"I just wanted to be on the show."
"I just wanted to be on the show."
STARRING
Ellen Burstyn
Jared Leto
Jennifer Connelly
Marlon Wayans
Directed by Darren Aronofsky, Not Rated
There are lots of movies out there. Some of these movies are good. Some are bad. Some are merely mediocre. Yet they all have one thing in common: they’re just movies. They’re not real. The characters you watch on the screen aren’t actual human beings, their situations don’t exist. There is always a line separating the movie from reality, the fiction from the non-fiction.
But every once in a while, a movie comes along that is different from the rest. Every once in a while, a filmmaker will find a way to transcend the boundary between film and reality. The characters, though fictional, seem like actual human beings you might casually pass on the street. The situations, though imaginative, seem as real and pressing as any situation that might actually happen outside the comfort of a movie theater or home. Somehow, though the audience knows it’s just a story, they are sucked into a world where the lines between fiction and reality are blurred and, for a few hours, what they are watching ceases to be “just a movie,” and becomes instead a portal into a universe that, though not quite our own, might as well be.
Requiem for a Dream is such a movie.
This movie is not a movie in the sense that it is not meant as a source of entertainment. It is perhaps as far from an entertaining movie as one could get. It is not funny, or sweet, or thrilling in the “wow-that’s-so-cool” sense of the word. It is not meant to make you feel good. Rather, it is a disturbing, graphic and haunting look at something we all face every day, in one form or another.
The movie follows four individuals as their lives are shattered by drugs and greed. There’s Sara Goldfarb, an old woman who does nothing but sit around and watch tv all day. When she’s given a chance to appear on television she begins to obsessively do all she can to lose weight, including taking some mysterious pills that are more than they first appear. Her son, Harry, along with his girlfriend Marion and buddy Tyrone, is trying to get rich quick by distributing illegal drugs. Naturally, they aren’t above the occasional testing of their merchandise. It isn’t long before all four of these characters discover the harsh reality of addiction as their lives spiral down into desperation and despair.
Darren Aronofsky is unflinching in his presentation of the dark world of drugs and addiction. In its un-edited form, this film is Not Rated, and for good reason. This movie is simply too graphic and its situations too disturbing to warrant an R rating. Aronofsky makes no effort to “soften up” the effect drugs can have on people – he shows it like it is, which may be too much for some people.
This movie gives a new meaning to the phrase “visual masterpiece.” It contains some of the most creative and visually intriguing shots in cinema. This movie must have taken forever to shoot – some of the shots undoubtedly took hours and hours to set up. Whether it be through the use of split-screen, changing speed, or simply moving the camera in a unique manner, Aronofsky pulls the viewer into his world and doesn’t let go until the bitter end.
The acting is phenomenal, another testimony to the abilities of the director. Ellen Burstyn deserved her Oscar nomination for her performance as a sweet old woman who gradually slides into obsession and madness. Leto and Connelly have great chemistry as a couple trying to get rich in order to support their drug addiction. Connelly in particular is astounding; her character is forced into the darkest and most disturbing situations of any character, and her performance comes out without a scratch. Even Marlon Wayans, famous for his superficial, comedic roles rather than as a serious actor, adds emotion and depth to his character. The great acting goes a long way into making the movie such a haunting and memorable piece of art.
At its core, this movie is about addiction, and not just addiction to drugs. Aronofsky critiques the addiction of society in general. We all are addicted to certain desires and experiences, from the desire to look good, to a need for popularity and acceptance, to a craving for money and power. Aronofsky doesn’t imply that such desire are bad in and of themselves. However, he does present the idea that, when pushed to the extreme, these desires can become personal addictions that have the destructive power the lives of ourselves and others. I have a feeling that if this movie was shown to every person arrested on drug charges, it would do a lot in convincing them to get clean. Yet it also isn’t limited to commenting on drugs, but on all of the little addictions we all have, and that make up a part of our everyday lives.
This isn’t a fun movie. It isn’t entertaining. However, after watching it, I was glad I did. Aronofsky has crafted an incredible movie about slavery to desires inside ourselves, and approaches the subject in the best way possible: by not being afraid to take the viewer outside of themselves and into a world inhabited with characters and situations they’re afraid to see. This movie is graphic. This movie is dark. This movie is at times extremely disturbing. And yet, that’s exactly the point. Sometimes it is only by being disturbed that we can recognize the same forces we see on screen in our own lives.
The Bottom Line: A masterpiece. It deserves a 10/10. Aronofsky is a director to keep an eye on.
Should I see it? As long as you recognize that this movie is extremely graphic and will most likely disturb you, then yes. This is a movie that will haunt you for days after you see it, but that I think you will be glad to have watched. If you’re worried about the content, there is an R-rated Edited version out there that cuts out the more graphic shots.