Directed by:
Darren AronofskyCinematography:
Matthew LibatiqueComposer:
Clint MansellCast:
Ellen Burstyn, Jared Leto, Jennifer Connelly, Marlon Wayans, Christopher McDonald, Louise Lasser, Marcia Jean Kurtz, Suzanne Shepherd, Mark Margolis (more)VOD (3)
Plots(1)
Based on the novel by Hubert Selby Jr, the film follows heroin addicts Harry (Jared Leto) and Tyrone (Marlon Wayans) as they look to make some cash as drug dealers. Accompanied by Harry's girlfriend Marion (Jennifer Connelly), the trio attempt to get their business off the ground but are soon hit by a number of problems. With their Florida supplier cutting back on distribution and Tyrone sent to jail for his involvement in a gang shooting, Harry is forced to travel to Miami to try and score the drugs while Marion is forced into prostitution in order to feed her habit. Meanwhile, Harry's mother Sara (Ellen Burstyn) becomes addicted to weight loss pills and is hospitalised after suffering from debilitating hallucinations. The cast also includes Christopher McDonald, Louise Lasser and Marcia Jean Kurtz. (Lionsgate UK)
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Reviews (13)
Huge, and followed just after the end of the movie by an indescribable depression about addiction to anything, with incredible performances by the main foursome. Darren Aronofsky's amazing directing, full of captivating visual ideas, makes this film an unforgettable masterpiece.
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Darren Aronofsky’s directorial inventiveness is incredible. Can anyone else ever reflect human feelings so brilliantly using only camerawork, editing and music? The acting is also excellent – Ellen Burstyn’s performance ranks among the best that I have every seen. But still that’s not enough for me. Requiem for a Dream is a devastating mosaic of somewhat gratuitous misery. It is not the deep, existential and timeless philosophical reflection that it could have been. Which, given its extraordinary formalistic qualities, is a shame.
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When I saw the British cult film Trainspotting in the mid-90s, I was literally overwhelmed by its overview and deep exploration of the world of junkies and their survival in this world. And above all, I had a sense of authenticity throughout the film, given that the author of the book, Irvine Welsh, had firsthand knowledge of the scene, being intimately familiar with the life of the junkie community and the drug culture, and having tried drugs more than once. When I watched Requiem for a Dream, my initial impression was complete annoyance at the fact that the screenwriter was openly making a fool out of me, because only someone who may occasionally snort a line of cocaine at a glamorous celebrity party, not someone who knows the phenomenon of the drug world and junkies from personal experience, could come up with such nonsense and detachment from the subject matter. I was not familiar with Darren Aronofsky's work and did not know what to expect from him. But from the first moment, I got the feeling that his directorial style was overly exaggerated, with an obvious attempt to shock and emotionally manipulate the viewer. His music video-like style with fast cuts, slow motion, and most notably, the speeding up of the camera and overall excessive stylization reminded me of the film Spun, but that film primarily aimed to entertain and did not pretend to convey any grand message. Aronofsky's characters are only loosely sketched and, above all, they do nonsensical things. Building the main storyline on the absolute lack of heroin in the middle of New York City, which is the most lucrative drug market in the world and daily supplies a huge number of drug trafficking networks, is simply ridiculous. If the story took place in a sleepy town somewhere in the Midwest, I could easily identify with it, where one broken gang can truly drive many addicts to despair. Then there are plenty of logical errors, like the arrest of the junkie duo - since they weren't carrying drugs, they probably got busted for parking violations. :-) The main character gets sepsis from an infected and swollen vein, which is another absurdity because a junkie like him knows perfectly well where to inject the drug, and it's usually not even the arm because it's too visible - I could go on and on. When I read the reviews from film fans, I felt like I was sitting on a bus while others claimed that I was in psychiatric care. Well, maybe they are right... Overall impression: 35%. For me, this is one of the most overrated films on FilmBooster.
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Aronofsky’s audio-visual approach makes use of absolutely all of his medium’s means of expression in order to totally and mercilessly overwhelm the audience. One of the many fitting aspects of this film consists in how long everything is seemingly fine in the lives of the characters and then the sudden realisation that they’ve been treading water in an ocean of hopelessness. We are all dependent on something and we create delusions to justify and even feed our dependencies without having to see the reality around us. It’s easy to find everyone or at least a reflection of someone close to you in the four lives depicted in Requiem for a Dream. During the closing credits, there is nothing left to do but curl up in a ball and keep dreaming your dream. Though first contact with this film is unrivalled in terms of the intensity of its impact, seeing it again after roughly two decades is no easier or more merciful, because then you know what awaits the characters.
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It's brilliant filmmaking, but its excessive darkness is its biggest weakness. Aronofsky, as co-writer of the screenplay, in an attempt to play on the darkest possible string, committed several screenwriting blunders, and very big ones at that. However, if I had to pick one drug-themed movie out of all the ones I wanted to use to discourage my potential offspring from using drugs, it would pick this one. It's not nearly as sophisticated and complex as, say, Traffic, and it's leaky script-wise, but it's so disgusting in its depiction of the consequences of drug use that it would have served its purpose perfectly.
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