Review of a Nightmare

I think in reviewing movies before, I've mentioned that I'm not usually taken with the type of film making that stresses style over substance. Well, that's exactly the type of movie Requiem for a Dream is.

The film was recommended to be by a co-worker. Well, maybe "recommended" isn't the right word. He was backpedaling even as I handed him back the DVD telling him I didn't like the movie. "I said I like it. I didn't say you would." Though why lend the movie then, right?

My first clue should have come in the opening credits, when I saw that the film was directed by Darren Aronofsky. This is the man behind The Wrestler (which I didn't totally hate) and The Fountain (which I did). Should have bailed out then and there. But when you're watching something that a friend put in your hand, as opposed to some critic's top film list or whatever, there's an obligation to give it more of a chance.

Requiem for a Dream is a movie about addiction. It's not at all glamorous. It's dirty, visceral, and gross -- as if a directors' poker game were taking place somewhere and Aronofsky said, "I'll see your Trainspotting, and raise you this." But Requiem for a Dream doesn't just take aim at illegal drugs; it tells multiple parallel stories, and one involves a woman who becomes addicted to weight loss drugs prescribed by her doctor.

But as I said, it's all style over substance. Aronofsky wants to impress the viewer with vivid colors, odd camera placements, and editing more frenetic than the average music video. There are repeating montages of more than a dozen camera cuts in less than five seconds. There's considerable use of split screen. The climax of the movie sees every plot line played out in tandem, with short 10 second clips of each story shuffled together. It's overt, self-conscious film making that demands that the viewer appreciate it. I, however, reject such boorish, unnuanced, unlayered work.

The only thing to praise in this film is the acting. Ellen Burstyn is horrific (in a good way) as a diet-crazed mother who goes from a bit overweight to gaunt and skeletal by the film's end. Jared Leto, Jennifer Connelly, and Marlon Wayans all take on more conventional addicts, managing to squeeze out a few good moments each before getting mowed down in favor of the flashy storytelling.

There may be a sort of "film triad" of style, plot, and character, where only the very best films can have all three, and few are lucky to get even two. And there are a few decent movies out there that only truly nail one. But my personal taste is that if you're only going to have one element, style shouldn't be the one. If your tastes say otherwise, you might well love this showy film. For me, it's a D-.