The Movie: This movie is one of the most fucked up depressing movies you'll ever see, and it will haunt you forever. That's how good it is though. It basically depicts the downward spiral of several very different people as the descend into the depths of drug addiction. Yup, if any movie will make you not want to do drugs, this one would be it.

The transformations of the characters are pronounced, but none so well done as the performance given by Ellen Burstyn. She really is quite amazing in this movie. It also stars Jared Leto, Jennifer Connelly and Marlon Wayans. I don't know what else to say about this movie other than it will haunt you for quite a while after you see it.

Oh yes, it was directed by Darren Aronofsky, the same guy who did the movie Pi. But this movie is in color and nobody drills any holes in their head. And also there are two versions of this movie floating around out there -- the Director's Cut and the "Edited Version". I actually own both. The original version of this movie was rated NC-17, and of course, none of the major video rental chains will carry such a movie, so an edited version was created, removing some of the more graphic elements of the film. I own both versions now, and I have to say that if you rent the edited version of this movie, you really aren't missing much and I feel that you will be getting the full impact of the film even without those most graphic shots.

The DVD: As I said, I own both the normal and the edited version of this movie, and they are for the most part, exactly the same (aside from the R-rated editing, of course), and the edited version is also lacking an "easter egg" (the Tappy Tibbons infomercial). The movie itself is presented in a 1.85:1 anamorphic widescreen format that is very clean, bold and crisp.

The 5.1 soundtrack is great, particularly the audio mix of the string quartet that is used throughout the film. So good in fact that at one point I almost said aloud to myself "Dayum! My speakers sound good!". A very clean and very rich mix indeed. As far as special features go, well, this DVD features one of the coolest menu concepts I've ever seen... they look like the blue screen you see at the end of a TV commercial that's selling something with all the information on it.

But yeah, this disc is packed with special features, including commentary by the director and the DP, a "making of" segment, deleted scenes, theatrical trailers and a bit where Ellen Burstyn interviews Hubert Selby Jr., the man who wrote the book that this movie was based on. And as I mentioned earlier, the Director's Cut version also has an easter egg. Go to the chapter selection screen and highlight the spot that is titled "#3 SHHHHHH". Press up twice, then enter, and you'll get the complete Tappy Tibbons infomercial, which even reveals what "#3" is. If you've seen the movie then you just might know what I'm talking about. Overall, this is a pretty good DVD, and the movie as I said, is great. But really depressing. So be ready for that!