‘It’s hard out here for a geek’ says Dope‘s tagline, and that’s sure to resonate with anyone who’s ever felt like an outsider, or sympathised with one on the big screen.
In Dope, out on DVD this week, it’s is a love of 90’s hip-hop that leaves Malcolm and his friends Diggy and Jib being made fun of by classmates at their school. They’re self-professed geeks, and soon, like outsiders in so many films, they find themselves in a situation far removed from that which they’re used to, as random chance leaves Malcolm in possession of a backpack full of drugs.
But outsiders come in many flavours: the misfit, the geek, the loner, the rebel, the villain, and there are thousands of films celebrating and commiserating the non-conformist.
So new let’s take a seat in the corner of the cafeteria with the rest of the outcasts, and have a look at five of the best movies about outsiders…
The Station Agent
Game of Thrones star Peter Dinklage deservedly found fame in his breakout role in the 2003 movie The Station Agent, a beautifully made comedy-drama about a man who feels so ostracised that he chooses to seek out solitude by living in an abandoned train station.
However cutting himself off from the rest of the world proves to be harder than he thought, as he soon becomes part of the lives of a divorced artist and his neighbour…if you can call a man who parks his snack truck by your house everyday a neighbour…
Funny, heartfelt, and moving, it’s all about outsiders finding their place with one another.
Dope
High school. Parties. Nerds. Bullies. The girl you fancy. And of course the all-important Prom.
Dope has many of the hallmarks of the classic teen ‘coming-of-age comedy, but feels fresher, bolder, and keen to subvert the clichés of high school stereotypes. A-grade student Malcolm (Shameik Moore) is left with a backpack full of drugs after a chance encounter with a drug dealer, and must get rid of the MDMA – or ‘Molly’ – if he has any chance of getting into Harvard.
A critical hit on its release in 2015, Dope begins as a laugh-out-loud comedy and gradually becomes something a lot more meaningful. Oh, and its soundtrack, curated by Pharrell Williams, is one of 2015’s best.
Donnie Darko
The definition of a modern cult hit, psyscho-sci-fi-thriller Donnie Darko takes the notion of the outsider to entertainingly strange and disturbing levels, as the eponymous troubled teen (Jake Gyllenhaal) is one night told by terrifying giant rabbit ‘Frank’ that the world will end in 28 days.
Well, it always feel like that when you’re a teenager doesn’t it? Are Donnie’s visions hallucinations or is there something more wibbly-wobbly timey-wimey at work?
Oh hell, it’s a 15 year old movie, you should know by now. Just as you probably know that it’s a movie that defies you to leave it after a single watch.
Ghost World
The phrase ‘comic book movie’ instantly brings to mind superheroes, CGI smack-aboutery, and explosions. No, bigger than that. EXPLOSIONS. But some of the best big screen comic adaptations draw from the richly populated and capeless end of the medium.
2001’s Ghost World is just that, and sees two snarky outsiders, Rebecca and Enid (Scarlett Johansson and Thora Birch), aimlessly wander through their all-American hometown and slowly find their relationship changing as the two of them choose to grow up in very different directions.
Edward Scissorhands
If you’re a Frankensteinian creation with blades for fingers and Vincent Price as your creator/dad, and you live in a twisting Gothic carbuncle of a mansion on a hill, then chances are you’re going to grow up as an outsider.
A fairytale take on the idea of the outcast, Tim Burton’s 1990 film shows you don’t have to be a misfit simply because you look different…or have lethal weapons attached to your wrist.
A stark figure among the pastel-coloured suburbia, Edward is gradually accepted by the neighbourhood, becoming expert hairdresser, topiarist, and ice sculptor, only for it all to go very wrong. And though Edward is the eternal outsider, there’s still a magic in his isolation as he makes it snow.
Dope is out now on DVD.
What’s your favourite movie about outsiders? Let us know below…
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