Plot summary

Brighton Beach, Brooklyn. In the shadow of the decaying dreamland of Coney Island, four interrelated lost souls fall prey to chemical addiction over a year. Intrigued by a random telephone call, sweet Sara Goldfarb, a lonely widow glued to her television, believes she will be on TV--all she has to do is drop a few pounds. Instead, Sara becomes addicted to diet pills. In the meantime, her heroin-shooting son, Harry, and his ecstasy-hooked pal, Tyrone, push drugs on the neighbourhood's mean streets, risking everything to escape poverty and support their unbreakable, ever-increasing addictions. And amid false promises and a perpetual dependency loop, Harry's talented girlfriend, Marion, aspires to make it big in the fashion industry. However, she, too, is about to plunge headlong into hell and explore the dark depths of human misery.—Nick Riganas