Requiem for a Dream

REVIEW
In his hallucinatory, hypnotic and brilliantly executed second feature, Pi director Aronofsky (who co-wrote the screenplay with the author of the novel, Hubert Selby) has made a mind-numbing exploration of a mother and son's disparate, gradual descent into the abyss of drug addiction. Not content to simply make a "just-say-no" treatise, Aronofsky delves into the mindset and routine of his characters in astonishingly filmic set pieces, allowing facts and attitudes to speak for themselves without hyperbole or agenda. A very effective Leto is Harry, a small-time dealer and full-time user who's not above hocking his mother's TV for drug money. His mother, Sara (Burstyn), is happy just to dream about being a contestant on her favorite TV show. When it appears Sara will be a contestant, she begins a harrowing weight reduction program, aided by diet pills. As both mother and son attempt the realization of their dreams (he's trying to raise money for his girlfriend's dress shop), each becomes ensnared in an out-of-control spiral. Connelly and Wayans are equally compelling as, respectively, Harry's girlfriend and business partner. But it is Burstyn who grounds the film with a startling, immensely moving performance of a woman slowly losing control. It is a mesmerizing portrait every bit as grounded as Aronofsky's unsettling, immaculate vision.