Darren Aronofsky
(3 Question Interview)
Interview conducted by
James Mottram from http://bbc.co.uk concerning Darren Aronofsky's "Requiem For A Dream".
Why did you want to adapt a
work by Selby?
Anyone that reads Selby's work can
see how intense his world is. He
writes the most discordant, angry
words that tickle the air with some
sweet music around it. It's an
unbelievable experience to read his
books. I knew that once I made a
larger film it would be very difficult to
do a project like this. I live my life not
wanting to have any regrets, and I
knew that Selby was cool, that he's
a badass.
What do you think the film is
about?
The big point of the film was that all
addictions are the same: coffee, TV,
drugs - it didn't matter what the
chemical was, it all was a drug for
the body. People don't think that
mainlining coffee and TV is the same
as doing it with drugs. But ultimately,
it's not about any of that. It's about
mainlining hope. Ellen Burstyn's
character says "It makes tomorrow
alright." We, as humans, are living in
the future. Selby is also saying that
the American Dream is an opiate for
the masses; it calms them, when
they think they have a divine right to
succeed.
The film is very shocking. How do
you think people will react?
I know people will react violently to
the film, but it is about how far the
collapse goes. If we held any
punches, it would undermine exactly
what we were doing. The deepest,
darkest images had to be there. The
intensity had to be there. It's not
going to be for everyone.