Desire can be such a confounding and surprising creature. No two persons’ are alike and yet desire is one of the most primal experiences of human nature. The same can be said for our fears. Sometimes we fear the strangest things for no other reason than we are who we are. So it makes sense that sometimes these two experiences overlap with each other. Why is the scary sometimes a little sexy? I sit down with a friend to talk about her all time favorite scary, sexy crush: Donnie Darko. We talk the erotic undertones of horror, teenhood nostalgia, and the seduction of tragedy. All that and more!
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The Recs
Something to Read: The Vicious Lost Boys
As with many romance novels, content warnings are vital and this series is no exception. Romance is so personal and so littered with pitfalls, you don’t want to dive into a silly little smut and end up ruining your day. Definitely check out Nikki St. Crowe’s website before giving these books a go.
That being said, these novels were a whirlwind of fun and intrigue to me! They’re huge on the social medias right now so you might have already heard of them. The series is three books that retell Peter Pan with high fantasy and adult elements. So much of the romance and eroticism exists within the question of how our fears and desires overlap. While they are a vibrant and spicy slice of fiction, they’re also an interesting space to ponder that question for yourself. Smut, self reflection, and pixie dust? Sign me up.
Something to Watch (w someone you want to kiss): Scream
Another story that tackles the intersection of sex, shame, fear, and longing. Listen, I know functionally everyone has seen this movie. I’m recommending this movie not only because of its subject matter, but because it touches that sweet bruise of nostalgia for me that we all carry and that my friend and I discuss in the episode. I, as well as many people I’m sure, remember watching this movie as a rite of passage in my own coming of age. For me it was one of the first times I watched a movie with a boy and I’ll be able to conjure those feelings till the day I die. Something about being so scared by the movie cemented those memories for me. The fear and the longing; the nerves and the excitement. Watching the movie now as an adult transports me right back to teenage passion.
Sometimes nostalgia is a fun bedfellow. If you have someone you want to kiss, this movie is a great excuse to hide under a blanket together. If you don’t, watch it with your friends and geek out on old times.
Something to Listen to: A Fever You Can’t Sweat Out
Angst is Donnie Darko’s middle name but somehow he manages to replace the melodrama with just genuine drama. You really feel for his youthful confusion and how it’s eating him up. I think we’ve all felt that way as teens and even as adults too. This album makes a five star meal out of angst. And as with teen angst, it is both emphatically cathartic and a little silly.
Donnie Darko’s Tempting Turmoil and the Intersection of Sexy and Scary