The Bleakest Film Ever Made

Rating: 9/10 (2 November 2019)

Yes, "Requiem for a Dream" is a beautifully made film, and exceedingly well-acted. But in a way, those positively-spun accolades are irrelevant red herrings and tangential false flags. Because the core attribute of "Requiem for a Dream" wholly eclipses every other with its pitch-black truth: Sometimes, dreams just don't come true. This is the bleakest film ever made, and there are people who should actively avoid it at all costs. It offers razor blades. Hopelessness. And the promise that if you subject yourself to watching it, you will know too much.
There are experiential darknesses that leave scars in life, but they're relegated to real-world experiences -- abuse, torture, addiction, death, grief. In film, only the experience of watching "Requiem for a Dream" can mimic in the psyche some of those destructive true life horrors. Consuming it can take things away from you.
"It's just a movie," you say. But when you say that, consider the possibility that you say it irresponsibly. The safe play here is to avoid "Requiem for a Dream," and run the other way; the revelations it offers are just too insidious.
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