It seems unlikely, but Fermat's Room is a film entirely populated with Mathematicians. What's more, they spend a majority of their time in one room (albeit a scary puzzle room). Perhaps the most surprising thing about this premise, however, is that it works quite well.

To explain more thoroughly, four mathematicians who lead their field suddenly receive mysterious letters signed under the pseudonym of the famous mathematician Fermat. Intrigued by a puzzle posed in the letter they all set their minds to it and, as you might expect, solve it. But this isn't the end of the conundrums. Once the puzzle is solved they are invited to a remote location where they are each allotted the name of another historical number-cruncher and told that they will be posed the greatest enigma of all time. Unfortunately, failure to solve it could have dire consequences. (Yes, we mean death).

By filling this movie to the brim with puzzles and characters whose lifelong goal is to solve puzzles it is reduced to the essence of a thriller, and there is something refreshingly fun about that. Where other films might fight themselves into a corner by inserting various quandries which beg the viewer to ask the characters 'why don't you just leave it alone?', Fermat's Room has a built in answer: Mathematician's can't leave it alone!

That's not to say that the film is all numbers, symbols and complex solutions. Simmering beneath the array of brain-teasers is a human drama to be solved. Why are these people chosen to be in this room? What is the meaning of their names? And why would someone put them in this situation? These are all questions whose answers gradually emerge as these people frantically try to solve their situation.

There are plenty of clever twists and turns to keep the brain ticking over, and the acting talent manages exude a lot of charisma into the otherwise somewhat static settings. Pedro Almodóvar regular Lluis Homar puts in a great performance as affable chess-fan 'Hilbert' who appears to have plenty of skeletons in his closet, while Santi Millan is excellent as the arrogant and somehow famous mathematician labelled 'Pascal' for the meeting.

As with all such thrillers, the key is in the conclusion and the twist at the end doesn't disappoint. It has enough layers so that the parts which are predicted are overshadowed by playful touches along the mathematical theme. One minor problem remains for those who don't speak Spanish, there is always a niggling feeling that some of the wordplay is lost in translation. But overall, Fermat's Room is a great little teaser with an enjoyably original theme holding it all together.

Rating: ***

Review by Michael Edwards