Review of Donnie Darko (2001) by Samantha T — 31 Jan 2014

This is the perfect movie for anyone interested in fantasy, scientific, or mystery films. It had a wonderful score, great filming, and appropriate actors for all the characters in the film. Our story starts with a young, troubled, boy, Donald Darko. Strange things begin happening to Donnie for no apparent reason after he dodges a near death experience, and a voice in his mind starts telling him what to do. Soon, this voice materializes into a man named Frank, who is dressed in a bunny suit every time he has a conversation with Donnie. Essentially, Frank manipulates Donnie using the end of the world as an excuse for the things that happen in Donnie's life.

I loved this film for its creativity and it's sympathetic outreach toward the main character. The complexity and darkness of this movie bring an odd but comforting feeling to the viewer. The feature challenges ones brain and leaves them with an foggy understanding of what happened, and a series of conclusions to close. As a viewer, the answer is never handed out at any point throughout the film, making it more than mysterious. The scenes erupt with creativity and concealed meanings, while at the same time not distracting one from the astounding acting in this film from Jake Gyllenhaal, Patrick Swayze, and Mary McDonnell. Each actor works cohesively to bring the effect of the picture to life . To top it all off, Donnie Darko has a delicate score, written by Michael Andrews, that is unspeakably horrific and somehow, at the same time, alluring. As it dusts along the storyline, a few 80s pop songs are thrown in making it hard to find a fault in this film. The director, Richard Kelly, brought this movie together with a high level of success. Donnie Darko was Kelly's first film, making the viewers jaw drop even further learning that it was Kelly's first time directing a big time Hollywood picture. The best way to describe this film is with the tag line itself, "Dark. Darker. Darko.".