When this film started, I was like, “How does someone go about reviewing a documentary? That too about infinity and Mathematics.” I got 65 marks in my boards. I should be the last person to talk about numbers. But by the time this 1 hour, 20 minute documentary ended, it felt less about numbers and more about what it means to be alive. Let’s start from the beginning.
Imagine a small circle, like a bangle. Now imagine a bigger circle, like a cricket boundary line. Not the whole stadium, just the outer boundary line. What if I told you that this tiny bangle has the same number of points as the boundary line?
The film does a nice job of breaking down complex metaphysical ideas in a fun way. And the end leaves you with a hope for humanity.
(Photo Courtesy: IMDb)
This documentary has tons of such mind-bending thoughts. And what helps a regular viewer understand these ideas is the amazing animation work that’s been done. It really helped me visualize ideas like the expanding universe, black holes, etc.
But what I didn’t find that exciting was the fact that it was just a glorified Vsauce video. Starting from one simple question and ending in something completely different. Now don’t get me wrong, a film like this would make black holes and such abstract mathematical concepts more accessible. But for me, it’s stuff that I’ve already seen and read about multiple times.
But what was profound was the commentary of these insanely intelligent people about the finiteness of life, and how that was freeing. And how love is infinite, etc. That stuff really made me pause the film and just think for minutes straight. That was the most precious thing about the film, that you won't get in any YouTube video.
A Trip to Infinity is streaming on Netflix.
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