Donnie Darko (film)

Finished: 5:45 03.20.12

Significance? Been wanting to see this for years, finally did. Also last movie I'll rent from the library til my next paycheck.

Influences: Ferris Bueller's Day Off, Sixteen Candles, A Wonderful Life

Are you serious?: Yes

Synopsis: Donnie Darko has an imaginary friend named Frank who dresses in a bunny suit. He ponders the meaning of his message of the "end of the world". He sleepwalks away from his house, which leads to him narrowly escaping death when a jet engine falls from a flying plane and crashes into his bedroom. After this event, Donnie begins to become aggressive and lose touch with reality, culminating in positive events (his exposing of a inspirational writer/motivational speaker as the head of a child porn ring) and terrible things (the death of his girlfriend, sister, and mother). These events lead him to returning to the past to die, in a reverse A Wonderful Life situation.

Highs: The movie keeps you guessing throughout the film, making you wonder if he has a point or if he's just crazy. Nice imagery and storytelling. Maggie Gylenhall's character.

Lows: The climax is poorly done, murky, and unnecessarily confusing. Drew Barrymore's character is totally unsympathetic. Movie fell short of its potential.

Views: I don't know what to think of this movie so I'm going to start with what mainly went through my mind. Donnie Darko goes to see a psychiatrist several times throughout the movie. She eventually meets with his parents, and she suggests that his delusions may be due to schizophrenia. This scene initiates a crossroads in the plot of the film. The entire time before this I believed in the reliability of Donnie as a protagonist, but this cast doubt in my eyes. He had been looking into the possibility of time travel, which was a really stupid and unnecessary plot point for this film. Now with this suggestion that he may just be insane, I thought the movie had the potential to be something awesome; suggesting the unreliability of the narrator and enhancing the over all story quality of the film. I decided that if they stayed with the concept of Darko going back in time for whatever reason, then the movie would really not be nearly as good. Turns out, they went for a "meh" kind of conclusion. Deciding that his life caused damage to many of his friends and loved ones largely due to his own doing, he decides to go back in time to end his life at the point where the engine crashes into his room.

Unfortunately, the progression of the scene is very poorly done. Shortly before his time travel, he looks into a sunset and says "I'll be home soon". Then he flashes back to his bedroom, laughing, and the movie reveals he is back at the fateful night. What? How did he get back there? It doesn't explain, and you are just supposed to go along with it. The movie does not do a good job of indicating the protagonist's existence as the fault for all these crimes, either, opting for the audience to piece the actions together at the end of the film. My initial feelings about the film were even worse than they are now before I noticed this. Maybe the actions were spelled out obviously, and I'm just a moron and didn't catch the point during my viewing. I think the director/writers wanted to put more faith into their audiences to interpret this critical point; unfortunately, this isn't really a type of movie or message that needs to be interpreted. It should be spelled out to further explain the motivation of Darko's decision and increase the emotional impact of the film. Instead, it's a mess.

There are also points that really don't make sense. Why and how does Donnie bury an axe into a bronze statue? He's not a supernatural being, so how did he do this? They even make a point to mention the incredulity of sinking an AX INTO A BRONZE DOG STATUE LIKE IT WAS A PIECE OF WOOD, yet this action serves absolutely no point in the story. What was really the point of Drew Barrymore's character? Was she just an arrogant teacher that Darko liked that he consequentially got fired? What really was the point of his sleepwalking after his escaping his death at the hands of the jet engine? He did it one more time, then it never was addressed again. What was the point of the repeated insertions of the 1988 presidential election outside of establishing the time of the film (and then, what was the point of repeating it?)?

I did enjoy the style and direction of the film. It had elements of the Brat Pack films from the 80's, mostly directed by John Hughes. I think that's the main reason the movie was based in the 80's.

"Smart" movies like this--culty, unconventional "smart" films--and Fight Club, American Beauty, and several others never rank in my favorite films. They are perfect examples of "form over function" films: ones that focus too much on a unique concept and the style of its portrayal to the detriment of its plot quality. They try too hard and add "clever" innovations that wind up leaving them open for criticism and a shaky product.

It was fun though, as the movie piqued my interest in the conclusion of the plot; even if this conclusion came up fairly short. That is why I'll give it an above average rating.

Rating: 3.25 out of 5.