It’s pretty rare that a film can make you stand back and shake your head in awe. It’s not that Requiem for a Dream is a perfect film, but it’s one of the more unique pieces of cinema to come along in quite awhile.

Director Darren Aronofsky debuted in 1998 with the independent film Pi, the kind of film that true fans of the medium are supposed to love. It bugged the crap out of me. It was frenetic, redundant and way too pretentious for my taste. In watching Requiem, it’s clear that Aronofsky utilizes many of the same directorial tricks that he honed in his first work, but at a much better level, and it’s wildly more effective.

Requiem is a film about addiction, and how it impacts four residents of Coney Island over the course of several months. Sara Goldfarb (Ellen Burstyn) is addicted to her TV, addicted to the memory of her dead husband, addicted to the memory of having something to live for. Her son Harry (Jared Leto) is addicted to far more tangible things, namely heroin, an addiction he shares (along with other assorted drugs) with his girlfriend Marion (Jennifer Connelly) and friend Ty (Marlon Wayans.) Ty and Harry are low-level drug dealers, mainly dealing to keep their own drug habits up, but also to foster their other addiction: a dream of a better life, where they don't have to work so hard to get so little.

Soon, Sara gets a call informing her that she has been selected to be a contestant on TV, and she goes to put on the red dress she wore to Harry’s graduation. She’s much heavier now, and she panics, as she can’t fit into the dress. One of her friends (Louise Lasser) tells her of a doctor who prescribes pills that make the weight just fall off. Of course, the doctor (who subtly but wonderfully doesn’t even make eye contact with Sara) is prescribing speed, as well as a narcotic to take before bedtime.

Quite quickly, all four characters in the film are descending into the wonderful world of drug addiction. But Aronofsky (and co-writer Hubert Selby Jr.) keeps this from being just another anti-drug film, or even worse a Movie Of The Week. While we do see some of the pleasures of the drugs, we also see plenty of the downsides – vicious, graphic, and emotionally harrowing scenes. But, it’s never preachy, instead an inevitable sequence of events.

The tactics that Aronofsky uses to set the tone for his film are clever camera angles, quick cut editing (specifically when characters are shooting up or popping pills), split screens, and paranoiac soundtracks. In almost all cases it works, though when it doesn’t, it evokes a bit of the annoyance of Pi.

What truly makes Requiem a success is the acting, specifically of Ellen Burstyn. First and foremost, it’s rare that an actor or actress lets themselves by shown on screen looking so terrible, but Burstyn shines because we see her go from a troubled mother with a warm heart to a rambling, insane drug addict – and it’s truly tragic. In an early scene, when she has started losing weight but is confronted by Harry who realizes she’s on speed, Burstyn really breaks the viewers collective heart. She mentions how the opportunity to be on TV has changed her life.

Sara: I'm somebody now, Harry. Everybody likes me. Soon, millions of people will see me and they'll all like me. I'll tell them about you, and your father, how good he was to us. Remember? It's a reason to get up in the morning. It's a reason to lose weight, to fit in the red dress. It's a reason to smile. It makes tomorrow all right. What have I got Harry, hm? Why should I even make the bed, or wash the dishes? I do them, but why should I? I'm alone. Your father's gone, you're gone. I got no one to care for. What have I got, Harry? I'm lonely. I'm old.
Harry: You got friends, Ma.
Sara: Ah, it's not the same. They don't need me. I like the way I feel. I like thinking about the red dress and the television and you and your father. Now when I get the sun, I smile.

While we do get to emotionally connect with the other characters, it's never at this wrenching level. We see the tenderness between Harry and Marion (specifically, in one scene that evokes memories of Run Lola Run, we see the two side by side in bed. However, in Aronofsky's style, the screen is split, so we can see their palms grazing each other, closeups of their skin, etc. It's both effective and evocative.) We learn even less about Ty, aside from a touching memory he has of being with his mother.

What are nice are the surprising efforts from Leto and Wayans – I admit readily that when I saw their names scroll by in the opening credits, I groaned. Leto in particular has never struck me as anything but a Johnny Depp clone, and Marlon Wayans…well, wasn’t he in that movie Senseless? Enough said. But both of them are quite good here, especially Leto who dons a capable New York accent and puts together his best performance to date.* Jennifer Connelly is…sigh. It really embarrasses me to realize that I can't even start talking about her acting performances without talking about her stunning beauty and (ahem) related assets. Despite that, and the fact that she is in fact naked at points in the film, she is definitely not glamorized here. Instead, she gets the opportunity to really shine as an actress, something I honestly can't remember her being given a chance to do of late. It's a solid performance, and (although I already know how this sentence is going to sound) I hope to see more of Connelly soon. (Yup, you saw it coming too, didn't you?) Christopher MacDonald plays a TV pitchman, in the style of a Tony Robbins or Tom Vu (remember that guy?), and although it's a minor role, he is perfect for the part.

The directorial style, as noted above, is the other true standout of the film, though it does sometimes get tiresome and even misplaced at times. While Sara's delusions of her refrigerator literally jumping at her were actually quite startling and disturbing at times, at other times it's a bit over the top. There comes a point where the refrigerator reminded me of nothing so much as the man-eating plant from Little Shop of Horrors, which I imagine is not the desired intent.

All in all, Requiem for a Dream is the kind of film that will inevitably move you, and most fans of film will enjoy it both from the way the story is told and the acting. Burstyn is, as noted, particularly wonderful, and Aronofsky certainly looks like a director worth watching. It’s not a film for everyone – both the graphic scenes and content are enough to turn many folks away – but for those that appreciate it, it’s a solid achievement.


* Note: I may have to rethink my statement from my American Psycho review in which I stated: In fact, I think this movie finally ends the argument that Leto only gets work when a studio can’t convince Johnny Depp to take the role. (“Oh, Depp is busy? Get that kid Leto. He’ll do anything. Oh, and if he’s not available, get that kid Skeet Ulrich.”)


Recommended:
Yes

Suitability For Children: Not suitable for Children of any age