Review of Donnie Darko (2001) by Jackson M — 03 Apr 2017

This is an elaborate and well-thought out movie which is very well-done. It's a great debut film by Richard Kelly.

Donnie Darko, a high school student, is visited by a large bunny named Frank that tells him the world is going to end in 28 days. Frank then urges him to perform different dangerous tasks in the days leading up to the calamity.

This movie is made great due to its elaborate plot which was clearly well-thought out by the director. I didn't have much trouble understanding the film throughout its entirety but the ending did confuse me. But after re-watching it and looking up a few theories, I was able to get it and I was astonished by how much effort went into it. It is truly well-done.

Jake Gyllenhaal clearly steals the show giving a mesmerizing performance. He is able to convey several emotions and draw us in very well. The fact that Donnie Darko's character is brutally honest, troubled, and confused makes him an easy character to sympathize with. All the other actors did a great job too but Gyllenhaal did the best job.

One last thing I want to talk about is that usually when people talk about great mind-bending movies, Christopher Nolan is usually brought up the most but I feel that people need to focus on other movies too. Examples of other great movies with elaborate plot include this film, The Usual Suspects, Fight Club, Being John Malkovich, The Tree of Life, Primer, Mulholland Drive, Twelve Monkeys, 2001: A Space Odyssey, and Shutter Island. If you're a fan of Nolan then you should check these movies out too. I think Nolan is a great director but I don't like how most people ignore other movies with elaborate plots. Some of these are really famous like Fight Club but the audience usually tends to say that Nolan does the best job with movies of this genre. If you enjoy Nolan then you should check these out too. If you don't like them or still prefer Nolan's movies though then that's fine. I'm just giving these as suggestions.

So in conclusion, I think that this movie is amazing. Once you know its plot, it will keep you in awe. I think that this is an outstanding movie which you should see.