Julien Donkey-Boy
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| Julien Donkey-Boy | |
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| Directed by | Harmony Korine |
| Produced by | Scott Macaulay |
| Written by | Harmony Korine |
| Starring | Ewen Bremner Werner Herzog Chloë Sevigny Evan Neumann |
| Cinematography | Anthony Dod Mantle |
| Editing by | Valdís Óskarsdóttir |
| Distributed by | Fine Line Features |
| Release date(s) |  1999 |
| Running time | 97 min. |
| Country | USA |
| Language | English |
| Preceded by | Gummo |
| Allmovie profile | |
| IMDb profile | |
Julien Donkey-Boy (1999) is the sixth film to be made under the self-imposed rules of the Dogme 95 manifesto. Directed by Harmony Korine, it is the first non-European film to be made under the Dogme 95 "vow of chastity".
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[edit] Synopsis
Flashing a mouthful of fake gold teeth, Julien (Ewen Bremner) wanders the streets of New York City, mumbling nonsensical syllables to himself. He tries to avoid the abuse of his sadistic, cough syrup guzzling and gas-mask-wearing father (Werner Herzog). He cracks a young boy’s head open with a rock. He befriends a blind figure skater. He wears a bra and underwear as he wrestles with his younger brother. And his sister, Pearl (Chloë Sevigny) is pregnant, the father unknown.
[edit] Production
Writer-director Harmony Korine attempts to show the world through Julien’s eyes: a schizophrenic kaleidoscope of images — some hauntingly beautiful, some disturbing and violent. It was the first American film made in accordance with the Danish filmmaking manifesto Dogme 95. Shot on handheld digital video, the film was transferred to 16mm stock before being blown up to 35mm film for the final print. Korine used this unique method to give the film a low-definition degraded look.
[edit] Dogme 95
Korine broke a few of the Dogme 95 rules in making the film. For example, Dogme 95 stipulates that all props must be found at the location of filming. Julien's dead baby is a prop and it is very unlikely that it was found at the hospital. Also, all the camerawork is supposed to be handheld, but this film uses hidden cameras, technically not handheld. Murders are forbidden, but the film opens with a murder. There is also non-diegetic music in the ice-staking scene (Oval's "Mediaton" from Systemisch), although it sounds like it alternates between diegetic and non-diegetic use. And finally, the director must not be credited; Korine is credited (however, the film only gives his name — it does not say "directed by Harmony Korine", just "Harmony Korine").
Despite these major transgressions, the original Dogme 95 committee endorsed Julien Donkey-Boy. In an interview on the Epidemic DVD, Lars Von Trier, Dogme 95 co-creator, lauded Korine's ability to interpret the rules creatively.
[edit] Trivia
Samples from the film can be heard on the album "The Great Misanthrope" by a Czech hardcore band Thema Eleven. The same band used samples from "Gummo", Korine's older movie, on their previous effort "DCLXVI:Choose Your Beast".
The song "Julien", by Bear Hands, makes repeated reference to the film.
