Requiem For A Dream

Before I begin, allow me a moment to breathe, because I wasn't really afforded a chance to do so between the opening title sequence and the closing credits. This tragic tale of four strung-out losers on a downward spiral is an orgy of sound, sight and cinematic achievement that shakes and shocks its viewers into a state of total understanding and total disbelief. \nPropelled by a dizzying array of intense images, trick editing and a great classical score, Sara (Ellen Burstyn), her son Harry (Jared Leto), his best friend Tyrone (Marlon Wayans) and his girlfriend Marion (Jennifer Connelly) fall downward into the depths of a living hell while in pursuit of a hollow version of the American dream. \n"Requiem for a Dream" is at heart a film that puts its viewers into the heads of drug addicts. Even with the strong showings by the film's three young stars, it is veteran Burstyn who gives the most compelling performance. Sara, who is battling her own addiction with television, redirects her life toward getting on TV and finally "being someone." Burstyn fully conveys a sense of naïve desperation that makes her possibly the most pathetic and tragic character I have ever viewed on screen.\nWhile "Requiem's acting is great, the moods of its characters are often revealed through director Darren Aronofsky's cinematic techniques. Aronofsky has made a film that doesn't make its viewer sympathize with the characters, but instead empathize. As they stumble down their paths to nowhere, the viewer is forced into their heads and taken along for the ride whether they like it or not. The film dreamily floats between scenes and sometimes allows just the actors' facial expressions and the music to illustrate their feelings.\nLeto, Wayans and Connelly are magnetic as three young heroin addicts looking for a "big score." But as their dreams and Sara's slowly unravel, the viewer is taken on a journey that is both repellent and compelling in nature. A must-see for anyone looking for something new and original, but not for the squeamish.