Mubi Monday: Requiem For A Dream (2000)

It might seem glaringly obvious now, but writer-director Darren Aronofsky has never been one to do subtlety. Whatever his movie is about, he damn sure wants to beat you over the head with it. That often works, however, because he picks movies that are filled to the brim with visual tricks and flourishes that help to sugar-coat the bitter pill we are being made to swallow.

Requiem For A Dream may actually be the least subtle film from Aronofsky, which is really saying something, but it is also up there with his very best. A tale of various addictions, and the rise and fall of the central characters, it is a grim endurance test that just, and I do mean just, manages to keep viewers watching through to the end credits.

Jared Leto plays Harry Goldfarb, a young junkie who has dreams of making a better life for himself and his girlfriend (Marion, played by Jennifer Connelly). Harry and his friend, Tyrone (Marlon Wayans), just need to stay focused and straight as they transition from users to dealers. But that isn’t easy, especially when all three individuals start to feel the need for drugs at different times. Meanwhile, Harry’s mother, Sara (Ellen Burstyn), is addicted to her TV, and one game show in particular. When she receives an invitation to participate on the show, she starts to fret about her appearance, eventually seeking a doctor to prescribe her diet pills that will help her fit into the red dress she plans to wear on TV.

Based on work by Hubert Selby Jr., who then worked with Aronofsky on the screenplay, this is not only a requiem onscreen, but an almost unbearable, hellish, crescendo for most of the second half, culminating in a finale that I don’t think I would have been able to get through on the big screen (although I kind of wish I had been able to see this when it was first released). The structure and dialogue work well enough, but you then have the dizzying visual style AND a propulsive and bone-shaking score from Clint Mansell (assisted by the Kronos Quartet on strings, as well as numerous other musicians helping him to create the audio tapestry).

Leto is quite good in his role here, and he is equalled by both Connelly and Wayans at different times, but the younger cast member are all given the typical shivering junkie material to work with, in many ways. The real standout is Burstyn, giving a vulnerable and frail performance that will break your heart as she slides further and further into her own delusion. It is arguably her best ever performance, and her journey is the toughest to watch (which is astounding, considering what all four characters go through). The other person deserving a mention here is Christopher McDonald, doing a great job of portraying a typically polished and smarmy TV show host, whether actually on the TV screen or wandering through the mind of Burstyn’s character.

Not entirely dire and downbeat, although any moments of lightness or humour are few and far between, Requiem For A Dream is a film that deliberately puts you through the wringer. It may be simplistic, in a number of ways, and it may seem a bit ridiculous as it hurtles towards a dark and twisted climax, but it also shows characters moving back and forth between being functioning addicts and spaced-out zombies better than pretty much any other film I can think of, with the notable exception of a certain Danny Boyle/Irvine Welsh collaboration that helped define the 1990s.

A must-watch, as long as you can handle the content, but I can understand anyone who then decides never to give it a repeat viewing. I own it, but I never think of it as a film to stick on while I have many other options that won’t leave me wanting to scrub my brain and eyes with industrial-strength bleach.

9/10

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Trainspotting (1996)

I don't think it's overstating the fact to say that Trainspotting was one of the defining films of the 1990s. Slowly but surely, almost everyone involved with the film developed a pretty successful film career (with Ewan McGregor, arguably, going on to be the most successful). Danny Boyle confidently delivered on that film-savvy potential that he'd shown with Shallow Grave. The soundtrack was one of the best of the decade, and the marketing and poster design is still being utilised to this day (even if it is usually used to push lesser Irvine Welsh adaptations, see Irvine Welsh's Ecstasy - or don't, actually).

Trainspotting is a landmark film, and it holds up, easily, as one of the best British movies in modern cinema. I'd happily put it on a list of the best British movies ever. It wouldn't take the number one spot, but it would easily crack the top ten.

The central storyline, although the film is more a series of interweaving strands moving back and forth between the main characters, follows Renton (Ewan McGregor), a heroin addict who starts the movie by vowing to clean up his act. This isn't the first time that he's tried to go clean, and it may not be successful, but he's going to try really hard this time. Unfortunately, normal life is just boring. Especially when his friends include Spud (Ewen Bremner), who's sweet but a bit useless, Sick Boy (Jonny Lee Miller), who comes off heroin at the same time just to show him how easy he can manage it, and the slightly psychotic Begbie (Robert Carlyle), who happily looks down his nose at the addicts while downing copious amounts of alcohol and smoking like a chimney. There's also Tommy (Kevin McKidd), but Tommy doesn't really have many vices or problems, which sometimes makes him the most annoying of them all. Of course, everyone may be a bit different by the end of the movie, affected in various ways by Renton and the decisions that he makes to get his life back on track. Or, at least, back on a track deemed suitable by society.

Having STILL not read the source material, which is a situation I really must rectify (as I am a big fan of almost everything I've read by Welsh), I can't really comment on what was kept and what was lost on the way to the big screen. What I can say is that the screenplay by John Hodge is just top notch. The characters are all fully fleshed out, the humour running throughout often helps to sugar-coat a bitter pill, and the fact that viewers stay on Renton's side, despite what a selfish asshole he is, shows just what a fantastic piece of work it is.

Of course, a lot of Renton's likeability comes from the winning performance from McGregor, who puts in a performance that remains one of his very best. Boyle is a director who often seems to get the best out of his cast, and this has rarely been more obvious than it is here, with everyone else onscreen stepping up to easily hold their own alongside McGregor. Miller, McKidd, Bremner and, especially, Carlyle all create characters that you won't quickly forget. Then there's Peter Mullan as Mother Superior (because of the length of his habit) and Kelly Macdonald, who enjoys such a fantastic cinematic debut that the rest of her career seems disappointing in comparison, despite the fact that she's been working solidly for the past 15+ years.

