This is what the Internet is for.

[solipsiae]

These literal music videos have been in constant rotation with my circle of friends for days (which, given the increasingly short half-life of the Internet, is saying something). They're remarkably easy to sing along with and I'm surprised I haven't found any more as good as these

Comments

[rockstarbob]

The first one is hilarious. The second one makes me think of Donnie Darko so hard!

[solipsiae]

Is it the Mad World connection?

[cassielsander]

Actually, head over heels is in DD as well. The scene where I really started to sit up and take notice, actually.

[solipsiae]

Really? I don't remember that at all, but I only watched it once and it never really resonated with me...

[cassielsander]

It's the first high school scene, where they introduce that whole set of characters and how Donnie & Samantha fit in with them. Best '80s video of the 21st century, and well worth seeing without re-watching the whole film:

[rockstarbob]

That clip is so brilliant. The part with "Head Over Heels," I mean. Thanks for posting it--if you hadn't, I would have.

I have taught Donnie Darko to my students in film/lit so many times and I always have them analyze that very clip. I have them do a close reading of it. There's so much to plumb from it... the incredibly long take, the interesting (often subjective) perspective--but whose?, the fast/slow motion, the low-angle and oblique-angle shots... I could go on. All of those things have a relationship to the themes of the movie and to the genre of those 80s HS movies. But I'll try to settle down and keep it to myself. ;)

The point is, I will never be able to peel "Head Over Heels" (or "Mad World," for that matter) from that movie.

[cassielsander]

I'd be interested in hearing more about that relation to 80s films, actually, as I've always sort of felt the connection without being able to articulate it (beyond the music and the retro actors).

Do you teach the original or Director's Cut version? I imagine there's some lessons to be learned in that distinction, possibly a rare case of "the studio's not always wrong".

Hey solip, feel free to tell us to get a forum, since I imagine you're not that interested in this. And thank you, btw, for embedding the videos. They're hilarious.

[rockstarbob]

Yeah, I teach the original (not the director's cut, which is like WHAT HAPPENED, LET ME SHOW YOU IT). I agree with you in that this time the studio was right. Of course, the director was in his 20s when he made the movie, so maybe that accounts for some of the roughness.

The way it was shot (some of the camera angles, etc.) and the fact that it's a huge mash-up of all the big genres of the time make it clear to me that DD is an ode to 80s blockbuster films.

And yay, you friended me! I will return the favor momentarily.

[solipsiae]

I'm actually reading everything with gusto! It's telling me I need to take a closer look at the movie since I clearly missed something the first time around, and I'll be better equipped to get more out of it now that I'm armed with a lot more insight, thanks to y'all.

[cassielsander]

Great! Although (managing expectations) I'd say it is actually a little bit of a mess. He very artfully throws a lot of stuff at the wall and MOST of it sticks, but it could just as easily have all fallen apart (viz the director's cut). And I think the ending works better the less you think about it.

But on the other hand, any film that starts with "I'm voting for Dukakis" is pretty much guaranteed to keep my interest for awhile.

[solipsiae]

Frankly, Donnie Darko bored me to tears the first time I saw it. I think it's safe to say I'm due for a rewatch.

[rockstarbob]

Fair enough! It's not for everyone... I mean, I know a lot of people who thought it was boring as hell, or got the vibe that it was trying too hard. I do like it more with every rewatch, though, and I have the best time teaching it.

[solipsiae]

Sold. Reserving it online at my library now.

[cassielsander]

Though I guess interenet-jerkiness kind of makes the way it keeps changing speed harder to appreciate.

[rockstarbob]

I'm actually kind of surprised! It's probs my favorite movie of all time, and that's saying a lot.