Requiem for a Dream [Unrated] [Blu-ray]

Director: Darren Aronofsky Darren Aronofsky

Overview

Darren Aronofsky follows up on his critically acclaimed Pi with this grim fable about drugs and addiction. Sara Goldfarb (Ellen Burstyn) is a bored and lonely widow who kills time watching infomercials and eating chocolate in her small Coney Island apartment. One day she receives a phone call telling her that she might have the opportunity to appear on her favorite TV game show. Beside herself with anticipation, she frets over her chocolate-induced weight and vows to return to her former svelte figure. With the help of a less than reputable doctor, Sara is soon on a steady regimen of uppers. Meanwhile, her deadbeat son Harry (Jared Leto) aims for his shot at quick success along with his buddy Tyrone (Marlon Wayans) by selling heroin on the street. Harry and his girlfriend Marion (Jennifer Connelly) squirrel away dough so that they can open a boutique that will showcase her fashion designs. When drug deals go bad and the money starts to dry up, the three siphon off their wares for their own habits. At the same time, Sara descends further and further into a popper-induced psychosis. By the film's grisly climax, limbs are lopped off, flesh is pedaled, and electroshock therapy is administered. This film was screened at the 2000 Cannes and Toronto film festivals.

Product Details

Release Date:	09/08/2009
UPC:	0012236100294
Original Release:	2000
Rating:	NR
Source:	LIONSGATE - 600000-AEC LGE
Region Code:	A
Presentation:	[Wide Screen]
Language:	English
Time:	1:42:00
Sales rank:	12,512

Special Features

Commentary by director Darren Aronofsky; Commentary by director of photography Matthew Libatique; "The Making of Reqiuem for a Dream" documentary; Deleted scenes with optional director commentary; Memories, dreams and addictions: Ellen Burstyn interviews Hubert Selby Jr.; Theatrical trailers and TV spots

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

Ellen Burstyn	Sara Goldfarb
Jared Leto	Harry Goldfarb
Jennifer Connelly	Marion Silver
Marlon Wayans	Tyrone C. Love
Christopher McDonald	Tappy Tibbons
Louise Lasser	Ada
Marcia Jean Kurtz	Rae
Janet Sarno	Mrs. Pearlman
Suzanne Shepherd	Mrs. Scarlini
Joanne Gordon	Mrs. Ovadia
Charlotte Aronofsky	Mrs. Miles,Newspaper Man on Train
Chas Mastin	Lyle Russel
Ajay Naidu	Mailman
Mark Margolis	Actor
Michael Kaycheck	Actor
Jack O'Connell	Actor
Sean Gullette	Arnold
Scott Franklin	Voices,Voice of Jailer
Aliya Campbell	Alice
Te'ron A. O'Neal	Junge Tyrone
Denise Dowse	Tyrones Mutter
Eddie De Harp	Victor
Peter Cheyenne	Sal the Geep
Brian Costello	First AD
James Chinlund	Space Oddity
Olga Merediz	Malin & Block Secretary
Allison Furman	Malin & Block Office Woman
Ben Shenkman	Dr. Spencer
Keith David	Big Tim
Dylan Baker	Southern Doctor
Shaun O'Hagan	Ward Attendant Seto
Leland Gantt	Ward Attendant Penn
Bill Buell	Court Doctor
Jimmie Ray Weeks	Prison Guard
Samia Shoaib	Nurse Mall
Peter Howard	Sal the Geep
Clint Mansell	Composer

Technical Credits

Darren Aronofsky

Hubert Selby Jr.

Darren Aronofsky	Director,Screenwriter
Ben Barenholtz	Executive Producer,Producer
Stefan Simchowitz	Executive Producer,Producer
Beau Flynn	Executive Producer,Producer
Nick Wechsler	Executive Producer,Producer
Palmer West	Producer
Eric Watson	Producer
Amoeba Proteus	Special Effects
Hubert Selby Jr.	Screenwriter
Randy Simon	Producer
Jonah Smith	Producer
Jeremy Dawson	Special Effects
Steve Baine	Sound Effects
Stephen Barden	Sound Effects
Christopher Barnett	Sound Effects

Editorial Reviews

Drug addiction is the catalyst for some mind-altering cinematic pyrotechnics in 2000's Requiem for a Dream, a cautionary tale from director Darren Aronofsky. Based on the novel by Hubert Selby Jr., Requiem follows a young ne'er-do-well (Jared Leto), his upscale girlfriend (Jennifer Connelly), and his widowed mother (Ellen Burstyn) as they all learn the hard way about the dangers of substance abuse. There's a glimpse or two of the drug culture in Requiem, but for the most part the film probes internal landscapes. Those who've seen Aronofsky's debut film, Pi, will know that this is his strong suit, and he uses a textbook-filling array of cinematic devices to bring the addicts' hallucinatory experiences to the screen. This all builds steadily into a relentless barrage of manic intercutting that leaves some viewers exhilarated, others unnerved. While Leto and Connelly do very well in projecting a romantic chemistry that's smashed by the competing chemistry of addiction, Burstyn's Oscar-nominated performance is simply startling. Her diet-pill-induced downward slide is nothing short of horrific, as she transforms from a meek, mild-mannered, slightly overweight infomercial addict into an emaciated, deranged speed freak. Requiem starts out dark and only gets darker; it's not for the faint of heart. The Artisan DVD includes audio commentary by director Aronofsky, a making-of documentary, deleted scenes, and interviews with Burstyn and Selby.

Aronofsky made a lot of industry noise in 1998 with Pi, his critically praised low-budget indie hit and debut feature. For his second film, he collaborated with one of his literary gurus, Hubert Selby Jr., to adapt Selby's 1978 cult classic Last Exit to Brooklyn. Set on the scarred and bleak streets of Coney Island, Brooklyn, the story follows heroin addict and twentysomething Harry Goldfarb (Jared Leto), his smack-snack gorgeous girlfriend Marion (Jennifer Connelly), and running buddy Tyrone (Marlon Wayans) as they conceive a way to score pure heroin. An illuminating interview with Aronofsky prefaces the script, which in the Faber & Faber vein, unlike the Newmarket "Shooting Script," has less detailed camera shots and reads more like a play. For more specialized cinematic collections. Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information.

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