Donnie Darko

Richard Kelly - Writer/Director
Jake Gyllenhaal - Donnie Darko
Maggie Gyllenhaal - Elizabeth Darko
Drew Barrymore - Karen Pomeroy
Noah Wyle - Kenneth Monitoff
Jena Malone - Gretchen Ross
Holmes Osborne - Eddie Darko
Mary McDonnell - Rose Darko
James Duval - Frank
Patrick Swayze - Jim Cunningham
Beth Grant - Kitty Farmer
Katherine Ross - Lilian Thurman


Jake Gyllenhaal, Jena Malone and er.....Frank.....in Donnie Darko.

"What if you could go back, take all those hours of pain and sadness and replace them with something better?" This question, posed by Gretchen Ross, is the central point behind this film experience. Donnie Darko is a deep, powerful, thought provoking film that winds the viewer up in a labrynthine plot that, in the end, shows us what happens but leaves many of the details of why it happens open for debate. If done imporperly this sort of ending will leave the audience feeling frustrated and short changed. Kelly, however, gets it just right. This movie left me sitting for half an hour afterwards, staring at the blank screen, mumbling to myself while trying to tie all of the facts together. Each conclusion only seemed to come with some serious thought and the addition of one or two of my own ideas. In this way Richard Kelly's movie belongs not just to he and his cast, but to the fans as well. Doing a bit of searching on the internet revealed an entire subculture of fans for this film, all discussing and delivering theories and philosophies behind this film on their message boards.

The movie takes place in 1988, depicting the era in such a way that it is believable without being over the top and mocking the culture of the time as many films do. The references to the time period are effective but not obvious. Donnie Darko, played very convincingly by Jake Gyllenhaal, is a teenage boy who carries some emotional baggage (ever met a teenager who doesn't?) and seems angry and withdrawn. And this is before things get weird onscreen. One night Donnie is awakened by a voice that draws him up and out of bed and eventually leads him to a golf course far from his home. When his sleepwalk leads him to his destination, he meets Frank - a man in a very disturbing bunny suit. Frank woke him from his slumber to bring him here and inform him not only that the world will end but also when: 28 days from now . Thus begins a countdown to the end of the world - 28:06:42:12. Donnie returns the next morning to find that a jet engine has fallen on his home and through his room - Frank has saved his life. Donnie continues to see Frank ("daylight hallucinations" as his doctor informs his parents) who encourages Donnie to commit acts of vandalism.

As the countdown nears its conclusion the story twists and twists becoming continually darker - and so does Donnie. I will not give away its conclusion, which I found very powerful and moving. Let it suffice to say that it answers several questions and raises several more. Donnie Darko is a terrific movie whose cast simply did a magnificent job. This film is the one of the best, most original movies I've had the pleasure of seeing. Kudos to Richard Kelly for leaving the story open and giving his audience credit for being intelligent enough to participate; I'm sure some viewers were upset by this, as people are very much used to the whole story being wrapped up and handed to them with a bow on top by the end. There is nothing wrong with that, but it's nice to have a film that breaks away from the old tried and true storytelling formula. Donnie Darko is a work of art.

4 wombats out of 4