Ellen Burstyn (deservedly nominated for an Oscar) stars as Sara Goldfarb, a mother who is constantly being robbed by her son Harry (Jared Leto in his best role ever) to fuel his drug habit. The film opens up with Harry taking her TV to pawn to get extra cash to purchase illegal substances for his next hit. Alongside Harry is his companion Tyrone (Marlon Wayans in serious dramatic role) and Harrys' girlfriend Marion (played by Jennifer Connelly). All the main characters dream of a better life and strive to reach what they believe would make them happy and set out to achieve their ultimate goal. Harry and Tyrone want to be more than petty drug users and think they can get out of their rut by scoring and dealing, saving up to make money. Harry tells Marion that with the money she can start up the business she's always dreamed about and with Harrys mother (a TV junkie) she aspires to be on TV and when she gets a call with a promise of appearing on TV she does everything she can to lose the weight she's gain over the years to fit into her perfect red dress. When things take a turn for the worst, desperation takes hold and they all resort to the depths of despair in an effort to cling on to their dreams.
Probably the saddest sequence in the film is Sara Goldfarb breakdown in her front room. Addicted to slimming pills provided to her by her GP, she becomes detached from reality and her room becomes filled with the infotainment channel host and audience mocking and taunting her. It's not only the illegal drugs but the prescription kind that becomes an addictive and dependant source for a better life.With almost every conceivable trick and camera technique thrown towards us, it is the way Aronosky tries to replicate the affects of being high on illicit substances with speeded up imagery, split screen, extreme close ups (eyeballs in particular), fast cuts, the snorricam technique (where the camera is attached to the performer and the background is constantly moving around giving us, the audience, a sense of vertigo), and most importantly, repetition. We are barraged with constant imagery of drugs being taken and in a sense that is what Aronoskys trying to show us, what is it like to be addicted to illegal substances. They just want to do it over and over to get that high (which only last for a while) and then the comedown.... back to reality, with the mundane and depressing way of life that awaits them always in the search for the next hit. The neverending cycle goes on.
With all the talk on the visuals and the narrative style the vital ingredient to the whole mixture is the unrelenting score by Clint Mansell and the Kronos Quartet. You've probably heard it before ad nauseum (it has been borrowed, sampled and diluted) but here, you will hear it in it's original beauty. The score is played in and out in varying styles becoming more and more haunting throughout the film as it builds up into a crescendo of violins and orchestral noise. It complements and encapsulate the mood of the whole film. It's such a memorable piece of music that I can't see it working without the main theme running through every dramatic scene.
Overall it is a remarkable piece of cinema. A startling performance by all (and I mean all, I personally think none of the actors will ever achieve such high degree of emotional turmoil, they all deserve high praise for their energy and portrayal of addicts) and a visual style to wow the eyes with an immense score to boot. It is by no means a film to necessarily watch over and over again as it is physically and emotionally draining. By the end you will feel uneasy and unhinged by onslaught of images that come to you quicker and quicker till the bottom has been hit and they can go no lower, the depressing imagery will forever be embedded in your memory alongside other nightmarish scenes from within the film (it's not a film you can easily recover from). A technical achievement and a brave take on drug addiction.18/20
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