Requiem for a Dream: Director’s Cut on 4K Ultra HD

Jennifer Connelly in Requiem for a Dream. Courtesy of Lionsgate.

Darren Aronofsky’s second feature, Requiem for a Dream: Director’s Cut, arrives on 4K Ultra HD to celebrate the film’s 20th anniversary.

There are certainly a few Oscar winners and nominees involved in the psychological drama:  Darren Aronofsky, Matthew Libatique, Ellen Burstyn, Jared Leto, and Jennifer Connelly.  Following its out-of-competition premiere during the 2000 Cannes Film Festival and North American premiere during the 2000 Toronto International Film Festival, the film would also receive plenty of critical acclaim.  Burstyn’s portrayal of Sara Goldfarb would also earn an Oscar nomination for Best Actress.  The actress would lose to Julia Roberts (Erin Brockovich).

With the way that addiction is portrayed on screen, you’re not going to forget the film anytime soon.  Whether it is amphetamines or heroin, we really go inside their minds.  Even though the film did less than $8 million at the box office, it’s still worth checking out some twenty years later.

Matthew Libatique, the film’s cinematographer, also supervised the 4K scan as the film gets remastered for its 20th anniversary.  Along with the 4K scan, we also get a number of new bonus features for the release.  Some features are exclusive to the 4K Ultra HD while the Blu-ray disc retains the previous Blu-ray features.  The only feature on both discs are the separate commentaries from director Darren Aronofsky and cinematographer Matthew Libatique.

Synopsis

Celebrating its 20th anniversary with a 4K Ultra HD release, Requiem for a Dream — with a screenplay by Aronofsky and Hubert Selby Jr., based on Selby’s novel — is a hypnotic film about four people pursuing their visions of happiness. Even as everything begins to fall apart, they refuse to let go, plummeting with their dreams into a nightmarish, gut-wrenching freefall.

Special Features

  • Audio Commentary by Director Darren Aronofsky
  • Audio Commentary by Director of Photography Matthew Libatique
  • On Set: 1999 (4K Only)
  • Transcendent Moments: The Score of Requiem for a Dream (4K Only)
  • Ellen Burstyn on Requiem for a Dream (4K Only)
  • Through Their Eyes: Revisiting Requiem for a Dream (4K Only)
  • The Making of Requiem for a Dream (Blu-ray Only)
  • Deleted Scenes (Blu-ray Only)
  • Memories, Dreams & Addictions: Ellen Burstyn Interviews Hubert Selby Jr. (Blu-ray Only)
  • Theatrical Trailers (Blu-ray Only)
  • TV Spots (Blu-ray Only)

DIRECTOR: Darren Aronofsky
SCREENWRITERS:  Hubert Selby Jr. and Darren Aronofsky
CAST:  Ellen Burstyn, Jared Leto, Jennifer Connelly, Marlon Wayans

Requiem for a Dream: Director’s Cut is now available on 4K Ultra HD.

Danielle Solzman

Danielle Solzman is native of Louisville, KY, and holds a BA in Public Relations from Northern Kentucky University and a MA in Media Communications from Webster University. She roots for her beloved Kentucky Wildcats, St. Louis Cardinals, Indianapolis Colts, and Boston Celtics. Living less than a mile away from Wrigley Field in Chicago, she is an active reader (sports/entertainment/history/biographies/select fiction) and involved with the Chicago improv scene. She also sees many movies and reviews them. She has previously written for Redbird Rants, Wildcat Blue Nation, and Hidden Remote/Flicksided. From April 2016 through May 2017, her film reviews can be found on Creators.