a review

Rating: 9/10 (23 March 2010)

REQUIEM FOR A DREAM is a movie that disturbs the viewer one way or another; according to many reviews and comments in the movie web sites, some in the audience have walked out in the middle; some have sat through till the end and have broken down crying, because they could not stop the four characters in this tragic fable going down. And some have criticized the effort of Darren Aronofsky as nothing but a stylistic shocker making up, with shrewd manipulation of montage images, sound effects, split screens and fast forward frames etc. for the lack of substance and story. I disagree to this last criticism.
This is a story that traces the downfall of four protagonists, who succumb to one antagonist who has no physical form. I was disturbed by this story,not because of the style, but because this villain, called addiction,which resides in many of us and can attack us as well; it can consume and destroy us before we realize, particularly in this age of speed,of wanting things quick and soon; where the peer pressures, the information overload from the hidden persuaders of media overwhelm us with promises of better look before dawn, bigger busts by miracle treatments and millionaire by tomorrow schemes. If there is a message from this movie maker, I would say that it comes out as we sit back and painfully reflect on why these characters destroyed themselves. Then we realize that we must be at peace with what we are and what we have,cherish our achievements and esteem.
All good stories have the important theme. The theme here is about the destructive nature of addiction. By the end of the movie, we are convinced that addiction can destroy anyone; common simple folks who can be of any age; who come from diverse backgrounds such as the four characters in this movie. The stories of four people in this film are the results of a chain of events that start off with "normal, everyday folks" and end in the worst kind of way, and in a way, aren't accidental, which maybe the saddest thing of all. These stories are parables to us of the roads best not taken.
Now, how do you present a theme where we need to show the movement of four protagonists and an invisible satanic antagonist which resides in each of them? There are four parallel plots running at the same time and they are intertwined at the appropriate moments to nail the audience to the mood of despair and helplessness that the four characters feel. The dialogs are very minimal and the shots are detailed into effective montages to bring forth the losing fights. After seeing the movie and reading the script one can see, how well the story is enhanced by the careful style chosen by the story teller.
In simple words, these are people who have their dreams like anyone of us. They are not unusual or weird people. Their objectives are not that of Einstein's or that of Hitler's! I believe this is what makes the movie a compelling piece of story. It hurts to watch this film, and is mentally painful to see the downfall these people, because the presentation is such that you start to care so much about these people. The director has made you to fall in love with these characters.
There are two scenes which can break the heart of any woman audience in this movie. It shows to what extent a person can stoop to because of the addiction and later feel disgusted. First is the one where Marian walks out and vomits after her sex with Arnold. The complete scene is shot hand-held with a strange hazy lens focus which deliberately distorts and barrels the image. Marian is disgusted, dazed and controls her nausea as she leaves the room of Arnold. The other scene is where we see Marian in the bath tub from above when she seems to clear her inside with a scream and throwing out the "dirt and disgust" she has gone through in having sex with Big Tim. There is strong characterization to show how the drug addiction can make normal people to do most disgusting things. One may not like these shots, but they make you feel sad for the characters and feel disgusted about the ill effects of addiction.
Is Darren Aronofsky's Requiem for a dream a collection of montages to shock the audience while trying to cover a weak story? I do not think so. I believe that we have a strong story here which traces the journey of four individuals and this completes their portrayal in terms of bringing the full arc of transformation.