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Written and directed by Richard Kelly; starring Jake Gyllenhaal and Jena Malone. Released to DVD on February 15, 2005.  It seems as though the more audiences clamor for new and fresh ideas in film (think about the box office successes of The Deep End, Memento and Sexy Beast) the fewer of these movies actually see the light of day. This is worth noting because when original and genre bending films like Donnie Darko arrive, one must sit up, take notice and revel in the inherent joy these off-beat and entertaining films bring. Jake Gyllenhaal stars in Donnie Darko as the titular character. Prone to sleep-walking and hallucinations, Donnie is summoned out of his bedroom one night by a large rabbit named Frank (James Duval). When Donnie returns to his house the next morning, he learns that an engine from a jet plane crashed into his room while he was gone. Confusion mounts as the FAA learns that no planes reported losing an engine. Partly a mystery, partly a nostalgic look at high school and partly a romantic tale in line with Tess of the D’Urbervilles, Donnie Darko was a marketing department’s nightmare. If it hadn’t been for the presence of Drew Barrymore and Patrick Swayze in the cast, who knows how they would have attempted to sell this picture to the public. Written and directed by first time director Richard Kelly, Donnie Darko comes alive with crisp dialogue, ingenious three dimensional characters, a host of eye-pleasing visuals and ever-so-smooth camera work. However, Donnie Darko’s greatest asset is its unpredictability. Captivated from the film’s opening sequence onward, I was never once ahead of the plot. In this respect, I undertook the same journey for explanations and clarifications that Donnie himself took. Delightfully clever, Kelly has created a spectacularly fleshed out world that one can easily get sucked into. Donnie Darko is one of those rare movies that engrossed me to such a degree I lost complete track of my surroundings. This is a superb debut, and one that promises Kelly an immensely bright and prosperous future.
chris neumer yes, it's true: Donnie Darko and his sister were played by real life siblings Jake and Maggie Gyllenhaal. |
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