Not often does a movie evoke an emotional response that levels a grown man to the ground, sobbing. Not often does a movie touch the deep confides of the subconscious. Maybe I’m being a tad melodramatic - but Requiem for a Dream is undoubtedly one of the most emotional and depressing films ever to be created. Plagued around the world as a film that 'makes you feel', rather than just a simple cinematic experience.

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Dream is based on a novel written by Hubert Selby Jr. (who subsequently wrote the screenplay) and focuses in on four drug-ridden individuals over the course of three seasons, beginning with summer and finishing with the winter. Sara Goldfarb (Ellen Burstyn) is a TV-junkie, who one day receives the telephone call to change her life; she will be on television. Longing to fit into her favourite red dress, she begins a diet and soon becomes addicted.

Her son, Harry (Jared Leto) is a heroin addict who, along with friend Tyrone (Marlon Wayans), will stop at nothing to get a fix. Harry’s girlfriend Marion (Jennifer Connelly) aspires to become a fashion designer, but watches her dreams crumble away as she becomes increasingly fixed on her own drug dependency.

The journey’s each character takes lead to an intense and dramatic conclusion – one that will never be forgotten.

Dream is presented in 16x9 enhanced 1.85:1 widescreen. This film is a very atmospheric experience and the quality of the video presented simply supplements the director’s intention of creating a very gritty and brutal film. Overall, the transfer is adequate; however there are some minor issues that weren’t part of the original intention.

preparing for the Hulk.

Colours are brilliant. There’s no evidence of colour bleeding, and there’s never the impression of a ‘washed’ screen. Many contrasting colours are used throughout the film, and they’re thankfully presented perfectly. Black levels are also great, as it’s generally a very dark film.

Minor grain is present throughout the entire film, however I believe this was the director’s intention. It ads to the sordid and gritty feel of the film. Never does the grain take away from the colour or distract the viewing experience.

I did spot a number of distracting artefacts. These are mainly present (or visible) in the lighter scenes, primarily the scenes with Harry and Marion on the jetty (outside, near the ocean, very bright).

when the air conditioner fails, use the fridge.

We’re given a Dolby Digital 5.1 soundtrack, which is perhaps superfluous to our needs as Requiem is mainly a dialogue-driven film, with some interesting subtleties in the sound here and there. All dialogue is extremely clear and crisp. Harry often runs words together and mumbles quite often, but his voice is always audible and relatively easy to listen to. No faults in the presentation of the dialogue.

Surround channels aren’t used all that often and mostly provide ambient sound effects or present the brilliant score with a little more depth. Occasionally (during the ‘hip-hop montage’ scenes) the surrounds burst to life and dominate, but this only happens once or twice. The subwoofer is fairly quiet during the majority of the film, as it’s not particularly needed. Some of the music occasionally benefits from a little use, but not often.

The soundtrack is entirely adequate, and never distracts or takes away from the film.

The extras department is jam-packed with fantastic commentaries and featurettes -

Audio Commentary with Darren Aronofsky (Director) – Fantastic commentary, one of the best I’ve heard. Aronofsky goes into fascinating detail as he dissects a number of different scenes, and manages to throw in some personal comments from his experiences making the film. This extra alone makes the purchase worthwhile.

Audio Commentary with Matthew Libatique (Cinematographer) – While this commentary is not as fascinating as Aronofsky’s, it’s definitely very interesting. Libatique goes into more detail about the specific lighting of the sets, and how he changed camera technique to fit with the script. These two commentaries are fantastic. A definite listen for fans of the film.

B-roll (9:37) – We watch as the cast and crew work together on three different scenes. This little extra simply provides some insight as to how Aronofsky directs. The b-roll tape could have been a lot more interesting had it focused in on three more interesting scenes.

"This human fly thing is making my head spin"

‘Making of’ Requiem for a Dream (35:11) – An unprofessional insight into the making of the film. Aronofsky ads interesting commentary to some handheld footage taken behind the scenes of the film. If you’re interested in the technical background of the film you’re much better off listening to the commentaries of the film.

Anatomy of a Scene (5:34) – This short featurette is no where near long enough, and having said that it’s very interesting. Aronofsky presents a short documentary looking into the technical aspects behind one particular scene which follows Sara as she cleans her apartment.

Two theatrical trailers, cast & crew biographies and 8 deleted scenes are also available. None of the extras are 16:9 enhanced, and none have subtitles.

The extras provided are top-notch. Both commentaries and the anatomy of a scene short featurette will offer enough ‘behind the scenes’ information for fans, and the b-roll and ‘making of’ documentary will make you well and truly familiar with how, and why, Requiem for a Dream is like it is! If a re-release is in the cards, I’d love to see some longer interviews with the leading cast and a few crew members (in particular the editor and musical director).

Requiem for a Dream combines an amazing score, with highly innovative camera technique to provide a truly original piece of art. Standing out from the crowd, Aronofsky’s direction helps Requiem steadily move along, evoking just the right emotional response from its audience. You’ll leave this film feeling as if you left something of yourself with it.

I'll just quickly note too, this edition (Region 4) is the unrated, director's cut.