But let me save the last bit of praise for Boyle, once more. A man who impressed me with his debut feature, blew me away with this film, and has continued to delight and entertain me ever since. He brings everything together so perfectly, and with such apparent ease, that it's often easy to forget how dark a lot of the movie is. It's about a heroin addict, it features horrific violence, a number of moments focusing on fecal matter, there are at least two disturbing death scenes, and one sublimely-filmed OD sequence.

And then Born Slippy starts to play, the end credits roll, and you want to watch it all over again.

10/10

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Trainspotting-Ultimate-Collectors-Edition-Blu-ray/dp/B0014MY1GM/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1390495368&sr=8-3&keywords=trainspotting

21 Jump Street (2012)

It's time for yet another old TV show to be given a comedy makeover as 21 Jump Street hits the big screen and I must start off this review by saying that this is a film once again based on a TV show that I have no knowledge of. Well, I understand that the basic premise revolved around an undercover police unit working at a school but beyond that I know nothing.

The movie starts off in 2005, showing us a couple of very different young men. Schmidt (Jonah Hill) is a loser while Jenko (Channing Tatum) is the handsome, popular guy who makes fun of him. The one thing they have in common is that neither is going to the prom. Move forward a few years and Schmidt and Jenko end up in the same group training for the police. The two men help each other out and become firm friends. Sadly, they don't seem to be very good cops and after messing up their first arrest they are transferred over to the Jump Street project - an undercover operation that will send them back to high school in an attempt to bust a drug ring. Strange as it may seem, in the intervening years the smart and caring kids have become the cool ones and the aggressive rebels aren't so beloved as they once were. Schmidt and Jenko have to struggle to adapt to their new roles but cracking the case must remain at the top of their agenda. Well, that and maybe going to the prom.

Directed by Phil Lord and Chris Miller, and with a script written by Michael Bacall (based on a story worked out by himself and Jonah Hill), 21 Jump Street has plenty of great one-liners, a few decent comedy action sequences and some obvious but amusing character development.

The real ace up its sleeve, however, is the central pairing of Channing Tatum and Jonah Hill. I have enjoyed the work of both actors in a number of other movies but they play off each other brilliantly here, with Tatum showing a real flair for comedy, and the chemistry between them ensures that this film rattles from start to finish with not one dull moment.

The rest of the cast all do very well, it's just clear that the movie is at its peak when Tatum and Hill are the focus. Brie Larson is cute as Molly - the young lady who catches Schmidt's eye, Dave Franco is very good as Eric (a cool guy but also a main suspect), Rob Riggle is as hilarious as ever in the role of Mr. Walters, Ice Cube is very entertaining as the angry Captain Dickson, Ellie Kemper is very funny as Miss Griggs - distracted by Jenko and there are far too many other names that I could single out for praise if I had the time/space/inclination but just trust me when I say that everyone does a fantastic job. There are also a few great cameos for fans to watch out for so keep your eyes peeled.

To be honest, I didn't expect much from this film. I was hoping for a few laughs but I was worried that it would be yet another comedy with all of the best moments already shown in the trailer. That certainly wasn't the case. It's slick and full of plenty of intelligence working alongside the dumber elements but also, and most importantly, it was laugh out loud funny for most of the runtime. Fans of the original show may not like the fact that it has been given a comedy makeover so do bear that in mind but for everyone else - I suggest giving this one a watch ASAP if you want your funny bone tickled.

9/10

http://www.amazon.com/Jump-Street-UltraViolet-Digital-Blu-ray/dp/B003Y5H5BA/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1337947019&sr=8-1

Fifty Pills (2006)

A decent, if unspectacular, comedy that ends up feeling like some extended episode of “Undeclared” thanks to the cast of fresh faces and the number of quirky characters, Fifty Pills tries hard to be likeable and just manages it.

Lou Taylor Pucci is Darren, a young man who has just lost his college scholarship thanks to a party that was thrown by his roommate (drug-dealing Coleman, played by John Hensley). This is despite the fact that Darren wasn’t even there at the time. He is given a little bit of time by a sympathetic housing manager and Coleman gives him fifty pills, hence the title, that he should be able to sell at $20 each to earn the money he desperately needs to be able to stay on in college. And so Darren sets off on a quest to sell the pills, make the money and keep his life on track.

Director Theo Avgerinos and writer Matthews Perniciaro seem to be aiming for a hip, fun vibe but don’t get enough in the mix to make Fifty Pills anything more than a passable attempt to belatedly rife the coat-tails of Go. The script isn’t all that sharp and the direction isn’t all that stylish but, thankfully, the cast and characters do a lot to raise the whole thing up to a rating of just-above-average.

Pucci is okay, if a bit bland, in the main role, Hensley is as good as he so often is and the potential love interest comes in the form of a young Kristen Bell. Nora Zehetner is fun for her limited time onscreen, Eddie Kaye Thomas is hilarious, Michael Pena provides a few laughs and Monica Keena gets to have a lot of fun. The gorgeous Diora Baird is onscreen for less than a minute (sigh) and we get a few moments of magnificent scene-stealing from Jane Lynch and John Kapelos as Darren’s parents.

 

It moves along briskly enough, and tries hard to please, but Fifty Pills is certainly not a movie that would be deemed unmissable. It is, however, worth 90 minutes of your time if it comes on and you have nothing else scheduled. 

6/10.

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