Extras: Director's Commentary, Deleted Scenes (with Director's Commentary),
Tappy Tippon's Life Story Feature, "Making Of Requiem For A Dream" (Documentary
with Director's Commentary), "Memories, Dreams & Addictions" (Interview by
Ellen Burstyn), Anatomy Of A Scene, Theatrical Trailer, TV Spots
Director:
Darren Aronofsky
(Pi)
Producer:
Eric Watson & Palmer West
Screenplay:
Hubert Selby, Jr & Darren Aronofsky
(Based on the novel by Hubert Selby, Jr.)
Music:
Clint Mansell
(with string quartets performed by Kronos Quartet)
Cinematographers:
John Alcott & Geoffrey Unsworth
Director Of Photography:
Matthew Libatique
Editor:
Jay Rabinowitz, A.C.E
Cast:
Sara Goldfarb: Ellen Burstyn
Harry Goldfarb: Jared Leto
Marion Silver: Jennifer Connelly
Tyrone C. Love: Marlon Wayans
Tappy Tibbons: Christopher MacDonald
Requiem For A Dream follows the everyday lives of four citizens of Coney
Island; couch-potato Sara Goldfarb, her son Harry (a closet drug-addict),
his fellow junkie girlfriend Marion, and their mutual addict friend Tyrone.
The film chronciles a full year as their personal addictions gradually ruin
their lives.
Darren Aronofsky's first major Hollywood production following his indie-hit
Pi, is a startling and unsettling movie that disturbs and enthralls in
equal measure. Aronofsky proves himself to be highly adept at visual/audio
movie-making, employing the grittiness and technical wizardy of David
Fincher (Seven) and Guy Ritchie (Snatch) with the tangible atmospherics
of David Lynch (Blue Velvet).
The narrative of the film is very straight-forward, and intentionally so.
Aronofsky perfectly shows the mundanity and depressive underworld of drug
addiction, and never lets it achieve a quasi-coolness a la
Trainspotting.
Above all else, Requiem For A Dream should be mandatory viewing for anyone
with a drug problem, or anyone thinking of entering that costly lifestyle.
Aronosfky's film utilizes almost every trick in the filmmaking book;
slow-motion, time-lapse, mutliple split-screens... creating a gruelling
sensory experience that captures the altered state of consciousness each
character enters into at various points throughout the film. At times,
Aronofsky's over-reliance on visuals goes too far, especially when the
acting becomes lost amongst breakneck editing, but for the most part it's an
effective tool.
Performances are exemplory across the board. Ellen Burstyn is wonderful as
Sara Goldfarb, the smothering urban mother who's struggling to stick to a
diet for her appearance on television. Burstyn was nominated for an Oscar in
2001 and it's quite simply a travesty that she didn't win... with every
passing minute she excels in her role. Certainly surpassing what Julia
Roberts' performance in
Erin Brockovich!
Jared Leto and Jennifer Connelly are also impressive. The underrated Leto
holds the screen with his boyish goodlooks and quiet demeanour, while
Connelly exudes a sassy charm that hides her character's more calculating
nature. Marlon Wayans is also a revelation in a dramatic role, as he's known
mainly for his comic roles in films such as
Scary Movie.
Sadly, his
character is given short thrift compared to the others, and never becomes a
dominant player, but the screentime he is given he makes good use of.
With a unanimously perfect acting quarter, sublime imagery, powerful audio
and sheer courage to tackle its subject matter, Requiem For A Dream is a
great movie. However, it's very... *very*... downbeat. I'd have to say this
is probably the most frown-inducing film I've ever seen. The oppressive
atmosphere and depths of despair the characters sink to is so experly
brought to life, the film literally leaves you numb afterwards. The final 20
minutes in particular are frighteningly sick, and perhaps the best
anti-drugs advert ever made.
Musically, the film's score is mainly comprised of about 2-4 main tracks
that burn a hole in your head with their regular beats and ice cool
atmospherics. The score was obviously designed to irritate and get inside
your mind with its distinctive sound and nightmarish repetition... and it
works wonderfully well with the movie's imagery. Scary stuff.
