These 4 movies will help students look at Math in a different way

Math phobia is common among students. Long and complex mathematical equations scare many of them. Well, tricky as it might have appeared, mathematics is not just about mugging up those large formulae only. Rather, taking a different approach to the subject could change the perception of Maths as a subject. Here’s a list of some movies based on various mathematical theories and concepts as well as Math geniuses that will help students do just that. 

Hidden Figures (2016) 
Directed by American film director Theodore Melfi, Hidden Figures is an Oscar-nominated movie about three African-American female mathematicians working at NASA. The film tells how the mathematician trio helped propel astronaut John Glenn's launch into orbit. In order to figure out the paths for the spacecraft to orbit Earth and arrive on the Moon, the movie employs the concept of geometry. 

Interstellar (2014) 
Co-written, directed and produced by British-American film director, Christopher Nolan, Interstellar is a science fiction (sci-fi) film. The film puts to use the concepts of time, gravity and relativity taught in Maths and Physics to guide the audience through the film’s intricate plot. The film shows how humanity can be ultimately saved through a mathematical equation. The said mathematical equation is supposed to solve the gravity problem which essentially prevents any significant number of humans from escaping Earth's atmosphere. 

A Beautiful Mind (2001) 
Directed by American filmmaker Ron Howard, A Beautiful Mind is a 2001 biographical film based on the life of John Nash, an American mathematician and Nobel Laureate in Economics. John Nash is most recognised for his contributions to game theory. Simply put, game theory talks about developing a winning strategy when people have limited options in the game of life. It also mentions about not knowing what one’s opponents are up to. This concept is also underlined in one of the movie's sequences. 

Good Will Hunting (1997) 
Directed by Gus Van Sant, the film talks about Will Hunting, a brilliant mathematician who, despite being highly intelligent, is supposed to work as a lowly janitor at the prestigious Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Boston. Later in the film, it is shown how during an emotional crisis, Will solves complex mathematics problems ranging from functions and matrices to vertices and graphs. When Professor Gerald Lambeau challenges his graduate students with a tough combinatorial mathematics problem on the blackboard, Will solves the problem anonymously, surprising both the students and Lambeau. Lambeau comes up with an even more difficult assignment as a challenge to the unknown genius. Will flees the scene when Lambeau finds him writing the solution to the complex problem on the blackboard late at night. Further in one of the scenes, Will reaches out to psychiatrist, Dr. Sean Maguireto who helps him recover from Will’s childhood emotional trauma.