Disturbing, but ultimately shallow.

Rating: 5/10 (12 March 2001)

"Addiction bad." Ultimately, that's really all there is to Requiem for a Dream. It's the story of the parallel, drug-induced downward spirals of four related characters, and it's really quite painful to watch. In that regard, its emotional power is undeniable.
Yet it doesn't feel like it's worth it. The "message", if there is one, is one we already know. Aside from the television-obsessed mother, played with convincingly building hysteria by Ellen Burstyn, the characters are flat and uninteresting by themselves; they could be anyone, addicted to anything. There are a few interesting visual touches here and there, but they don't really add any depth to the film.
The last movie I can remember that was as relentlessly painful to watch was Leaving Las Vegas, which chronicled a similar addictive spiral. But in Leaving Las Vegas, the characters were interesting in their own right; their relationship was fascinating, because it was both completely loving and completely dysfunctional. In Requiem for a Dream, the only interest is in the spectacle of destruction itself, and it ultimately felt empty and voyeuristic to me.