Requiem for a Dream (2000)

The drug-induced utopias of four Coney Island people are shattered when their addictions run deep.

Director:

Darren Aronofsky

Writers:

Hubert Selby Jr. (based on the book by), Hubert Selby Jr. (screenplay)

Stars:

Ellen Burstyn, Jared Leto, Jennifer Connelly

Top Rated Movies #78 | Nominated for 1 Oscar. Another 32 wins & 61 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
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
Mark Margolis	...	Mr. Rabinowitz
Michael Kaycheck	...	Donut Cop (as Mike Kaycheck)
Jack O'Connell	...	Corn Dog Stand Boss
Chas Mastin	...	Lyle Russel

Storyline

Drugs. They consume mind, body and soul. Once you're hooked, you're hooked. Four lives. Four addicts. Four failures. Despite their aspirations of greatness, they succumb to their addictions. Watching the addicts spiral out of control, we bear witness to the dirtiest, ugliest portions of the underworld addicts reside in. It is shocking and eye-opening but demands to be seen by both addicts and non-addicts alike.

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Plot Keywords:

drug addiction | addiction | heroin | diet pill | fast motion scene | 

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Taglines:

From the director of [Pi]

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Genres:

Drama

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Certificate:

16

Details

Official Sites:

Artisan (Flash only)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

13 September 2001 (Netherlands)

Also Known As:

Réquiem por un sueño

Filming Locations:

Brooklyn, New York City, New York, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$4,500,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

$64,770 (USA) (6 October 2000)

Gross:

$3,609,278 (USA) (2 March 2001)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Artisan Entertainment, Thousand Words, Sibling Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

102 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The "Lux Aeterna" portion of the music composed by Clint Mansell for the Requiem for a Dream soundtrack has often been used since in many other contexts, such as trailers for other films (including The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers, The Da Vinci Code, I am Legend, Man on Fire, Sunshine, etc.), soundtracks for video games (Total Miner: Forge, Assassin's Creed), and background music for TV programs and advertisements. It is also commonly used as promotional and/or entrance music for many different college and professional sports teams, including: the Notre Dame, Missouri State University, Boston Celtics, and Virginia Commonwealth University basketball teams; the University of Alabama and Bowdoin College football teams, and the England Rugby Union Team.

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Goofs

When Harry and Tyrone are leaving New York for Florida, Tyrone pricks Harry to the right arm. You can see pain in Harry's face. But as we know Harry's wounded in his left arm.

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Quotes

Harry Goldfarb: Let's do this right.
Tyrone: Naturally.

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Crazy Credits

The opening credits each disappear as if being melted like heroin.

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Connections

Referenced in IMDb's 20th Anniversary Star of the Day: Jessica Lowndes (2010)

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Soundtracks

Bialy & Lox Conga
Performed by The Moonrats
Marcel Reginatto - Saxophone, Vocals
Brian Emrich - Bass Guitar, Vocals
Oscar Oñoz - Trumpet, Vocals
Theodore Birkey - Keyboards, Vocals
Tico Torres (as Hector Torres) - Percussion, Vocals
Darren Aronofsky - Vocals
Engineered, Programmed and Mixed by James Murphy for DFA at Plantain Recording House NYC

User Reviews

Disturbing, Graphic and Great

I went to this movie hearing plenty of buzz about how graphic the content was. Over the course of the movie you see just how Aronofsky wants to send his message to the audience. The characters start off with somewhat mild addictions and then next thing you know the four main characters are living in hell. I couldn't believe how low they all fell. This movie may be the greatest anti-drug message of all time. I dare anybody to watch this and to not be touched and frightened by these characters. Before the movie started I noticed the audience was quite loud and garrulous, but as it ended and the credits rolled the whole place was stone cold silent. It was amazing.

As a whole I felt the movie was excellent. The visuals were well done and the editing was outstanding. The actors really put themselves into their roles. Jared Leto and Jennifer Connelly had very good chemistry, while Marlon Wayans showed he is a talented actor and not just a talented comic. Ellen Burstyn. Wow! She was amazing. I can't believe an older woman would allow herself to be filmed like that. She has some serious guts. Hands down the best female performance I've watched this year, not even close. I was totally amazed by her.

All in all, I would say Requiem For a Dream is a great movie. It had a profound impact on me and I haven't been able to stop thinking about it since I watched it on opening night. I definitely recommend this movie to anyone. This is a movie everyone should see, but unfortunately not enough will.