Requiem for a Dream
3.5/4
Starring: Jared Leto, Marlon Wayans, Jennifer Connelly, Ellen Burstyn, Christopher McDonald
Not Rated (MPAA rating was surrendered after it was given an NC-17, probably for Graphic Drug Use, Strong Language and Sexuality and for Disturbing Images)
Of "Requiem for a Dream," the late great Roger Ebert said that it "plays like a travelogue of hell." I couldn't have put it better myself.
Movies about addiction are fairly common place. However, they usually don't get this visceral. In order to portray the mindset of a quartet of addicts, director Darren Aronofsky made his film appear to be told by an addict. It is energetic, it is raw and it is maddening. This is by intent. "Requiem for a Dream" is unflinching in its depiction of four people who lose everything in the desperate need of a fix.
The film follows four people who are addicts of various substances. Harry Goldfarb (Leto), his girlfriend Marion Silver (Connelly) and his best friend Tyrone (Wayans) are all heroin junkies. Harry's mother Sara (Burstyn) is addicted to the TV, specifically a snake oil salesman by the name of Tappy Tibbons (McDonald). They all have their lives together, or at least enough to where they can get by day by day. All are dreamers with simple goals: Harry and Tyrone want to make one big score to set themselves up with enough cash to live on easy street. Marion wants to open up a dress shop. And Sara wants to lose weight so she can appear on TV with Tappy in her favorite red dress (to do this, she goes to a doctor to get amphetamines). By the end of the film, all four of them will be living a nightmare, one that may not end after the end credits.
The four lead performances are superb. All of them submerge themselves into their roles with no thought of vanity. None of them are spared from Arnofsky's vision of despair and degradation; we se the ugly, the uglier, and the downright horrific. Of the cast, the flashiest performance is given by Ellen Burstyn. Sara does not have all her mental faculties intact when the film starts, so she's easy prey for false promises of appearing on TV and dieting quick-fixes. She's the most tragic character; taken advantage of (willfully or not) by everyone around her and losing her mind as a result. Leto, Connelly and Wayans are all excellent, but Burstyn is the one everyone remembers. Burstyn considers her performance here her greatest accomplishment. As well she should. This is arresting work, and she was awarded an Oscar nomination for her efforts (losing to Julia Roberts for "Erin Brockovich").
Darren Aronofsky is clearly drawn to characters who are losing their minds. His debut film, "Pi," was about an obsessed mathematician. "Black Swan" was about a delusional ballerina. Here, in his most famous film, he takes an unsparing look at four people whose entire existence becomes about acquiring a certain substance. To show this, Aronofsky uses film and storytelling techniques to get us inside the minds of the characters. Flash edits, cutaways, dividing the screen into sections each with their own image, and blurring the line between fantasy and reality. I know I've used this term a lot recently and I hope not to make it a cliché, but in this case it is warranted. "Requiem for a Dream" is an experience. We vicariously live the trials and tribulations of the characters without physically doing it. It is something that few people can shake. The physical impact of watching the film is brutal, which is a good thing since it covers some (but not all) of the film's plot holes.
The MPAA, in its infinite wisdom, gave the film an NC-17. Aronofsky appealed but lost. Fortunately, the distributor refused to cut it, believing (correctly) that the film's message and impact would be diluted by doing so. At first glance, their stance makes sense. There is a lot of strong stuff here, with many scenes causing even me, who has a strong stomach for this stuff, to flinch. But considering the context (this is just about as anti-drug as you can get), should there be a line in the sand for a movie that is certain to prevent a lot of people from trying drugs?
Starring: Jared Leto, Marlon Wayans, Jennifer Connelly, Ellen Burstyn, Christopher McDonald
Not Rated (MPAA rating was surrendered after it was given an NC-17, probably for Graphic Drug Use, Strong Language and Sexuality and for Disturbing Images)
Of "Requiem for a Dream," the late great Roger Ebert said that it "plays like a travelogue of hell." I couldn't have put it better myself.
Movies about addiction are fairly common place. However, they usually don't get this visceral. In order to portray the mindset of a quartet of addicts, director Darren Aronofsky made his film appear to be told by an addict. It is energetic, it is raw and it is maddening. This is by intent. "Requiem for a Dream" is unflinching in its depiction of four people who lose everything in the desperate need of a fix.
The film follows four people who are addicts of various substances. Harry Goldfarb (Leto), his girlfriend Marion Silver (Connelly) and his best friend Tyrone (Wayans) are all heroin junkies. Harry's mother Sara (Burstyn) is addicted to the TV, specifically a snake oil salesman by the name of Tappy Tibbons (McDonald). They all have their lives together, or at least enough to where they can get by day by day. All are dreamers with simple goals: Harry and Tyrone want to make one big score to set themselves up with enough cash to live on easy street. Marion wants to open up a dress shop. And Sara wants to lose weight so she can appear on TV with Tappy in her favorite red dress (to do this, she goes to a doctor to get amphetamines). By the end of the film, all four of them will be living a nightmare, one that may not end after the end credits.
The four lead performances are superb. All of them submerge themselves into their roles with no thought of vanity. None of them are spared from Arnofsky's vision of despair and degradation; we se the ugly, the uglier, and the downright horrific. Of the cast, the flashiest performance is given by Ellen Burstyn. Sara does not have all her mental faculties intact when the film starts, so she's easy prey for false promises of appearing on TV and dieting quick-fixes. She's the most tragic character; taken advantage of (willfully or not) by everyone around her and losing her mind as a result. Leto, Connelly and Wayans are all excellent, but Burstyn is the one everyone remembers. Burstyn considers her performance here her greatest accomplishment. As well she should. This is arresting work, and she was awarded an Oscar nomination for her efforts (losing to Julia Roberts for "Erin Brockovich").
Darren Aronofsky is clearly drawn to characters who are losing their minds. His debut film, "Pi," was about an obsessed mathematician. "Black Swan" was about a delusional ballerina. Here, in his most famous film, he takes an unsparing look at four people whose entire existence becomes about acquiring a certain substance. To show this, Aronofsky uses film and storytelling techniques to get us inside the minds of the characters. Flash edits, cutaways, dividing the screen into sections each with their own image, and blurring the line between fantasy and reality. I know I've used this term a lot recently and I hope not to make it a cliché, but in this case it is warranted. "Requiem for a Dream" is an experience. We vicariously live the trials and tribulations of the characters without physically doing it. It is something that few people can shake. The physical impact of watching the film is brutal, which is a good thing since it covers some (but not all) of the film's plot holes.
The MPAA, in its infinite wisdom, gave the film an NC-17. Aronofsky appealed but lost. Fortunately, the distributor refused to cut it, believing (correctly) that the film's message and impact would be diluted by doing so. At first glance, their stance makes sense. There is a lot of strong stuff here, with many scenes causing even me, who has a strong stomach for this stuff, to flinch. But considering the context (this is just about as anti-drug as you can get), should there be a line in the sand for a movie that is certain to prevent a lot of people from trying drugs?
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