How have
addiction, obsession and mental illness been shown successfully in the
mainstream film industry?
Requiem
for a Dream and Vertigo.
Introduction.
Addiction,
obsession and mental illness are those subjects that we as a society know very
little about and it is something that we wish not to know about as well. Yet
how have Requiem for a Dream, which is a hard hitting film about drug addiction
and the downfall effect it can have upon people’s lives and films like Vertigo,
which is about the obsession of a woman that displays the complex nature of
what the heart wants the heart gets, become a huge part of popular culture.
This essay will be looking at the production, distribution, exchange, audience
reaction and critic reviews to see how these two classics have become
successful in their own rights. Is it all about what the people want, or is it
giving the people what you want?
Production.
Darren
Aronofsky’s Requiem for a Dream was produced and co-financed by Thousand Words
and Artisan Entertainment. The production of this film was meant for some much
more than just generating the next big hit at the box office, Aronofsky is
famous for his film making and his ability to put a twist in the story and
create a signature piece, like his more recent production, Black Swan.
“We always knew we
were going to try to break down some barriers narratively, visually and
aurally; we wanted to try to make a film that was completely different from
anything that had been done before, and I encouraged all of my department heads
to go for it. Of course, all of the special techniques we applied had to
advance the story, because we didn’t want the film to turn into this
self-indulgent, MTV type of thing” (Stephen Pizzello, 2000, pg 50).
This production was on a low budget of $4,500,000 and was
meant for the purpose to entertain than to generate more capital. Unlike
Vertigo that was produced by Paramount Pictures and Alfred.J.Hitchcock
Productions and was, for its time, on a high end budget of $2,470,000. Produced
by the world class director Alfred Hitchcock, he was voted number one in the
twenty-five top directors in the international film magazine, Sight and Sound.
This psychological thriller was produced for more commercial reasons than
anything else, this was no ordinary film, and this was a production piece that
was going to excite the audience.
“Editing, camera movement, sound design owe little to the
prior arts; even mise en scene, with its root in stagecraft, becomes suigeneris
through the infinite mutability of screen space” (Peter Matthews, September
2012, pg 54/55).
Even though both are directed by two very different directors
these films do share the connection of addiction, obsession and mental illness.
Distribution.
The
2000 Cannes Film Festival was the first we ever got to see of Aronofsky’s
masterpiece, it was also featured in Canada Toronto International film festival
before being released in New York, USA on 6th October 2000. This
production has been released in many countries over the years with its last
release being in the Czech Republic in 2009. However Vertigo has had much more
success with its release over the years, and has even had a re-release on 28th
October 1983 in the USA and incredibly 54 years after its first release in the
USA on 9th May 1958, Vertigo was released in Portugal on 20th
December 2012. At the time of its
release Vertigo was in competition with big films such as: South Pacific, GiGi
and Cat on the Hot Tin Roof, these were high grossing films of 1958 with South
Pacific making $16,300,000. The visual promotion that was used to generate
public awareness of these films both took a similar approach by using strong
feature from the film itself, for instance Requiem for a Dream took the
advertising approach of using a split screen effect which this film know, if
you have the seen the film would know that this is used frequently throughout the
piece and even more so on the scenes that held a strong message. Therefore this
is showing to awaiting audience that this is what they can expect and if this
has got them hooked then the film will certainly be what the audience is
wanting. Similarly Vertigo uses the famous swirl from the start of the film to
create that uneasy feeling with the audience, it leaves them knowing something
is not quite right. Also the promotion of the film has used the key image of
the two main characters, which ties in perfectly, as a picture really does say
a thousand words; Scottie is content in the moment however Madeline/Judy is
showing the complete opposite emotion which is a strong indication of the
conflict that evolves within the production.
Exchange.
Requiem for a Dream has generated a successful profit since
its release in May 2000, in the Opening Weekend, Requiem for a Dream made an
impressive “$64,770 (USA) (8 October) (2 screens)” (IMDB, Online, Accessed
22/01/2013). Although it got off to a slow start when it comes down to the
profit made on Aronofsky’s production eventually this piece made $7,364,000
worldwide, which most would agree is a nice little profit to have made out of a
low budget film however when compared to Hitchcock’s Vertigo, it made very
little. Vertigo in the opening weekend Vertigo made “$10,783
(USA) (30 October 1983) (2 Screens)” (IMDB, Online, Accessed 22/01/2013). Which
over the years has amounted to $25,000,000 worldwide with an amazing $5,306,000
in rentals, it’s clear to say that Vertigo is the most successful out of the
two.
Critic Response.
