Subject: Review: Donnie Darko (2001)

From: JoBlo <[email-masked]>
Date: Mon, 11 Mar 2002 19:52:59 -0000

DONNIE DARKO
RATING: 7/10
http://www.joblo.com/donniedarko.htm
 
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PLOT:
Donnie Darko is one messed-up kid. He sleepwalks, he has visions of a giant
bunny rabbit telling him what to do and he commits crimes. Is he dreaming? Is he
a nice kid who's being used by someone? Is he fucked up because he spent his
previous movie shoot in a giant bubble? Many questions, few answers but mucho
mystery, creepiness and clues are thrown our way in the actual film. 
 
CRITIQUE:
One fee-yucked up movie. I say again...one fee-yucked up film. And gloomy, too!
Cheer up, guy, life ain't so bad! Alright, alright, so that's a stupid thing to
say, the movie is obviously not about a happy guy in the first place. Okay, let
me get back on track here. This film is yet another journey into the very
popular recent realm of "mindfuck" films. Pieces which include MEMENTO,
MULLHOLLAND DRIVE and VANILLA SKY in 2001, and many others before them. Hints of
THE SHINING, HEATHERS and LOST HIGHWAY also make their way into this picture,
and yet, even though I am relating this film to several others, it's undoubtedly
unique onto its own. If there's one thing that you'll take away from this movie,
and that's whether you like it or not (it's definitely an acquired taste), is
that it's an extremely creative piece of work. Everything from the camerawork,
which is stylistic beyond stylistic, the acting, which is rock solid from all of
the majors, the mood, which is dreamy, creepy and happy all at the same time
(how does that happen?) and the story, which is certainly nothing that I've seen
before, make the film stand out in the pack of generics filling most
movie-houses week in and week out.
 
Now having said that, it's to note that a film being unique does not necessarily
make it great (note Gyllenhaal's other 2001 film BUBBLE BOY as an example of a
movie that was certainly original in its premise, but lame in execution). This
movie does a great job of sticking to its battle plan the whole way through,
with a genuine sense of oncoming doom crawling into every scene (good move on
the title card inserts as well...it kept the momentum going), but for me, it
just didn't give me enough substance to go with all of the goodies all the way
through. Sure, the film is more about textures and symbols and clues as to what
it's all about, but maybe I just wasn't in the mood to tune into all of the
specifics on this night, and found it a little slow and redundant at times. I
was never really bored or anything, the funky 80s tunes, amazing camera tricks
and visual head-games were enough to keep me going, but it was just a little too
melancholic and grim for me at some points, and ultimately started getting me
down. As for the ending, when it did finally come together and present us with
the "solution" of the master plan, I was surprised at what was delivered, but
wasn't entirely clear on how everything fit into play (it's definitely the type
of movie that has to be seen twice to truly gestate).
 
I do, however, want to send some props out to Jake Gyllenhaal who does a
tremendous job as the Darko which inhabited Donnie, as well as a special kudo to
Mr. Patrick Swayze, taking a small break from the straight-to-video market, with
a great little role in this film. Drew Barrymore, on the other hand, had no
business being cast as the "teacher", other than the fact that her production
company was backing said film. I just didn't buy her in the character for one
second and the movie never really did establish any reason for her character to
exist in the first place. The film is definitely a great start for
writer/director Richard Kelly, who seems to have ingrained many a lesson from
two of the top filmmaking visionaries, in David Lynch and Stanley Kubrick
(notice the hints of THE SHINING and BLUE VELVET). And how's about that creepy
giant rabbit?? Yipes! Overall, I would say that this film definitely won me over
with its amazing style, kept me involved to a certain extent with its mysterious
story, contained some solid chops from its actors and made me think about fate,
coincidences and death a whole lot (if that's what you want to ponder when you
watch a movie). It's not for anyone looking for a wham-bam type of movie,
because it definitely moves methodically and doesn't hand you an easy answer in
its final frame, but if you're looking for a mind-trip or want to drop in on
someone's semi-psychotic dream, this crazy bunny-wabbit might just be the treat
for you.
 
Where's JoBlo coming from?
American Psycho (10/10) - The Cell (8/10) - Lost Highway (10/10) - Memento
(10/10) - Mulholland Drive (8/10) - The Princess and the Warrior (5/10) - The
Shining (9/10) - The Time Machine (3/10) - Vanilla Sky (9/10)
 
Review Date: March 3, 2002
Director: Richard Kelly
Writer: Richard Kelly
Producers: Adam Fields, Sean McKittrick
Actors: Jake Gyllenhaal as Donnie Darko
Jena Malone as Gretchen Ross
Patrick Swayze as Jim Cunningham
Genre: Drama
Year of Release: 2001
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X-RT-RatingText: 7/10