Addiction Movie Analysis (Requiem For a Dream) PDF

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Movie analysis of Requiem for A Dream which identifies addiction as the theme....

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Running head: Requiem for a Dream

Requiem for a Dream Addiction Analysis Psychology 1000 Hawaii Pacific University

“We become slaves of our own desires,” ⎼ Adam Curtis. Requiem for a Dream is a

Requiem for a Dream 2 dark, disturbing film that depicts the self-gratification of the four protagonists through addiction in the form of drugs. They resort to this temporary remedy to fill the void in their lives, however, succumbs to the persistent usage and eventually become the reason for their existence. Harry, who sacrifices his mother and his girlfriend because of heroin addiction and delusions. Tyrone, who is haunted by the tender memory of his mother which is the sole driving force of smuggling heroin. Marion, who is emotionally detached from her parents and seek heroin to the extent of prostitution. Sara, who indulges in diet pills containing amphetamine to regain her youth and happiness with the incentive of being invited to a television show. Trapped in a cycle of dependence, the characters are consumed by their inner demons and exhibit their true nature when everything starts to collapse. As the harsh reality becomes more distinct from fantasy, their human psyche fills with isolation, desperation, and anguish which ultimately lead to self-destruction. Sara Goldfarb is one of the characters that lives a sedentary life with an addictive habit of watching television and munching on food. She lives a monotonous life with her neighbors, however, has a superficial relationship with her son, Harry. One day, she receives a call from the show she loves stating that there is an opportunity for her to be admitted. The imagination of people’s admiration for her in a red dress runs wild as Sara was in ecstasy. The call gave her the mindset of bringing back the spark in her life as to negate the void lingering when her husband divorced her. However, one of her major flaws was the assumption of securing a place without receiving the proper details. She became devoted and started to beautify her image especially through a fad diet. Reminiscing her youth that was filled with intimacy and meaning, she

Requiem for a Dream 3 becomes obsessed with fitting her red dress once more. However, as showcased in the film, Sara has an addiction to food and cannot withstand fasting and limited meals. As a result, she resorts to diet pills which contain amphetamine and this is the initial point of her tragic downfall. It was revealed by herself that she suffers from loneliness and the lack of sense of direction in her life. Sara’s disoriented lifestyle caused her to indulge in delusions where she feels accompanied and happy. As significant weight loss progress was displayed, the diet pills became her escape getaway from reality as it amplified her blissful delusions. This encouraged Sara to disregard her prescription intake and increased the dosage of amphetamine. Consequently, her joyous fantasy turned into a constant nightmare as the hallucination effect intensified. Sara rapidly loses her touch for reality as people from television materialize in her perspective. Overwhelmed with terror and insanity, she is sent to a mental asylum living her days in desolation and despair. Marion Silver leads a carefree life with a lack of responsibility. She is in an intimate relationship with Harry Goldfarb where she truly feels the sense of companionship deprived of her parents. Marion has a pseudo-relationship with her parents to the extent where it’s almost considered as nonexistent. Although they provide her enough funds to survive on her own, they view Marion as nothing but a mere obligation proven by insufficient involvement and interaction. This created an unshakable barrier and distance in which Marion developed severe depression and resentment towards her parents. However, Harry and his source of heroin symbolize her happiness and distractions from personal issues. In a sense, Harry could be considered as her gateway drug in finding a reason to live. They both share a dream of opening clothes designing business with Marion’s creative sketches. Soon, her obsession worsens especially when their source of drugs diminishes. She resorts to a drastic measure of offering her body in exchange for drug money. This implies her animosity towards her parents as she did not

