Donnie Darko
In 1950, screen legend Jimmy Stewart (It's a Wonderful Life) starred in Harvey, in which he had visions of a 6-foot-tall rabbit. This film is a light-hearted comic fantasy. Fifty years later, director Richard Kelly helmed a darker variation of Harvey, in which a psychologically imperfect teen receives orders and predictions from an imaginary rabbit. This suspense thriller, Donnie Darko, is one of the most compelling independent films of the new millennium.
Jake Gyllenhaal stars as the title character, who's in therapy for various undetermined emotional problems. Soon one of his problems will become obvious; he's having visions of a demonic-looking human-size rabbit named Frank. Bad: Frank talks to Donnie and leads him to a golf course one night. Worse: Franks predicts that the world will end in a month. Utterly fucked up: Donnie stumbles home the next morning to learn that he'll be sharing his bedroom with the plane engine that crashed through the roof during the night.
On Donnie Darko's list of problems, add two more. First, what can he do with the knowledge that has been uniquely entrusted to him? He could tell the authorities, but citing apocalyptic predictions from an imaginary bunny would lend Donnie only enough credibility to get him a job at "The National Enquirer." Also, Frank guilt-trips Donnie into committing increasingly dangerous acts of vandalism. That's a rather large load to carry, in addition to typical teenage pressures.
Jake Gyllenhaal shines in his first dark (no pun intended) role; see The Good Girl for his second such performance. He is backed up by a great cast: Drew Barrymore (Scream), Patrick Swayze (Dirty Dancing), Noah Wyle (TV's "ER"), Mary McDonnell (Dances With Wolves), Daveigh Chase (The Ring), Jena Malone (The Dangerous Lives Of Altar Boys) and Jake's real-life sister Maggie, playing Donnie's sister Elizabeth. For less than the cost of one high-priced "star," the producers hired several actors with possibly more talent.
The filmmakers proficiently contrast a depressing tone with moments of humor. Donnie's jet-black hair, his ever-present pissed-off facial expression, his surname, the dark-blue cinematography, and the events depicted in this movie all work together to make Donnie Darko feel gloomy. However, there are many brief moments of humor. For example, a nice family dinner gets ugly when Donnie calls Elizabeth a "fuck-ass," and she replies by telling him to "go suck a fuck." In a later scene, Donnie and a transfer student Gretchen are getting to know each other. When she reveals that her stepfather has emotional problems, Donnie brags that he has them too, like he was excited about getting an A on a chemistry test.
I'm glad Patrick Swayze is finding work after being seriously injured during the filming of Black Dog. He'll probably never regain his superstar status from his Dirty Dancing/Ghost days, but he would have likely been relegated to supporting status in any case.
Send any comments/ feedback to the author.
There's some serious partying going on during the climatic scene, including brewing and possible screwing.
An emotionally disturbed character such as Donnie finds romance with a cutie, giving hope to us all.
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Patrick Swayze
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