Overall then, Requiem For A Dream is a fantastic movie on almost every
level, although its plot could perhaps have been better expanded. As it is,
the film is a well crafted visual odyssey supported with great performances
and while it's never a *pleasure* to watch, and unlikely to be the kind of
film you'd *want* to watch again (unless you're in a particularly happy mood
you want to get rid of!), the power it encapsulates sucks you into its
narrative and slowly builds to a blisteringly punishing third Act that makes
it unforgettable, powerful, movie-making. Aronofosky is a talent to watch.
The DVD Extras are a satisfying companion to the film, providing the key
ingredients a film like this mostly deserves: directory's commentary,
deleted scenes, and a "making of" documentary. However, we are missing the
Region 1 Director Of Photography's Commentary by Matthew Libatique.
The menu screen is stylish, and choosing an option plays one of the rapidly
edited sequences from the film. The Extra's are found under the heading
'JUICE' and comprise:
Director's Commentary:
Darren Aronofsky comments on his movie, managing to give some good
insights on the gruelling movie, although it would have been nice if
members of the cast were also available to give their thoughts.
Anatomy Of A Scene:
Director Darren Aronofsky provides insight into the making of certain
scenes of the movie, which proves to be very interesting and certainly
worth watching.
Making Of "Requiem For A Dream":
One of those excellent behind-the-scenes documentaries filmed on camcorder
by a crewmember, with commentary later added by Darren Aronofsky. The
problem with the properly sanctioned "making of" docs is that they're
usually geared towards selling the movie, so come across as interesting
promotional adverts... but these 'dirtier' "making of" docs are far more
interesting and provide a keen insight on the film's creation. Aronofsky
gives a good commentary, too.
Deleted Scenes:
The half-dozen or so deleted scenes are mostly part of the same segement
cut from the film, and are interesting but deservedly absent from the
movie. Aronofosky's commentary gives added interest.
Tappy Tippon's Life Story Feature:
This novel feature is basically the TV show infomercial starring
Christopher MacDonald that Ellen Burstyn watches every day. It's a blackly
humorous satire on crass American "edutainment" and worth a watch - although
it's a little long.
Memories, Dreams & Addictions:
Ellen Burstyn interviews the film's writer Hubert Selby, Jr. Quite an
interesting little interview, although hardly compelling viewing.
Theatrical Trailer:
Excellent trailer that manages to communicate the tone of the film very
well with its use of snappy visuals.
TV Spots:
Basically, the trailer re-edited with a voice-over and review quotes for
use during commercial breaks on American TV. Very stylish, very
accomplished, however.
Overall, a strong DVD package that benefits the movie and provides some good
insight into the creation process behind Requiem For A Dream. Heartily
recommended.
As of April 2009, Blu-rays and DVDs reviewed by the editor are watched on a Panasonic TH-37PX80B
37" Plasma TV with a Sony BDP-1500 Blu-ray player and played through a Yamaha DSP-AX820 amplifier.
PC games reviewed by the editor are on:
Since Jan 2011: Intel Quad Core Dell XPS 8100, i7 CPU 860 @ 2.80Ghz, 8Gb RAM, nVidia GeForce GTS 240, Windows 7
Since Nov 2005: Intel Pentium D 830 3.0Ghz, 1Gb RAM, 128Mb nVidia GeForce 6700XL, Windows XP
Since Aug 2003: Intel Pentium 4 2.66Ghz, 512Mb RAM, 128Mb GeForce4 MX440 graphics, Windows XP
Since May 2003: Intel Pentium 4 2.6Ghz, 512Mb RAM, 128Mb ATI Radeon 9600TX graphics, Windows XP
Since Jun 2002: Intel Pentium III 600Mhz, 384Mb RAM, Windows 98 SE, 64Mb ATI Radeon 8500LE
Since May 2000: Intel Pentium III 600Mhz, 384Mb RAM, Windows 98 SE, Voodoo 3 3000 AGP
