The 1001 Movie Club is a conglomerate of film bloggers inspired by the phenomenal book 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die, the title of which is fairly self explanatory. A tome of cinematic information and recommendation, it is a bible for movie buffs, and over the next few days, myself and the other members of the club will be reviewing four of the acclaimed films that can be found within its pages. Be sure to visit the club’s site where the reviews will be collected and an aggregate score bestowed, and if you are so inclined, feel free to join in on the fun.REQUIEM FOR A DREAM (2000)
Genre: Drama
Director: Darren Aronofsky
Starring: Jared Leto, Ellen Burstyn, Jennifer Connelly, Marlon Wayans, Christopher McDonald
Running Time: 102 minutes
Based on the 1978 novel of the same name, Darren Aronofsky’s follow up to his debut feature Pi is a dark and distressing tale about the perils of addiction, and is undoubtedly one of the most visually and aurally distinctive films of the past decade. Requiem for a Dream follows four Coney Islanders – Harry, his girlfriend Marion, best friend Tyrone and mother Sara – over three seasons – summer, fall and winter – as they attempt to live with their addictions before finally being overwhelmed by the unforeseen yet inevitable consequences of their decisions. Dealing with themes of desperation, delusion, selfishness and human weakness, Requiem for a Dream is at times unflinchingly bleak; it’s depiction of the horrors of drug use will put you on the straight and narrow faster than any afterschool special. In all honestly, it may well be one of the most depressing movies ever made. It is also one of the best.The movie opens with Harry stealing his mother television set so that he can afford to buy heroin. As we soon come to understand this is not the first time this has occurred, with even the pawnbroker from whom Sara is forced to buy back her set time and time again advising her to go to the police. But of course she does not. This is Requiem in a nutshell; a vicious cycle in which desperation causes people to turn on those they love just to feed their habit. Harry and Tyrone decide to go into the drug trade, with Harry planning to use his share of the profits to help Marion start up her own fashion store. But with the three junkies burning quickly through their own supply, it’s not long before the seasons begin to turn for the young entrepreneurs and they find themselves going to more and more desperate lengths to find a fix.
Leto, Connelly and Wayans as Harry, Marion and Tyrone respectively all give career best performances as the three young heroin addicts. But they are all of them overshadowed by Ellen Burstyn as Harry aging mother Sara, a lonely widow with an addiction of a very different kind. Spending her days watching infomercials and talking to her dead husband Seymour, Sara’s life is changed dramatically when she gets a phone call telling her she “has already won”. Now with the chance to appear on television herself, Sara decides to start taking diet pills and quickly becomes lost in a terrifying world of hallucinations. Burstyn’s characterization of Sara will break your heart. The scene in which Harry comes to visit her and she explains that the television and the red dress give her “a reason to get up in the morning” is one of the finest pieces of acting I have ever seen.Of course that scene is also notable for its distinctive lack of cuts and edits, something that is certainly atypical for this film. Aronofsky’s directorial approach in Requiem is unique; extreme close ups, split screen, time lapse, smash cuts and frantic split second editing all give the viewer the sensation of “pushing off” with the films characters. The obvious similarities between Harry and Tyrone’s heroin use and Sara’s addiction to television are highlighted by similarities in the editing and sound effects when, as they reach for the needle, she reaches for the remote. And of course, Clint Mansell mesmerizing score is probably one of the most recognizable film scores ever written, and its presence in the film always indicates that tragedy is just around the corner. On top of the moving story and the magnificent acting, Requiem for a Dream is a full blown sensory experience, and will leave viewers disoriented and afraid. Having never used hard drugs I cannot say how well the film replicates heroin use, but along with maybe Trainspotting, Requiem for a Dream is the most frightening depiction of drug use I have ever seen.
As I’ve said, this might be one of the most despairing films ever made. Aside from the tragedies that befall the four lead characters, the movie is filled with selfish, parasitic minor characters who represent the absolute worst of human behavior. The doctor who prescribes Sara her weight loss pills without even looking up from his clipboard (and the cynical irony of the line “I can see you’re a little overweight”). The pimp who tells Marion will foul certainty that he will “see you Sunday” after he humiliates her by trading drugs for oral sex. Even the friendly Mr. Rabinowitz, sympathetic to Sara, is not above purchasing her stolen television and then selling it back to her at an inflated price. Finally there is what I cite as one of the most telling moments in the entire film, when a doctor, after examining Harry’s arm which has become severely infected from incorrect needle technique, chooses to hide the narcotics in his office and call the police. This is not a film where people help each other.The worst thing of all is that none of the main characters are bad people. As is made very clear early in the film, Harry and Marion truly love each, and make plans for a bright future, and while even though Harry does steal from his mother, he always tries to make it up to her. But the problem is that he and all of the others are weak, and none of them are ever willing to take responsibility. Marion begs Harry to let her get high of of their working drug load, and then blames him when they don’t have any the next day; of course, his only response is that how he could he be expected to watch her shoot up and not push off himself? Sara chooses rather than to stick with her diet to take drugs, and Harry, after visiting her and witnessing her near emotional breakdown, does what? Does he stay and comfort her, or try and get her off the pills? No. Instead he shoots up in the back of a cab, and spends the ride home blank faced and hollow eyed. No, these are not evil people. What they are is weak and selfish, and this is what destroys them.
As the story reaches its climax, the editing becomes faster and faster, cutting between images more and more brutal, before Harry finally disappears into a dream. What then follows is one of the best sequences ever put to film. The final montage, in which each of the characters curls up into the fetal position before Sara finally gets her moment on stage, is as close to emotional perfection as any film has ever gotten. You cannot watch the end of Requiem for a Dream and then just move on with you life; this movie will leave you devastated. I love stylish film making, and along with Fight Club and Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, I would put Requiem up there as a movie I could watch once a day just to appreciate what Aronofsky does with the camera. But if I ever tried, I have no doubt that I would slit my wrists before the week was out. Never the less, Requiem for a Dream is one of the most effective, powerful and impressive movies of the modern era.Score
10/10
So does it deserve to be in the book?
Without question. Not only is it, I feel, one of the best movies ever made, it is also a hullucinatory experience unlike no other. There are so many aspects of the film that make it brilliant; the acting, the direction and of course the story itself. The is one of the most important films you will ever see.
Please note: seeing as my copy of Raising Arizona did not arrive in time, I will not be reviewing it. Thus this ends my commitment this month to the 1001 Movie Club. I hope you have enjoyed reading my reviews and I encourage you to check out the other members of the club for some different perspectives.
