An Analysis of Requiem for a Dream

Requiem for a Dream: A Genuinely Edgy Film

A movie in the current age is considered ‘edgy’ based primarily on the amount of blood, carnage, and gore seen during the film. Directors too often try to push the envelope between R and NC-17 ratings with the Motion Picture Association of America in only the violence department, while losing focus on the task that should be at hand: creating a cinematic masterpiece. Luckily, director Darren Aronofsky realized this flaw before it took over the industry and created Requiem for a Dream, a crime/drama based on the novel of the same name by Hubert Selby Jr. The Screenplay was also written by Selby, who did not want Aronofsky or whoever decided to turn the novel into a film to ruin his work (IMDB). Requiem for a Dream follows four different protagonists, each with his or her own personal vice. Using dramatic camera cuts and a perfect musical score, Aronofsky succeeded in bringing each and every viewer into the realm of this work of art. Each of the four protagonists, Harry Goldfarb, Sara Goldfarb, Tyrone Love, and Marion Silver has aspirations of his or her own, but complications with a drug-fueled life continually shut them out. Requiem for a Dream is a film directed by Darren Aronofsky set in present-time New York involving a group of characters involved with drugs. The film follows the group as they slowly deteriorate from a happy goal-inspired group to four different Americans that have given up their American Dream in a tragic fashion to a bunch of junkies lying in bed. This is truly edgy; this film keeps the viewer on the edge of the seat the entire time, rooting for these people despite obvious flaws and watching as every time something is supposed to go well the group drops deeper into a self-dug hole.

The film follows Harry and Sara Goldfarb, Tyrone Love and Marion Silver. Sara is the mother of Harry, a heroin junkie that continually steals her television in order to continue his habit. Sara, an elderly woman,...