Donnie Darko (2001)

Director:

Richard Kelly

Writer:

Richard Kelly (written by)

Release Date:

30 January 2002 (France)

Genre:

Drama | Mystery | Sci-Fi | Thriller

Tagline:

Life is one long insane trip. Some people just have better directions.

Plot:

A troubled teenager is plagued by visions of a large bunny rabbit that manipulates him to commit a series of crimes, after narrowly escaping a bizarre accident.

Plot Keywords:

Rabbit | Teacher | Vision | School | Insanity

Awards:

11 wins & 10 nominations

Cast

Jake Gyllenhaal	...	Donnie Darko
Holmes Osborne	...	Eddie Darko
Maggie Gyllenhaal	...	Elizabeth Darko
Daveigh Chase	...	Samantha Darko
Mary McDonnell	...	Rose Darko
James Duval	...	Frank
Arthur Taxier	...	Dr. Fisher
Patrick Swayze	...	Jim Cunningham
Mark Hoffman	...	Police Officer
David St. James	...	Bob Garland
Tom Tangen	...	Man in Red Jogging Suit
Jazzie Mahannah	...	Joanie James
Jolene Purdy	...	Cherita Chen
Stuart Stone	...	Ronald Fisher
Gary Lundy	...	Sean Smith

Also Known As:

Donnie Darko: The Director's Cut (USA) (director's cut)
Donnie Darko (Canada: French title) (France) [fr]
Донни Дарко (Russia) [ru]
Donnie Darko (Brazil) [pt]
Donnie Darko (Spain) [es]
Donnie Darko (Greece) (DVD title) [el]
Donnie Darko - Fürchte die Dunkelheit (Germany) [de]
Donnie Darko - Karanlik yolculuk (Turkey: Turkish title) [tr]

MPAA:

Rated R for language, some drug use and violence.; Rated R for language, some underage drug and alcohol use, and violence. (director's cut)

Runtime:

113 min | 133 min (director's cut)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Portugal:M/12 (director's cut) | Iceland:16 | Spain:13 | Hungary:16 | Brazil:14 | New Zealand:M (director's cut) | Sweden:11 (TV rating) | Sweden:15 | Australia:M | Canada:14A | Canada:G (Quebec) | Czech Republic:15 | Finland:K-15 | France:U | Germany:16 | Hong Kong:IIB | Ireland:15 | Italy:T | Japan:PG-12 | Netherlands:12 | New Zealand:R16 | Norway:15 | Portugal:M/16 | Singapore:NC-16 | South Korea:15 | UK:15 | USA:R | Canada:A (Ontario)

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Pandora Cinema

Trivia:

EASTER EGG: The DVD contains several Easter Eggs, or hidden items. Two are visible in the "Philosophy of Time Travel" book in the Special Features. On each of the appendix pages, press the up arrow on your remote and press enter. For Appendix A, the viewer gets a deleted scene about the flooding of the school, and Appendix B, the viewer gets a different trailer for the movie. Another can be found after selecting the "Cunning Visions" menu screen. At the bottom of the screen, highlight the Special Features menu entry, press the right arrow on your remote to highlight the icon, and press enter. This will allow you to enter a Web site gallery.

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: When Donnie finds the .45 pistol in the closet the hammer is not cocked and the safety is on. It is impossible to engage the safety on a .45 unless the hammer is cocked. And there is a screw or pin visible in the rear left side of the slide which does not exist in a real .45.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Elizabeth: I'm voting for Dukakis.

Movie Connections:

References "Smurfs: The Smurfette (#1.21)" (1981)

Soundtrack:

For Whom the Bell Tolls

A thought provoking masterpiece

Donnie Darko is a type of movie that provides any viewer a type of material that promotes hard thinking and even harder re-thinking. After the film ends, it's almost impossible to keep yourself from thinking of all the possible way to interpret such a film. It's not quite surreal or full of quirky nonsense, it's more like a set of events, which seem to make sense on one level, no sense on another level, and finally perfect sense on another level. The movie acts as an illusion to what's really going on, its almost pleasantly distracting.

Our main character, Donnie Darko, is a boy suffering from sleep walking, and now what appears to be delusions. He manages to avoid a certain death with the aid of a man in a bunny suit. This twisted bunny also informs Donnie that the world will come to an end within the month. This sparked curiosity and dread in Donnie, who also has every other aspect of a teenager's life to worry about. The film proceeds with the feel of a teen flick, the style of a horror, and a plot suited for a fantasy.

The end of the movie is the part which will make you want to watch it again. You'll think you've discovered what's really going on after the first time, prove yourself wrong on the second time, and will sit and watch every possible detail the third time. Richard Kelly has created an instant cult classic, and perhaps something more than that. Extremely well written with believable characters speaking believable dialogue.

I'll be the first to admit, this film is not for everyone. People will either love it, or despise it with all their heart. I thoroughly enjoyed this film and would recommend it to anyone who has a taste for dark humor and a desire to put the pieces of the puzzle together over and over, long after the film has ended. 10/10