Donnie Darko (2001) Review

 

Donnie Darko (2001)

I’ve had my eyes set on this film since I was a kid, and after hearing comparisons of this to my own film, I only wanted to watch it more.

Donnie Darko is about a kid, who after being awoken by a big, demonic rabbit named Frank, survives an incident that surely would’ve killed him. Frank then tells him the world will end in 28 days. The rest is a quest to determine what is happening? Is he crazy, living through a parallel universe, or will the world actually end?

Some filmmakers go their whole career and make one really good film, which is the case with Richard Kelly’s Donnie Darko. But he had a vision and with that, made an absolute cult classic, that with a low budget, is super impactful.

The movie is complicated, involving parallel universes, with one being created when Donnie doesn’t die. This of course, causes an unstable branch universe that has the capacity to destroy life itself and the main universe. Which then puts Donnie at the center, as he was supposed to die, but now has “superpowers” that allow him to manipulate events around him, usually unknowingly. Like I said, complicated. But also extremely fascinating, as he must progress and cause his own death through time travel. Needless to say, it’s a spectacularly detailed story where every little detail matters and plays an integral part of the story.

Donnie is played by Jake Gyllenhaal, wonderfully I might add. He brings such a darkness, but also such a childlike innocence, mixed with rebellious teen angst to the role. His character is multi-dimensional (literally) and is very real, like many of us were at that age. The supporting cast including Jenna Malone, Drew Barrymore, and Patrick Swayze are all fantastic, each bringing an interesting arc to each character that the time period capitalizes on with their overall stories.

Last but not least, what a soundtrack!! The film’s foundation is the original music that is played throughout, which is supported excellently with songs like “Never Tear Us Apart”, “Head Over Heels”, and of course “Mad World” by Gary Jules.

An all around stunning film, with a remarkable story, that truly blew me away with complexity and originality.

9/10