Not as good as everyone thinks

Rating: 5/10 (30 September 2003)

I know I'm in the minority on this, but I found this movie to be more hype than content. This to me, is a classic example that just because a movie ultra-realistically depicts the ups and downs of addiction, doesn't make it good. The acting is fantastic, especially Ellen Burstyn and Jared Leto, who in my opinion gives the best performance of his young career, but at times, especially the end, this movie seems to get morbid just for shock value. I find myself not rooting for the character, but just waiting for it to end. While it realistically shows the lives of four people, all reaching out for their dreams, there is really no hope that they'll succeed, they all seems doomed to failure from the beginning, and redemption seems to be nowhere in sight.