disturbingly powerful

Rating: Null/10 (13 June 2001)

Much like "Leaving Las Vegas", which also deals with addiction, this film relies on disturbing and shocking elements from which to draw its power and effectiveness. No, I didn't think it is a film with a "just say no" message. Neither this is a "Trainspotting" clone, because here you are not an outsider taking a journey with a psychedelic twist through the world of heroin-addicts, but are, on the other hand, thrown right in, without the safety line. "Requiem for a Dream" is an "as is" portrayal of drug addiction and its consequences, most of which you will recognize, as they have been done before. (Minor spoilers for the next paragraph)
The descent to prostitution ("The Panic in Needle Park") for example, and the reality of the so-called socially-acceptable drugs ("doctor please, some more of these, outside the door, she took four more, what a drag it is getting old").
But the way in which the subject matter is dealt with is very original and effective, because it's right-in-your-face, shocking, and I think there's hardly anyone who will leave undisturbed or unmoved. Whether you want to be disturbed and shocked, nevertheless, is another question.