Donnie Darko (2001)
The Cast
Jake Gyllenhaal ... Donnie Darko
Holmes Osborne ... Eddie Darko
Maggie Gyllenhaal ... Elizabeth Darko
Daveigh Chase ... Samantha Darko
Mary McDonnell ... Rose Darko
James Duval ... Frank
Patrick Swayze ... Jim Cunningham
Beth Grant ... Kitty Farmer
Jena Malone ... Gretchen Ross
Seth Rogen ... Ricky Danforth
David Moreland ... Principal Cole
Noah Wyle ... Prof. Kenneth Monnitoff
Drew Barrymore ... Karen Pomeroy
Patience Cleveland ... Roberta Sparrow / Grandma Death
Katharine Ross ... Dr. Lilian Thurman
Ashley Tisdale ... Kim, Dorky Girl
Right off the bat I'm going to tell you that this is just a review of the regular version of Donnie Darko, not the apparently "unwatchable if you're not a devotee" Director's Cut. I first watched DD a few years back, and I thought it was interesting but not life-changing or anything. It didn't give me pause to reflect at any point in the ensuing days afterwards. Basically I thought it was a bit above average and very overrated by its fervent fanbase. I wouldn't say that my views on movies have drastically changed since that period, but since it came to my attention that Seth Rogen was in the cast, I thought I'd give it another watch and see how well it's aged.
Richard Kelly (whose second movie, Southland Tales, is apparently in theatres somewhere) both wrote and directed DD, and for those of you that haven't seen it yet, yes, he's one of those directors that is kind of in love with his own pop culture dialogue. It serves a purpose in this film, since it's sort of almost inexplicably set in 1988 or thereabouts. Anyways, Donnie (Jake Gyllenhaal) is a high school student suffering from sort of emotional problems, to the point where his parents (the excellent Holmes Osborne and Mary McDonnell) have him seeing a psychiatrist (Ross) and taking a bunch of medication to correct the problem. The medication would probably work but Donnie has decided to stop taking it, and as a result begins to either a) hallucinate or b) see things as they truly are.
It's nearly pointless for me to discuss in this review whether or not Donnie is truly maladjusted or has just been contacted by something beyond our physical world. That's something that only Kelly knows for sure, and since the movie is kind of vague on those points, it's actually left up to the movie watcher to decide what is true. I will say that there are some interesting theories regarding time travel throughout the movie, and there are some top notch scenes as well. Ultimately though, I think it's just a highly polished confusing and well-made mess, which is either a back-handed compliment or a light indictment of the movie.
It's not that I don't get it, it's just that I don't think there's that much to get. To me it feels like a darker version of It's a Wonderful Life, but with a completely opposite ending. I can only recommend the regular version, since that's the only one I've ever watched. If you check it out and fall in love with it, by all means, search out the Director's Cut and if you feel that passionately about it, feel free to tell me that I'm wrong in your eyes. I just don't see the big deal about the movie, though it's enjoyable enough for what it is.
3.5 / 5