Twenty-eight days, six hours, forty-eight minutes and twelve seconds, the countdown that ultimately led to the films defining moment(s) and the full understanding of everything that happened over the course of Donnie Darko’s journey with both reality and the occult. Throughout this journey, writer and director, Richard Kelly, presents the audience with a barrage of information that appears, at least at first glance, to have little or no relation to one another. With this information, Kelly forces the audience to slowly (and almost unsuccessfully) piece together what is happening to our protagonist, Donnie Darko (Jake Gyllenhaal). The audience sees Darko struggle and essentially suffer through daily life due to his imaginary friend (or accomplice, depending how you view him), Frank (James Duval), but is unable to, for the majority of the film, fully understand Frank’s want or his purpose. It’s not until the very end, until the clock strikes zero on the twenty-eight day countdown, that the audience is provided the information they need to understand, to any degree, what they had been watching for two hours. Even with each of the reveals at the end of the film, much of Darko and the other characters remain a mystery and must be tediously pieced together to truly make sense of what took place. Gyllenhaal’s performance as Darko was one of the most intriguing that I’ve seen in some time. Due to the fact that the audience is unaware of what exactly is taking place throughout the film, Gyllenhaal had to portray his character in a number of different forms to help keep up with the mystery of his journey. At times his character is enchanting, romantic and down to earth and, in the blink of an eye, Darko transforms to a zombie-like creep that makes it his duty to punish the sinners that live near him. What was most intriguing about the character was the intellect that he possessed. He often seemed to be a step ahead of others, knowing their next move before it happened and their secrets prior to them ever being revealed. Along with the number of reveals that take place at the end of the film, the truth behind his need to dig and find the deeper meaning of everything in his life is brought to light and it helps to solidify Darko’s incredible character as one of the most enjoyable cinema characters of the past twenty years. Surrounding Gyllenhaal was an incredible cast of interesting actors. Actors that had already found their place in Hollywood like Drew Barrymore and some lesser known actors, at the time, such as Ashley Tisdale and Jena Malone, helped to create an ensemble that allowed the film to flow and to be incredibly captivating. Something that caught my eye early in the film was the fact that Donnie’s mother (Mary McDonnell) sat outside of their house and read Stephen King’s It, bringing a sense of eeriness and terror to the film before anything major happens. Little things like this were dispersed throughout the film, regularly reminding the audience that they were in for a strange ride, full of twists and turns, and should be prepared for terror in the future. This idea is what kept me engaged and on the edge of my seat for the film’s entirety. Kelly created a film that I struggle to call anything but a masterpiece. Its glorious inclusion of symbolism creates a world that is anything but what one would consider reality and exposes the audience to sides of science-fiction that most probably didn’t know existed. Through symbolism, incredible performances and a seemingly fractured story that successfully comes together in the end, Donnie Darko was eerie and captivating. I highly recommend this film to anyone who appreciates a good thriller or mystery. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0246578/?ref_=nv_sr_1
Comments