a downward spiral...

Rating: 10/10 (13 January 2005)

...into hell. this movie tugs at humanity's chords and never lets go. a brutal and bumpy ride filled with views of the deepest recesses of pain, suffering, addition and neglect.
if you're a status quo movie viewer enthralled by 'armageddon', 'independence day' or any jerry bruckheimer or michael bay films, i would forego this one. classic American movie clichÃ©s are thrown out the window--no happy endings, no feel good moments, no artificial emotion. what you have here is a pessimistic journey of addiction by characters all addicted to their own drug, be it TV, narcotics or diet pills. to mortals, they're all the same, and cause catastrophic destruction and ruined lives.
the last half hour of this film--where the rush down the spiral truly begins--is to your psyche as the first half hour of 'saving private ryan' was to your senses; it will blow you away and leave you languishing and worn out. as another reviewer mentioned, this to me is also one of the most powerful, invigorating and disturbing films i have ever seen--truly cathartic. and i'm no weakling--i eat dinner while watching the surgery channel and laughed when private pyle blew his brains out in 'full metal jacket', so to say that a movie left me with my jaw wide open and the hair on the back of my neck standing is not an overstatement.
alas, it may leave you jaded for more invigorating stuff to come out of Hollywood. unfortunately, it would never happen. the only mainstream filmmaker to even come close to this much pathos was kubrick, and he's gone (RIP). but cheer on maverick filmmakers, such as aronofsky, and keep the good stuff coming.
also, i recommend staying away from blockbuster if you go out to rent this video; they only carry the R-rated version, not the original NC-17 version.