Donnie Darko Belonging
Belonging is a perception shaped within personal, social, cultural and historical context. While to most the concept only includes acceptance and harmony, there can be two sides to belonging, and Donnie Darko explores this idea through its characters and their context in the film.
Donnie Darko is set against the backdrop of the 1988 Bush vs. Dukakis Presidential election; it represents 1980’s conservative America through the last 28 days, 6 hours, 42 minutes and 12 seconds of Donnie Darko’s life. There is a strong theme of insecurity and isolation and many of the characters don’t belong throughout the film.
These themes are represented by Kelly using a range of film techniques. The use of iconic references, such as fashion, news and music (INXS, Tears For Fears, Duran Duran, The Church) are used in the film to create a sense of conflict between warm nostalgia and a biting reminder of America’s cultural philosophy at the time, promoting greed and social responsibility. The seemingly cosy world of leaf blowers, power walkers and double sided fridges of suburbia hides a quiet malice underneath, and in the middle of all this is Donnie Darko. Social context can affect the sense of belonging, and Donnie’s society is far from desirable. His connection to it is tenuous at best; therefore he is shunned and feels he does not belong.
The Scene “Head over Heels” introduces us to his world. As Donnie arrives at school, non diegetic sound, (“Head Over Heels” by Tears For Fears) sets the mood for the upside down world. Without a word of scripted dialogue, this scene tells a lot about what's happening around the school, taking us through hallways and classrooms, past pupils and teachers going about normal school life.
The scene begins with an odd angle shot of the back of the school bus as Donnie and his friends exit (rebelling by going through the back door), Donnie walks slightly apart from everyone, even his friends, hinting at Donnie’s displacement from society and
Donnie Darko is set against the backdrop of the 1988 Bush vs. Dukakis Presidential election; it represents 1980’s conservative America through the last 28 days, 6 hours, 42 minutes and 12 seconds of Donnie Darko’s life. There is a strong theme of insecurity and isolation and many of the characters don’t belong throughout the film.
These themes are represented by Kelly using a range of film techniques. The use of iconic references, such as fashion, news and music (INXS, Tears For Fears, Duran Duran, The Church) are used in the film to create a sense of conflict between warm nostalgia and a biting reminder of America’s cultural philosophy at the time, promoting greed and social responsibility. The seemingly cosy world of leaf blowers, power walkers and double sided fridges of suburbia hides a quiet malice underneath, and in the middle of all this is Donnie Darko. Social context can affect the sense of belonging, and Donnie’s society is far from desirable. His connection to it is tenuous at best; therefore he is shunned and feels he does not belong.
The Scene “Head over Heels” introduces us to his world. As Donnie arrives at school, non diegetic sound, (“Head Over Heels” by Tears For Fears) sets the mood for the upside down world. Without a word of scripted dialogue, this scene tells a lot about what's happening around the school, taking us through hallways and classrooms, past pupils and teachers going about normal school life.
The scene begins with an odd angle shot of the back of the school bus as Donnie and his friends exit (rebelling by going through the back door), Donnie walks slightly apart from everyone, even his friends, hinting at Donnie’s displacement from society and