Requiem For A Dream - Retro Review

 It's not often that I compare a movie to the one and only Trainspotting, but with a shared subject matter and similar tone, the two feel very much connected.

The film often feels like it has the whole package, with excellent inventive visuals, a fantastic cast, brilliant sound and music, and with a story that makes your stomach knot.

I could spend days pouring over the brilliant direction and editing, but the film truly excels in certain human moments that illicit such a strong and deep emotions that will stay with you for days to come. Although these moments are few are far between and some of them are misses, when they do hit, they hit hard.

Unfortunately the film has a few foibles. The main issue is that often the film feels like its going from one drug fueled visual set piece to another, often with only some minimalist connective tissue. The "trips" are visual Treats/Horrors, but the film never seems to slow down enough in-between them to find some normal moments, both in terms of the visuals and the story.

This then effects the pacing, which slows right down in the middle, although not in terms of the visuals. The visuals have seemed to have lost there edge and seem to be unable to carry the middle of the film. Of course the visual ramp up to a shocking and horrific finale, but overall the shock is slightly dulled due the pacing and the fact that I didn't feel attached enough the the characters.

Overall, The visuals, acting and ideas push the film into being something special (although not particularly pleasant), but some narrative and pacing problems means that its just missed the train.

Rating: 8/10