Rating summary

Movie		5.0
Video		4.0
Audio		5.0
Extras		3.0
Overall		5.0

Requiem for a Dream 4K Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman October 15, 2020

Aldous Huxley made the kind of interesting point in his now legendary treatise The Doors of Perception that the brain’s natural “screening” mechanisms were such that trying to describe reality once those screens were removed or at least lessened by psychotropic drugs to someone with their screens still intact was a fool’s errand. Aldous Huxley obviously never saw a Darren Aronofsky film, since if he had, even Huxley may have been forced to admit that whatever screens any given brain may have in force could well not be enough to shield that brain from the images Aronofsky puts on another kind of screen in many of his unabashedly audacious films. In other words, and with regard to the film under review in particular, Requiem for a Dream is in a very real way, to quote a famous ad campaign, your brain on drugs. Aronofsky had rather ironically offered an often hallucinogenic ambience in his first feature film, Pi, a story ostensibly about that most rational of people, a mathematician. But when let loose on a tale that overtly references drug use and its devastating effects as he was on Requiem for a Dream, Aronofsky delivered a sensory assault that may indeed strike some as akin to "coming on" to a psychedelic drug.

Requiem for a Dream received a (1080) Blu-ray release way back in 2009, at the veritable dawn of the format. For those wanting a plot recap, I encourage you to read Martin Liebman's Requiem for a Dream Blu-ray review of that initial release. This is another Lionsgate 4K UHD release that is "recycling" an older 1080 disc as part of the package, and so Marty's review is also a good resource for his thoughts on the video and audio aspects, as well as that disc's supplementary material. I am slightly upping Marty's score for the video on the 1080 version in the latest example of what I call "different reviewers, different opinions".

Requiem for a Dream 4K Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Note: Screenshots are sourced from the 1080 Blu-ray.

Requiem for a Dream is presented in 4K UHD courtesy of Lionsgate Films with a 2160p transfer in 1.85:1. As Director of Photography Matthew Libatique alludes to in his interesting commentary, this is an often intentionally heterogeneous looking presentation that can ping pong between crystal clarity, fuzzier video feeds and the more psychedelically tinged hallucinatory elements, and as such those looking for pure consistency in the imagery and its perceived detail levels may need to adjust their expectations. To my eyes, despite the huge variances in styles Aronofsky and Libatique employ, detail levels are measurably improved in this version, and Dolby Vision adds some fascinating highlights to an already often skewed palette. The "seasonal" colors are often exceptional, with some of the blues and teals in fall especially resplendent. Fine detail often is virtually palpable, as in the textured paper that some recipes are on, or even in the kind of brocaded wallpaper in Sara's apartment. Outdoor material pops extremely well, and depth of field is excellent in the many seaside or amusement park scenes. Grain generally resolves naturally, though it understandably spikes during opticals like the split screen moments. It occasionally looked just a bit noisy to me in some of the amusement park sequences in particular, especially toward the very corners of the frame. The entire winter sequence generally looked grainier than some of the rest of the presentation. Some of the "video" elements probably aren't done any favors with the increased resolution of this presentation, and so some of the tv material can look slightly pixellated at times.

Requiem for a Dream 4K Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Requiem for a Dream features a fantastic sounding Atmos track that regularly exploits both vertical and horizontal placement. The tinkly (glockenspiel? celesta?) opening cue clearly wafts overhead, something that's bookended by the midair placement of the bird calls during the closing credits, but throughout the track, there is really good engagement of the Atmos channels, especially in some of the transitions into drugged out scenes. Mansell's score really sounds excellent throughout, though some may feel some of the string cues in particular can sound a bit brash. The film's multilayered sound design achieves excellent separation and perhaps surprising amounts of clarity throughout, with dialogue rendered cleanly and clearly. As "in your face" as some of the imagery in this film is, in my estimation the sound design adds as much to the general perception of unreality in this film, and this Atmos track really allows the listener to enter a world where things don't necessarily wait for night to go bump.

Requiem for a Dream 4K Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

As mentioned above, this release aggregates the original 1080 Blu-ray disc with a new 4K UHD disc. Please refer to Marty's Requiem for a Dream Blu-ray review for details on the supplements on the 1080 disc. The 4K UHD disc has the following bonus material:

• Audio Commentary by Director Darren Aronofsky


• Audio Commentary by Director of Photography Matthew Libatique


• Ellen Burstyn on Requiem for a Dream (HD; 16:23) is an interesting interview with the actress, who details how she initially didn't want to do the film until she saw Pi at the suggestion of her agent.


• Transcendent Moments: The Score for Requiem for a Dream (HD; 17:09) features composer Clint Mansell.


• Revisiting Requiem for a Dream (HD; 13:16) features Bruce Isaacs offering comments on various production aspects.


• On Set: 1999 (HD; 5:52) offers candid footage.

Requiem for a Dream 4K Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Requiem for a Dream is a devastating film that is not easy to watch at times, and which is not easy to shake after having watched it. If Burstyn's performance is rightly celebrated (her characterization was the only Academy Award nomination this film received, perhaps surprisingly), the entire cast delivers in their own often frightening ways, and the entire film is suffused with potent imagery and evocative sound design. I frankly can't imagine any fan of the film not being generally pleased with this 4K UHD version, and Lionsgate has gone the extra mile by providing Atmos audio and some new supplementary features. Highly recommended.