Queer Rhapsody Film Series Movie Review: ‘Darby and the Dead’

7/22/2024

Written by John Edward Betancourt

For the most part, stories about grief and its impact upon us, offer up narrow but important perspectives on the matter. Specifically, how it hits us hard and can absolutely devastate us to the point of being immobilized by the pain it shoves into our heart. Or the story is big on showing how that pain can break us and bring us to our lowest, wherein we make awful decisions that create harm. All to hammer home that grief is powerful and life changing, and once we establish that, do we see the character grow and move on from it and well… while that is impactful and thoughtful, those are extreme examples of how grief is experienced and dealt with.

Because grief doesn’t necessarily wrap up in that manner. It may take a great deal of time for a person to resolve the ache of their grief. For that matter, not everyone lashes out in an explosive fashion to handle their grief. Nor do they immediately drop to their knees in sobbing pain. For some people, think they can just live with it and do their best to forge ahead with a growing pain in their heart… or they do damage in a different manner. Thankfully, stories are starting to understand that we can no longer continue to portray grief in a manner that so stoic and black and white. And it just so happens that the Queer Rhapsody Film Series is about to screen a horror/comedy that explores grief in that more enlightened manner.

A feat that Darby and the Dead accomplishes by way of a unique and refreshing plot. One that introduces us to a teenager named Darby, who is quite special. For she escaped death ages ago in an accident involving a wave, while her mother did not, and the trauma of being so close to the end and losing someone she loved… transformed her in ways she never thought possible. For she gained the ability to see and interact with spirits that are yet to move on and as Darby grew, she felt it best to help those spirits move on at some cost of course. In that, that becomes her primary focus in life, and she spends more time with the spirits and her dead friend Gary, than anyone else, and Darby is just fine with that. But the death of the most popular girl in school, is about to alter the peaceful world that Darby inhabits. For Capri wants something grandiose to happen before she moves on, and Darby will have to break out of her shell to make it happen.

Which is a story that breaks down in stunning detail, how grief… can transform us and change our lives in far more subtle ways than we are aware of, as evidenced by Darby’s journey here. Since the pain of death and trauma, along with a chance to ‘heal’ herself by helping others… prompts her to become a shell of a person. One that plays it safe, hides from emotional attachment, and is just surrounded by death and sorrow and thrives within it because of pain that goes unresolved. That provides us with a very different perspective on grief, and how it works, and that’s just plain brilliant. Because it does impact people differently, and it can, in fact, prompt other toxic and unhealthy actions outside of the norms we think it does, and that’s important to recognize and understand… so we can help those struggling with their grief.

But this story does more than just present grief in the realistic raw, it also speaks to how we can recover from grief in a realistic manner. For there is no epiphany here or grand decision to just… feel better. No instead, Capri’s push for Darby to step out of her comfort zone and live, showcases that… our escape from grief is gradual, and that it takes time to learn how to function again, it takes time to find value and purpose in our day, it takes time to just… live again, and that is the key to recovery. In that, we simply put one foot in front of the other and start again, and in doing so, the ache begins to fade and we come to understand how to carry that which we lost with us in a manner that is impactful and inspiring, instead of letting it be a burden and that… makes for a powerful journey from a powerful film… one that also harbors more incredible depth within its structure.

After all, this is a film that is screening at the Queer Rhapsody Film Series, and yet, nothing we’ve discussed seems to focus upon that. But make no mistake about it, this film is designed to reflect the experiences of the LGBTQIA+ community, since it features a transgender actor, whose character is part of the fabric of the story in a manner that reflects everyday life, and the film is host to themes that are absolutely related to the queer experience in America. Since Darby’s situation makes her an outsider, someone that people do make fun of for being ‘different’, and that’s something LGTBQIA+ individuals can indeed relate to and since others can as well… that correctly points out, how we are not all that different and share in so much, and that serves as a fine reminder that labels should stop being doled out because of who others love and how they identify from a gender standpoint.

All of which adds to the majesty of this incredible motion picture. One that truly tackles some supremely important topics in our world right now. Because how we treat one another matters and we are just now diving into the nature of mental health and the power of grief because we are finally understanding that ‘sucking it up’ when someone we love dies isn’t the answer. It’s love and support, and finding value in life over sorrow, and that truly makes this a must-see film. For it really does have something for everyone from a learning perspective and is progressive, intelligent, and filled to the brim with amazing performances from rising stars and established ones, courtesy of incredible direction from Silas Howard. All of whom simply add to the gravity and wonder of this incredible story about a universal experience in all of our lives that will indeed transform us and teach us to cherish every moment of the incredible gift that is… life.

To see ‘Darby and the Dead’ at the Queer Rhapsody Film Series, click here. To view it at home, check below and to learn more about the Queer Rhapsody Film Series, go here.

Watch ‘Darby and the Dead’

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