Julien Donkey-Boy (1999)

User Rating:

5.7/10   

Writers:

Release Date:

13 September 2000 (France)

Genre:

Drama

Plot:

A portrait of the effects of schizophrenia on family life is the central focus.

Plot Keywords:

Schizophrenia | Doctor | Love | Blind Man | Store

Awards:

3 wins & 4 nominations

Cast

Ewen Bremner	...	Julien
Brian Fisk	...	Pond Boy
Chloë Sevigny	...	Pearl (as Chloe Sevigny)
Werner Herzog	...	Father
Joyce Korine	...	Grandma
Evan Neumann	...	Chris
Miriam Martínez	...	Teenage Girl (as Miriam Martinez)
Edgar Erikkson	...	Bearded Man
James Moix	...	Dancing Man
Victor Varnado	...	Rapper
Oliver A. Bueno	...	Bowler
Roger Harris	...	Bowler
Josseph Padilla	...	Bowler
Olivia Pérez	...	Bowler (as Olivia Perez)
Freddie Perez	...	Bowler

Also Known As:

Dogme # 6 - Julien Donkey-Boy (USA) (series title)

MPAA:

Rated R for language, some sexuality and disturbing images.

Runtime:

94 min | 101 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.78 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby SR

Certification:

Argentina:13 | Canada:14A | France:U | UK:15 | USA:R | Portugal:M/12 (DVD rating)

Filming Locations:

Yonkers, New York, USA

Company:

391 Productions

Trivia:

In the film, Julien works as an assistant in a school for the blind - so did Ewen Bremner's father.

Quotes:

Rapper: I'm a black albino straight from Alabama...

Movie Connections:

Referenced in From Dogma to Dogville: Don't Try This at Home (2006)

Soundtrack:

Compassion for M

Twisted

As people see things, things see us. This extremely disturbing film about a man/boy with schizophrenia struggling through life with his twisted and mentally abusive dad, his sister who is pregnant with his baby, and his abused brother, is terrifyingly weird. With a film in which a boy is brutally smashed in the head with a stone and choked to death, a nun masturbates on the floor, and a armless man plays the drums, it is completely obvious that this film will only appeal to certain people. This film is freakish, but not in as good a way as GUMMO was. With all this being said, while the film was a hellish and emotional picture that is not for the mainstream(to say the least), I would never ever want to really see it again. This was just too much. It made me feel unclean in a way much deeper tan GUMMO. I felt my mind was permanently warped. I never want to even think about this film ever again. Thinking about it makes me feel nauseous. The images and the characters and the actions of them have gotten to me and Of course, this was probably Harmony Korine's intention. Many viewers won't feel the images they are seeing are necessary to for the to see. It is kind of a freak show in a way. It isn't so much the content that is bad. There are many events in the film that just feel wrong. Take for instance the scene where Julien attempts to sell skating shoes he made. He attempts to sell them to a boy who does not listen to what he has to say about his purportedly useless invention and instead swears and yells at him, telling him in exaggerated form that the shoes will kill people and that he wouldn't pay any money for them. The scene has no purpose other than to seemingly be insulting and depressing to the viewer who has already had their fair share of depressing events throughout the film. And yet it is done in such a way that is very lifelike and very realistic in terms of how the scene is constructed, but it seems so weird to want to film this sort of behavior. It has also been well known that for this film project, Harmony recorded real people's reactions of some of the strange behavior with hidden cameras. This adds genuine realism to the film along with the nasty stuff, as if it didn't have enough. It's a tough film to sit through. I think it's a good film, but I don't recommend it for fear that people will think I'm a sicko for thinking they will like it.