Synopsis

PiFan2001's Opening Film is a truly disturbing film which delves into the lives of four Brooklyn-ers as they spiral into their own private 'hells' aided by a variety of drugs from diet pills to heroin. Ellen Burstyn plays Sarah Goldfarb, a lonely and overweight widow whose only consolation is food and the television. After learning that she has been selected to be on television, she decides to get back to her slim svelte self with the aid of color-coordinated diet pills. Her son Harry played by Jared Leto, is jobless and unmotivated. He visits his mother occasionally mostly to pawn his mother? precious television to score some quick cash. Jennifer Connelly plays Marianne, Harry? all-too supportive girlfriend and Marlon Wayans portrays Tyrone, Harry? best friend and later business partner. The three friends come up with a get-rich scheme to sell, what else, drugs. In the process, they fall deeper and deeper into their addictions. As Sarah becomes a skeletal version of her former self she pays a hefty price for her physical diminution, her own sanity. By fall, the three friends are faced with slow business and their lives begin to fall apart at the seams. By the end, the film leaves us with a harrowing visual diary of these four individualsÕ mental and physical degeneration. After his critically acclaimed feature debut, (1998), director Darren Aronofsky returns with . With his use of visual symbols such as dilating pupils and chemical reactions and techniques such as split screens, hyper edits, lens and sound distortions, he forces us to literally face each character? nightmare. Last year? grand opening of the festival was initiated with director Mary Harron? a frighteningly sharp commentary on 80? decadence and materialism. This year, the theme of PiFan2001 will take on an alternate meaning as presents a very divergent definition of 'Fantasy' (Cassie YOO)

Diretor

Darren ARONOFSKY

Born in Brooklyn 1969, he studied live action, animation at Harvard University and received MFA from the American Film Institute in 1994. He has gained international recognition with his graduation project < Supermarket Sweep >. His debut film is Pi, was given the Director's Award at the Sundance Film Festival in 1998. After the critical success of Pi, he made his second film Requiem for a Dream in 2000.