so stressed and lost. I liked the name of the boat. Did you catch it?... Pythagaros! BARELY LIMPS in at 6******.....ENJOY! / DISFRUTELA!

Any comments, questions or observations, in English o en Español, are most welcome!