donnie darko
Gary Jules Lyrics


Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴  Line by Line Meaning ↴

All around me are familiar faces
Worn out places, worn out faces
Bright and early for their daily races
Going nowhere, going nowhere
Their tears are filling up their glasses
No expression, no expression
Hide my head, I want to drown my sorrow
No tomorrow, no tomorrow

And I find it kinda funny, I find it kinda sad
The dreams in which I'm dying are the best I've ever had
I find it hard to tell you, I find it hard to take
When people run in circles it's a very very
Mad world, mad world

Children waiting for the day, they feel good
Happy birthday, happy birthday
Made to feel the way that every child should
Sit and listen, sit and listen
Went to school and I was very nervous
No one knew me, no one knew me
Hello teacher, tell me what's my lesson
Look right through me, look right through me

And I find it kinda funny, I find it kinda sad
The dreams in which I'm dying are the best I've ever had
I find it hard to tell you, I find it hard to take
When people run in circles it's a very very
Mad world, mad world




Enlarge your world
Mad world

Overall Meaning

In Gary Jules' (ОСТ Донни Дарко) "Mad World", the lyrics paint a desolate and bleak picture of modern society. The opening lines, "All around me are familiar faces, worn out places, worn out faces" suggest a sense of monotony and routine, where people go through the motions of their daily lives without any sense of purpose or direction. This is further emphasized in the line "Bright and early for their daily races, going nowhere, going nowhere", which suggests a sense of futility and hopelessness.


Jules then goes on to describe the emotional state of these individuals, with the line "Their tears are filling up their glasses, no expression, no expression". The image of tears filling up their glasses is a powerful one, as it suggests a deep and overwhelming sense of sadness that these people are experiencing. The line "Hide my head, I want to drown my sorrow, no tomorrow, no tomorrow" further emphasizes this sense of hopelessness and despair.


The chorus of the song provides a striking contrast to this, with Jules stating "And I find it kinda funny, I find it kinda sad, the dreams in which I'm dying are the best I've ever had". This suggests a paradoxical relationship with death and dying, with the dreams of death being a sort of escape from the mundanity and futility of everyday life. The final line of the song, "Enlarge your world, mad world", suggests a call to action and a plea to break free of this cycle of despair and hopelessness.


Line by Line Meaning

All around me are familiar faces
I am surrounded by people that I know and recognize


Worn out places, worn out faces
The places and people around me are old and tired


Bright and early for their daily races
Everyone is up early and rushing to their daily routines


Going nowhere, going nowhere
Despite their rush, people are not getting anywhere in life


Their tears are filling up their glasses
People are crying so much that their glasses are getting filled with their tears


No expression, no expression
People are not expressing their emotions


Hide my head, I want to drown my sorrow
I feel the need to hide and drown my sadness


No tomorrow, no tomorrow
I feel like there is no future or hope


And I find it kinda funny, I find it kinda sad
I have conflicting emotions about the situation


The dreams in which I'm dying are the best I've ever had
Even my dreams are better than my real life


I find it hard to tell you, I find it hard to take
It is difficult for me to express how I feel or handle this situation


When people run in circles it's a very very
People are stuck in a cycle and it's a very chaotic and hopeless situation


Mad world, mad world
The world feels crazy and out of control


Children waiting for the day, they feel good
Children are waiting for a day when they will feel happy and content


Happy birthday, happy birthday
The only happiness they experience is on their birthday


Made to feel the way that every child should
Children are made to feel the way society thinks they should feel


Sit and listen, sit and listen
Children are expected to sit and listen obediently


Went to school and I was very nervous
I was very anxious when I went to school


No one knew me, no one knew me
No one knew who I was or cared about me


Hello teacher, tell me what's my lesson
I am asking the teacher to tell me what I need to learn


Look right through me, look right through me
The teacher ignores me and does not acknowledge my existence


Enlarge your world
The world seems small and limiting, we need to break out of that and strive for more




Lyrics © BMG RIGHTS MANAGEMENT
Written by: Roland Orzabal

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
To comment on or correct specific content, highlight it

Genre not found
Artist not found
Album not found
Song not found
Comments from YouTube:

@HDFilmTributes

Help Support This Channel? -- This channel makes zero money from YouTube as obviously none of the three hundred film tributes that we've edited will ever be monetized by us. Any ad revenue from these videos goes directly to Google, as well as to the copyright owners, just as it should. --- Please consider supporting our editing efforts by leaving a tip in our tip jar. Your help will be greatly appreciated. Thank you! - https://paypal.me/HDFilmTributes

@lgagai2k

No other movie has this level of connection and synergy between the movie itself and its soundtrack. Such an amazing masterpiece.

@kamikazie7977

Idk what about fight club

@zforce4399

Going to have to argue there and go with Drive. Without the track the movie wouldn't be as great as it is and without the movie some of the tracks might not feel the same either.

@LucianoGerman

I'd agree this movie has a different energy and it couldn't be replaced period

@wilkyesilva7211

I never get tired of watching Donnie Darko. A very striking and profound film. It marked a generation of strange and introverted boys.
Do we need a tragedy to learn to live right?

@tomservo5347

"Why do you wear that stupid bunny suit?"
"Why do you wear that stupid man suit?"

@EvoSporthorses

My favourite film of all time. Utterly mesmerising every time I watch it. Genius.

@gopats85

Couldn’t get into it the first time I watched it but then I’m like I gotta give it another shot and I’m like damn what a fucking fantastic movie this is!

@crummyregent0527

I hope that when the world comes to an end, I can breathe a sigh of relief, because there will be so much to look forward to.

More Comments

More Versions