Requiem for a Dream 4 consult them for support. It was in the aftermath where her relationship turned sour and grasped the true nature of Harry when he had an outburst. He requested Marion to service pimps and his associates in order to rebound. It was in this brief moment where she realized that her life was governed by her addiction as evident by being ambivalent during the call. Drowned in her addiction, Marion loses self-control and desperately seek her comfort zone while being trapped in a life of prostitution. Harry Goldfarb has an ambitious goal of earning quick money using drugs to please his beloved Marion. Initially, the drug was introduced by his friend, Tyrone, and it was nothing but a brief attempt of indulging in one’s fantasy. While Harry was under the drug effects, he envisions Marion in a red dress and walks towards her. This insinuates his desire to be with Marion and encourages to dive in the world of drug-dealing. He becomes obsessed to the degree where he hurls drugs at any of his problems as his means of solving it. An example would be injecting heroin in his infected arm instead of seeking medical treatment. Just like the aforementioned, Harry’s perception heavily changed during her quarrel with Marion. The heroin clouded his judgment with irrational thoughts which brought the deterioration of their relationship. The irony in which the drug was supposedly the gateway to happiness turned into a substance that led Harry to self-destruct. Eventually, his arm was amputated and cries for help from Marion, however, came with the realization of losing her forever. Tyrone Love’s addiction tragedy is somewhat different amongst the three, yet remains poignant. The other three characters consist of tangible problems, however, in Tyrone’s case, he is fixated on his cherished memories of her loving mother. In one of the scenes, Tyrone reminisces his childhood with the ambition of thriving in his ghetto environment despite financial hardships. His mother, who is now deceased, engraved the sense of love and happiness

Requiem for a Dream 5 onto his mind. However, Tyrone’s coming of age came with the realization of a cruel world where attention, companionship, and care is ruled by money. The tender memory of her mother is what stimulates the drive of succeeding under the criminal life. Because of money, Tyrone is unable to establish a genuine relationship due to his moral values. Surrounded by loneliness and nihilism, drugs became his remedy to neutralize the emptiness dwelling within. Heroin takes charge of his life because of the desire for affection similar to her mother’s endearment in which he believes can only be acquired through fame and fortune. As Tyrone’s addiction to consuming and smuggling drugs grows stronger, the deeper he finds himself in the depths of the abyss to the point of no return. Regardless of all of his performances and exploits, he is incarcerated and only then recognizes the dangerous path he chose that ultimately crushed his dreams. Perhaps the complex nature of drug addiction isn’t just about the chemical triggers that occur in our body as defined by the norm. Requiem for a Dream does an exceptional attempt in unraveling the mystery of compulsive dependency through four characters with each of their own desire and the pursuit of their dream. With their severe addiction to drugs, they are deprived of their freedom and self-ownership, falling victim to their impending doom. Sara, who became absorbed into her delusional fantasies through the overdose of amphetamine and eventually rendered crazy. Marion, who have parental issues and depression, succumbing to the life of prostitution for drug and money as her means of companionship. Harry, with his obsession for Marion, turns to heroin and consequently destroys the relationship along with his amputated arm. Tyrone, who indulges in the blissful memory of her mother as his motivation for smuggling drugs that resulted in imprisonment. These four characters all have a recurring trait depicted throughout the film; loneliness. From the sociocultural perspective, each of the characters suffers from a sort of relationship detachment which reinforced the yearning for emotional connection.

Requiem for a Dream 6 This led to the cognitive thinking of drugs serving as a getaway or escape from the reality of isolation and desperate longing. Failing to connect can have dire consequences especially depressed people resorting to drugs that only worsen their state of mind. Sara, Marion, Harry, and Tyrone all became their own worst enemies fulfilling their delusions to an extreme degree regardless of the risks and dangers. Human beings are very social creatures that require the instinctive need to bond and share. When the mind and the environment are in a positive condition, people are bound to refrain from using drugs and nullifies any unhealthy obsessions. However, when traumatized, isolated, or depressed, it results in the usage of a substance that gives a sense of relief. Requiem for a Dream provides a sensible message of what would happen if our thoughts do not correspond with reality. People will rely on tangible objects as a substitute to replace the void and nothingness tolerated within. Overcoming addiction and regaining self-control can only be achieved if people confront their fears or what they are running away from. And perhaps companionship and real connection are what people need in their life to combat addiction.

References Aronofsky, D. (Director), & Selby Jr., H. (Writer). (2000). Requiem for a Dream [Motion picture]. USA: Artisan Entertainment....