Film Review: The Doom Generation (1995) v2

SYNOPSIS:

Jordan White and Amy Blue, two troubled teens, pick up an adolescent drifter, Xavier Red. Together, the threesome embark on a sex-and-violence filled journey through an America of psychos and quickie marts.

REVIEW:

The official release date for The Doom Generation was October 25, 1995. Gregg already had some rad, wild films out including: Totally F***ed Up (1993), The Living End (1992), and The Long Weekend (1989). The Doom Generation was one of those movies that may have shocked some people or made people think about what goes on in the world.

It was a time when social media was not around, no one was clamoring to post what they were having for dinner. Movies like Splendor also by Gregg Araki, Kaboom, Mysterious Skin, Nowhere (Gregg Araki again), Cecil B. Demented, Multiple Maniacs, White Oleander, Sugar &Spice, Six Ways to Sunday, Pecker, GO, Irreversible, Freeway, Crash, Jawbreaker, Fish Tank (which is one of my favorite films. It’s so devastating and yet so beautiful as a film.)

Gregg Araki wrote, directed, and produced The Doom Generation starring Rose McGowan, Johnathon Schaech, and James Duval. The Doom Generation had quite a few fascinating cameos and it was a movie that stopped time. It made you think and want to join this wild, free, sexual, manic road trip.

Jordan White portrayed by James Duval, Rose McGowan portrays Amy Blue, and Johnathon Schaech portrays Xavier Red. Amy and Jordan start out the night at a club with all red aesthetic, and iconic quotable content by Amy Blue portrayed by Rose McGowan. Jordan has a sweetness, a real-life fascination with life, love, and Amy.

This cast ranges from Cress Williams, Skinny Puppy, Dustin Nguyen, Margaret Cho, Lauren Tewes, Christopher Knight, Nicky Katt (Nicky Katt is unreal in this movie. Just incredible.), Johanna Went, Perry Farrell, Amanda Bearse, Parker Posey, Salvator Xuereb, and more.

Xavier shows up, and he’s just wild and free. He’s the bad boy or just really cute and having a good time. Depending on how you look at it. James Duval has starred in everything from The Black Room, Donnie Darko, Garlic & Gunpowder, Punk’s Dead: SLC Punk 2, Dutch Hollow, Tales of Halloween, Appetites, and more.

Johnathon Schaech has been in quite a few amazing films himself including Prom Night, Blue Ridge, Nocturna, Texas Rising, The Sweetest Thing, and The Forsaken. Rose McGowan starred in Jawbreaker and Charmed.

Jordan and Amy stop at a quickie mart, and well the shit hits the fan. Xavier otherwise known as X shows up with intentions to save the day but he just pisses off Amy. There is psychology and madness in The Doom Generation that only Gregg Araki could cover. “I saw it on TV so it’s got to be true, right”?

It was indeed way ahead of it’s time. The red, blue, and dark hues and tones. X and Jordan are opposites yet somehow, they feed off of each other. The special effects, the acting, the cinematography. I don’t think this movie was going for shock value. Despite Amy’s raging dislike for X, she manages to have angry sex with him.

The Doom Generation is a movie I would recommend watching. It’s one of those movies that makes you think and feel all of those suppressed monstrous feelings. It brings them to the surface. Amy, Jordan, and X are on the run and they are hopping from place to place.

The Doom Generation is a film that invokes thoughts and mindfulness in many ways. It also showed a long time ago how desensitized we have been to all the madness going on in the world. The Sundance Film Festival held a special anniversary screening.

The Doom Generation dealt with darkness, depression, sadness, chaos, toxic love, genuine love, and it was brutal in ways. Check out The Doom Generation and “I love you, fucker” will forever be.