His hijinx are never funny and I really don't think he knows how desperate for laughs he seems. Taking this completely dramatic role is genius on his part because he can pull it off. There is no scene in which he can tarnish the film with a pratfall, in fact I cannot think of any moment in which he is left open to joke. It is refreshing to see such a fine dramatic performance from him, but I am also filled with trepidation that he will not continue on this path. The camera work on this film is incredible.
Every scene is an incredible piece of art.
You could pause the screen, frame it, put it on your wall, and have a breathtaking piece of professional photography. The film is based on a novel by Herbert Selby, Jr., who adapted it with Aronofsky. The lyrical prose of the novel comes across in the film, which causes the words to come alive. I recently read Jeffrey Eugendes' The Virgin Suicides after seeing the Sofia Coppola adaptation and was surprised at how close the two pieces were in mood. Aronofsky's use of the story is just as hard on the senses as Selby's novel and even more terrifying.