Vertigo
is considered to be one of the greatest films of all time being voted number
one in the national and genre top 10 American films in Sight and Sound
magazine. However that is more that can be said about Requiem for a Dream as
although the film did have its great success the production “Artisan
Entertainment later made a negative pickup on the completed film” (Stephen
Pizzello, 2000, Pg50). Another take on the this production piece was “Not quite
the masterpiece it was hailed to be in some quarters, Darren Aronofsky's grim,
but lyrical addiction drama is nonetheless one of those rare films to fail
because of a surfeit of ideas, rather than the opposite.” (William Thomas,
Online, Accessed 23/01/2013). This was a film that was meant for those who love
films that push the boundaries which we all know Aronofsky is famous for doing,
also being a production on the sensitive subject of drug abuse may have come to
a shock to come of the critics that reviewed this film. On the other hand the
film Vertigo was opened with open arms into the film industry. “Vertigo, which
concerns the effort to model a real woman into an ideal, is nowadays commonly
diagnosed as another reflexive text: the ultimate demysticification of stardom
and its origin in male fantasy” (Peter Matthews, 2012, pg 54/55). Vertigo is a
film that will stand the test of time, we know this from its recent re-release
in the film industry, it is a timeless classic.
Audience.
“Looking
back at my research period, I’ve found some very interesting points and some
not so interesting points, to which left me at times in circles. I’ve looked
into the psychological aspect of things in Hitchcock’s films, but what I found
interesting was that his ideas to not concentrate on a male audience but also
mainly concentrate on a female audience in which Hitchcock tries to focus in
his main films on a female target audience. It’s quite strange for a Director /
Auteur to not only concentrate on a niche audience but also just to concentrate
on a single gender of the audience, in an interview on Youtube.com in
which shows Hitchcock being interviewed on BBC 1 (Monitor), as he states that
he’s intentions were to look mainly at a female target audience as because
during the 50’s around 80% of woman would go to the cinema. But by this
research development I found some quite interesting arguments as to say that
Hitchcock had a sexist approach to his movie making when shooting female
actress’s as he would say that “There’s not enough violence shown on woman” in
which again I find interesting” (Online, Accessed 23/01/2013).
This
quote above indicates that Vertigo was intended for female audience which would
explain why the role of the woman within this film, is so strong he has tried
to tap into this by generating a larger female audience as the female character
is empowered and holds the basis of the whole film which can draw in the
audience to give them the sense that this is something that they too can be a
strong powerful woman. Requiem for a
Dream on the other hand was considered more of an arty film and the audience of
these types of films would be more inclined to watch these types, and also
would already be fans of the successful Darren Aronofsky.
Popular Reaction.
“Drugs. They consume mind, body and soul. Once you're hooked,
you're hooked. Four lives. Four addicts. Four failures. Despite their
aspirations of greatness, they succumb to their addictions. Watching the
addicts spiral out of control, we bear witness to the dirtiest, ugliest
portions of the underworld addicts reside in. It is shocking and eye-opening
but demands to be seen by both addicts and non-addicts alike.” (Manu Gino, Rotten Tomatoes,
Online, Accessed 23/01/2013). This is
just one of the many positive audience reviews that this film created, it would
seem that Requiem for a Dream isn’t for everyone yet it has got so many viewers
hooked, like a drug. It has hit so many people in many different ways; it pulls
on those heart strings as you do feel an emotional connection with the
characters as you watch them decent into despair and struggle with what they
have become. They had it all and they lost it all. “Although a great movie, this is not my
favorite film by the master of suspense. With that said, I thought that it was
a well acted film that had an interesting plot, but I felt that Hitchcock
definitely delivered his strongest efforts with Psycho and The Birds. This film
is a near flawless picture in terms of great acting, directing and story, and
it definitely belongs among Hitchcock's strongest works. All the usual
ingredients that make up for a strong Hitchcock film are present and there's
enough suspense and thrills here to keep you on the edge of your seat till the
very end. I enjoyed Psycho a bit more, and I believe that it is Hitchcock's
true masterwork of cinema, but Vertigo belongs at the top as one of his finest
works.”( Jeff "The
Dude" Lebowski, Rotten Tomatoes, Online, Accessed
23/01/2013). Vertigo is considered one of the greatest of its time yet it doesn’t
please everyone, this is a film that requires you to take in the story and
understand it piece by piece whereas his other films are more successful on the
side of the story is a film that you literally have to watch to be able to
understand and some of its audience members different feel that the film was
pushed to its full potential, unlike other Hitchcock films.
Conclusion.
Requiem
for a Dream and Vertigo are two very different films that share the same context,
and have both become successful in their own right. Together they have changed
the way the film industry view; addiction, obsession and mental illness.
Requiem for a Dream was more the inspiration for the creation for the film ‘Chloe’
by myself and Aylen, we wanted to create something different, something that
stood out from the rest just as these two films have done and will continue to
do over the years.
Word Count; 1,983.
Bibliography.
Stephen
Pizzello, American Cinematographer, Issue 10, Volume 81, Pg 50
Peter
Matthews, The international film magazine Sight and Sound, Issue 9, Volume 22,
Pg 54/55
