3.08.2006

Where's Donnie?


High on the Carpathian Ridge is where Donnie discovers his destiny. And it is here we start the story. A story that values the importance of life's decisions and the soul's quest for morality. Jake Gyllenhaal is perfectly cast as the boy named Donnie Darko who begins to have visions of a creepy man rabbit named Frank. The first of these encounters takes place on October 2, 1988. While sleepwalking, the rabbit tells Donnie the world will end in exactly 28 days, 6 hours, 42 minutes and 12 seconds.

Director Richard Kelly has created a thought-provoking period piece, that is very open to personal interpretation. The film has a colorful and varied cast that rotate around Donnie's and his ascent out of modern purgatory. While living in the comfort of suburban Virginia, and attending a private high school, Donnie could be in any teen drama. But Kelly frequently flips the story over, and exposes the dark underbelly of human nature.

With an abundance of satire, hit 80's music, dark imagery and stellar acting, the film's time travel theory feels almost trivial. I saw it as a polite nod to the "Back To The Future" films of the 1980s. When Donnie's mother confronts him near the beginning of the film and asks pointblank: "Where do you go at night?" I felt this was a broader question being perhaps directed at all of us. Are dreams part of an alternate universe? Are we all interconnected spiritually, through dreams? Donnie Darko asks more questions than it answers. It's my kind of movie.

10 comments:

GetFlix said...

Ffleur, I was just on your blog earlier and you're a fine writer. But thank you for the compliment.

Question. I try to link all my buddy bloggers. Do you prefer to remain unlisted? I had the feeling you were trying to keep your blog quiet.

M-M-M-Mishy said...

I have to rent this movie. Everytime someone mentions it, I'm always like "Oh yeah, thats what I'll get next!" But I always forget about it when it when I'm in the store.

P.S. I like that you linked to my blog! I've added yours to mine.

PixieGaf said...

I fell in love with Jake watching this movie.

GetFlix said...

Mish, you're gonna love it! And thanks for the link.

Pixie, tell me about it. Jena Malone got my attention!!

markus said...

one of my all time favorites!

0000 said...

I really enjoyed this movie but had a sense at the end like I didn't "get it." Like there was an ultimate point I never grasped...although it was a really touching movie in a way!

GetFlix said...

Humble, I think I saw the Director's Cut. I will have to see if I can rent the original. Have to investigate.

Markus: you know it!!

Idle R: I think that's the point. It's not really supposed to leave the viewer completely satisfied.

JC said...

Yeah, I love the movie too, somehow it's very deep in the sense that even though sometimes you understand whatever you interpret personally/don't understand anything, it's very esay to relate to Donnie's character, whether you had a troubled youth or not. It's a movie that intrigues you and makes you talk with others, to checck if you got it in the same way as other people...Personally, I watched three times, and interpreted some aspects differently every time..

GetFlix said...

Jesus, thanks for the visit! It definately changes each time you watch it. And I agree Donnie is like the character everybody loves.

JC said...

You're welcome man, I'll be coming back oftenly, I'm liking it a lot, keep up the good posting