Who here has seen requiem for a dream?

I know a lot of people with addictions who just hate that movie. It's portrayal of addition is very negative.

It's over the top, but powerful. It's been years since I saw it, but I remember liking it. It's not a formulaic Hollywood movie.

Ooh, god, I saw the director's cut... I don't know from realistic as far as addiction to hard drugs is concerned, so maybe it wasn't realistic--probably not, I mean it was a movie! All I know is, that infected arm of his? *barf*

I did like that they had Ellen Barkin's character using diet pills, so it kind of made the point that the drugs society decides to approve of just because they're more mainstream are still drugs...

The movie's stylization, with its music video editing, served to drive home the morality it was conveying. The recurring theme of cooking up some junk and shooting it is presented throughout the movie, from the very beginning when everything starts out well enough for the protagonists, through to their ultimate downfall. Likewise, the stylization of the weight loss program scam and its faux glamor recurs frequently as an ironic contrast to the very unglamorous existence which Ellen Barkin's character leads, and her ultimate downfall.

A very different junkie movie is Candy, which starred Heath Ledger. It's a more straight forward morality tale, with lost love and innocence as the consequence of junk addiction.

After watching Candy, I think I've had my fill of junkie movies.

I’m not sure it’s all that far fetched. People really do a lot of those things unfortunately. It’s very realistic that harder drugs will destroy relationships, your mind and body, your life, or all of the above.

Now some of the specifics, yea, those might be a little over the top especially what happens to Ellen Burstyn’s character in the hospital. The electro therapy and all that stuff, yikes.

I will say it’s a really hard movie to watch! The ending sequence of electro-shock therapy, detox in jail, amputation, becoming a hardcore adult entertainer over night all mashed together really gets the point across. Heh

Oh yea, this guy also directed Pi Faith in Chaos, which is a fantastic movie and a very different kind of story. Highly recommended!