Requiem for a Dream, written by Hubert Selby Jr. (based on his book) and Darren Aronofsky, directed by the latter - 10 out of 10

Requiem for a Dream, written by Hubert Selby Jr. (based on his book) and Darren Aronofsky, directed by the latter

10 out of 10

Requiem for a Dream is one of the best motion pictures ever made!

It is also very popular; audiences have placed it at number 81 on the Top Rated Movies List.

Disappointing is the fact that this chef d’oeuvre has received only one Academy Award nomination for the fantastic, if horrifying Ellen Burstyn for Best Actress in a Leading Role, category for which she was also short listed at the Golden Globes.

The mesmerizing Ellen Burstyn portrays Sara Goldfarb, the aged mother of Harry Goldfarb, facing solitude, depression and from one stage on an addiction to television game shows and then to some awful diet pills that look likely to destroy her life.

She hopes to become famous, if for a few minutes, by entering one of these shows, which send her an invitation, trying hard to fit in her good, red dress assorted with her gold shoes, which would impress audiences and her son.

Unfortunately, the initial boost in wellbeing, operated by the telephone call that purports to welcome her on the television program is followed by a very rapid descent into agony, as the heroine embarks on a diet that would become a calamity for her.

Eating less is not only the secret for a long life, as demonstrated by the inhabitants of the island of Okinawa, where they have record numbers of people that reach a very advanced age, who eat only to be about 70% full, but it is also a very good life style choice.

Only in the case of Sara Goldfarb, this radical change is made with ghoulish consequences, probably because of the pills that are prescribed by what seems to be a negligent doctor – to say the least – and which start having ghastly side effects.

The filming of the ordeal of this protagonist and that of the other characters of the narrative is brilliant – the film was introduced on one of our main channels by one of our remarkable directors, Alexandru Tocilescu, and he spoke in awe at the achievement, noting that he knows, working in this domain, how filming is done, with crews drinking coffee, often joking about what is going on the set, but he was still flabbergasted, taken aback by this tremendous accomplishment.

Sara Goldfarb has many neighbors that cherish the fact that she is invited on a television show, one of them is trying to do her hair, even if the resulting color is not red, but a shade of orange, not what Madonna has.

After taking the blue, mauve and other color pills, the refrigerator appears to move, threatening the poor old woman, who has visions with her on stage, applauded by the public, but also some frightening apparitions, seeing herself as a scary figure that comes to her home to haunt…herself.

In the good days, the responsible, decent, charming Harry aka the fabulous, formidable Jared Leto is involved in a relationship with the stupendous, angelic Marion played by one of the best artists of our time, the gorgeous Jennifer Connelly, trying to start a small business.

Harry even buys a television set for his mother, as a surprise gift that he would nevertheless later steal repeatedly from his parent; in order to pawn it and get money for the drugs he cannot live without and appear to destroy him.

Harry Goldfarb is taken down by his drug abuse and instead of opening a business with the talented Marion, who has creative ideas that she could have used to design beautiful clothes, takes another path, trying to become a drug dealer with his friend Tyrone aka another fantastic actor, Marlon Wayans.

When they are left without money, following a murder where Tyrone is an innocent bystander charged however with complicity to a homicide, forcing Harry to use the money that had saved to bail him out, the drug addicts are acting like zombies because they do not have the funds for the next shot.

Requiem for a Dream highlights what happens to addicts, for instead of being extremely happy together, grateful for having found love, such beautiful, talented, charming partners, Harry and Marion agree that she has to have sex with a much older, disgusting man for money.

This would not be an isolated event, for she does it again, with Big Tim played by yet another great actor, Keith David, and when this dealer mentions a Sunday party, after initially refusing, the lost woman attends it, engaging in offensive, extreme sex scenes that represent the depths where cocaine use can take people.

Sarah Goldfarb, her son and his girlfriend are followed in parallel, the older woman has a breakdown when she decides to take the subway to the office of the company that had invited her to the game show and has not followed suit.

She is in an awful state and when she reaches the office, the staff talk to her for a while, listen to her plight, the plea to walk on the set of the show at last, for she would give away the prizes, but then they call the police.

The heroine is taken to the hospital, where they rate her case as a psychiatric one, she is tied to the bed, fed by male nurses, but when she does not comply, and she is forced fed with a tube pushed into her mouth.

There are many gruesome scenes, which may belong in a horror movie, with a noble, teaching purpose, for someone who has seen this masterpiece would surely think more than twice before abusing drugs.