Requiem For A Dream
There were both a movie and a novel called Requiem For a Dream. The novel was written by Hubert Selby Jr., while the film was directed by Darren Aronofky. The film was something of a critical success. Read on to learn more about both the film and the book.
Since the novel came first it comes first here too. Four people feature prominently. Their names are Harry, Marion, Tyrone, and Sara. Harry and Marion are a couple. Tyrone is their friend. Harry's mother is named Sara. Their dreams dominate their lives. They all become addicted to something in the pursuit of their dreams. Sara wants to be on television. She binges on diet pills to lose weight after a casting company hints that she might be selected. Finally she overdoses on the pills. Harry and the others turn to heroin dealing to make money. They start using more heroin than they sell. Nobody ends up happy.
Sara and Harry are the focus in the movie, but Marion and Tyrone still appear. The plot follows the novel fairly closely. Also like the novel it takes place during three consecutive seasons – summer, fall, and winter.
Sara spends the summer watching infomercials. She has nothing to do but eat. She realizes this makes her fat. But then the infomercial producers tell her she may get a role on the commercial. She thinks about wearing a red dress that used to fit her when Harry graduated. She takes up an aggressive diet. She gets amphetamines from a doctor to help in her quest. They are addicting. Signs of this addiction are overly happy personality, and constantly grinding her teeth.
Harry and Tyrone become drug dealers. Their goal is to one day be able to afford a pound of pure heroin. Harry promises Marion he will buy here a clothing store with the money. Tyrone simply wants enough money to earn a life off the street.
Sara's addiction is even worse in the fall. As the dose she has been taking is no longer effective, she begins increasing the dosage. Soon she begins to hallucinate about her refrigerator moving around the house. Harry and Tyrone run afoul of the police. Most of the money they have earned in the summer is used for Tyrone's bail. They begin to use more of their product themselves.
The end of the movie is very sad. Winter is horrible. Harry ends up in the hospital after falling off the roof of a building, Sara is institutionalized, Tyrone is once again arrested and jailed, and Marion is hopelessly addicted to heroin. Harry is the only one who can't retreat to a world of hallucinations because he's in too much pain.
Requiem for a Dream is pretty accurate in its depiction of addiction.
http://dreamming.com/