Donnie Darko

by Red Tue Jul 06, 2010 2:17 am

I started watching this movie expecting nothing. I just thought it'd be your average teenage psycho killer movie. Nothing big. And sometimes, watching a movie expecting it to be nothing great really helps you appreciate it more.

The movie starts with Donnie(Jake Gyllenhaal) waking up in the middle of the road at dawn. He seems calm(throughout the movie) about it and picks up his bicycle and goes home. When he reaches home, we meet the Darko family (weird surname, no?). Donnie, his two sisters and the parents are average everyday people. They live in a friendly sub-urban neighborhood in Middlesex(name of the place) and lead happy lives...... or do they?

Problem with Donnie is that he's on medication and therapy as he's sick... in the head. He's a bright student and an intelligent individual, but he's.... weird. His sleepwalks are the least of his problems.

One night he sleepwalks and in his dream, he sees a man in a bunny suit. The bunny(who's name is Frank) says...

28 days... 6 hours... 42 minutes... 12 seconds. That... is when the world... will end.

The movie progresses with Donnie carrying out Frank Bunny's biddings. He ends up doing things that he should or shouldn't have done. And while the police try to narrow down what's going on, Donnie has a crush on the new girl in his class who's a real HOT babe, has to deal with bullies, live through sick Jim Cunningham(Patrick Swayze) tapes on FEAR and LOVE and a whole lot more.

Donnie: Why are you wearing that bunny suit?
Frank: Why are you wearing that man suit?

This movie is plain weird. Starting from that stupid ugly metal bunny mask to Grandma Death, everything is unusual about it, but in a good way. Very good acting all over. Especially Jake Gyllenhaal who's done a pretty good job of staring blankly at nothing. No, seriously, he's really good and is perfect for the role. Totally different from the Prince Dastaan stunt he pulled... ehm.

Clearly, the movie has a lot of symbolism in it and makes us think about theoretical physics, relationships and even religion to some extent. It's very intelligent yet the presentation is fairly simple, simple enough for the common man to watch and understand.
Richard Kelly has succeeded is creating a beautifully NORMAL world with NORMAL characters, each with their brilliance and flaws. This movie is that rare breed that gets you talking about and thinking about it for at least the next two weeks.
Sadly, Richard Kelly's Southland Tales failed to get me even remotely amused to make a mention of it here.... oh crap I did mention it here. Well, it's not a great movie. I wouldn't watch Southland Tales if I were you.

The movie has a good selection of tracks that enhances the experience. One song that requires special mention is Mad World by Gary Jules. Bloody brilliant.

Besides the good acting and the excellent selection of songs in the movie, another thing I just HAVE to mention is Jenna Malone who plays Gretchen Ross in the movie, Donnie's love interest.

Hmm...*drool*

She is one hot girl. And she's got a schoolgirl uniform and ....*drool*
Ehm, I mean I really liked her in the movie.

There's also Drew Barrymore as Ms. Pomeroy, the English teacher and Seth Rogen as a bully. Oh and Jake Gyllenhaal's sister Maggie Gyllenhaal plays Donnie's sister. Siblings in both real life and in the movie.

Quite obviously I will urge you all to watch this movie.
Rating: 9.35/10
I just wish I could give it a perfect score.
But I can't.

Spoiler:

Hitskin.com

Donnie Darko

Donnie Darko