It's campy but in a way; effective.

Rating: 8/10 (23 August 2011)

Requiem for a Dream-**1/2-See it- Directed by: Darren Aronofsky, written by: Darren Aronofsky and Hubert Selby, Jr., Starring: Jared Leto, Ellen Burstyn, Jennifer Connelly, Marlon Wayans, Christopher McDonald, Louise Latcher, Keith David, Sean Gullette.
Director Darren Aronofsky teams up with mainstream actors for his newest feature based off the disturbing and jarring novel by Hubert Selby, Jr. The plot covers the story of a New York drug addict (Leto) who finds his world collapsing due to his overuse and perpetual need of drug influence. As he falls into his self-inflicted hell, his elderly mother (very well played by Burstyn) who is obsessed with a television show becomes hooked on prescription diet pills. Connelly plays Leto's girlfriend who gets caught up in the drama of drugs and Wayans plays his dealer who goes into a hell himself.
Hallucinatory storytelling with lots of clever dream sequences throughout given the extra boost by a lot of firm acting. Burstyn is incredible in her role and Leto fairs pretty well too. Wayans is not too shabby himself in an uncharacteristic performance in a film that is a change for the comic. Aronofsky is a clever storyteller with firm stylistics and a good eye for hellish fetishes and images. His portrait of contemporary drug addicts is pretty much well-done for all intents and purposes.
The question is where did Aronofsky fail? His biggest problem is his insistent use of quick cuts. That is what separates this drug film from Cronenberg's Naked Lunch or Boyle's Trainspotting. He is intent to make this more like an MTV made for television film than anything. If it was not for his talent as a director, it probably would be one of those. This is an addict film made for pop houses, not art houses. That is the weakness of the film as a work of art.
If we define films based off clever style, Aronofsky would have made a masterpiece. To the misfortune of the young director, that is not what makes a great film great. The stylistics are the best the crew has to offer, but the actors certainly give it their all. Each actor is in great form and inhabit their roles well. His pop style may be thin as air, but Aronofsky's use of actors is as prevailing as ever. Each actor is used incredibly well and Burstyn is so frighteningly realistic that I have a new image of this old woman. We can use style and we can use great actors, but the writing and the storytelling is still the most important aspect to any film.