HOME | DD

Description

“Why are you wearing that stupid bunny suit?”
“Why are you wearing that stupid man suit?”

Truth be told, I wasn’t planning on talking about Donnie Darko, and for two reasons:

Firstly it’s because I’ve never seen it, and only recently done so due to my photography class which wanted to give us students a break to watch some horror films.

The second, and biggest reason, is because I thought the film wouldn’t be my type. I’ve always heard of how this movie in particular required reading of outside material and multiple viewings in order to understand it. I don’t have trouble in understanding a film’s story (The fact I got Inception on my first viewing might be evident) but I just don’t see much of the appeal in a film that built on confusing its audience, at least in the level these sorts of films do it.
Still, that would just stop me from truly judging a film on its merit if I were to just ignore it on this idea alone. I have to see it, whether by my choice or not, and all I got to do is hope that it ends up being something worth watching at the end of it all.
So is Donnie Darko a film worth watching? Well, let’s see.

Donnie Darko is a teenager with psychotic issues who wakes to see a figure in a strange rabbit suit, who leads him out of his home in the middle of the night; when Donnia wakes, he returns to find that his room has been destroyed by a falling jet engine. Afterwords he tries to go through a normal life, only to find that he’s suffering from the constant visions of the rabbit who goes by Frank, which cause him to question his sanity… and as well what is happening to the world around him. The figure Frank warns Donnie that within 28 days the world will end, and that it’s only through Donnia can he save it. Faced with this warning of an upcoming apocalypse, Donnie tries to understand what’s going on around him, all the while questioning things such as space and time, the will of God, destiny, and what it means to truly have control over your own fate.

Donnie Darko, both the film and character, are depressing but also containing moments of positivity. Scenes can move between being serious and full of sorrow to being genuinely funny and realistic in its tone. Relationships between characters are realistic, as well some reactions to the actions they commit to each other. When characters make jokes to each other, or in general, it’s believable in that it sounds like something someone would say, especially at the time. As for scenes that are dramatic, they work, though some characters don’t emote as strongly as the scene requires (especially so with the main character Donnie Darko himself). This is a well acted, believable movie, so I don’t find fault in this aspect.
Now, the story working around the characters are good, as for the characters themselves… they’re not as great. I’m not saying they’re bad, or that there are any terrible actors, they just aren’t as great. Sure, the story around them is interesting, but the characters never go beyond an ok performance. Donnie Darko’s actor is great, as for the performance of Frank, but everyone just feels like ordinary people (which for a more down-to-earth movie is great, but it doesn’t give much in a memorable act).
The effects is mostly cgi and some interesting editing, and they are not that good. I think much of the effects does get in the way of really understanding what is going on in the film, as some of the edits can feel out of nowhere. One particular edit is around the ending where SPOILERS time-travel is involved, and the way the scene portrays the action is both confusing and a bit laughable. This, and other scenes, become harder to understand with how the movie tries to get across much of the supernatural occurrences that happen around Donnie. Some moments are easier to understand than others, but a majority of the time it’s just all so confusing. I don’t know how, at the time, they’d be able to get across what they need with special effects, but surely there must’ve been a better way.
Now the one issue I personally have with the movie, and this may be a petty one, but the film itself isn’t that scary. It’s certainly a great story, and one that affected me with how sad it can get, but the film isn’t at all scary. There can be moments that could be seen as being psychological horror, and perhaps some imagery and ideas can be horrific, but the film is very weak as a horror movie. It’s a petty critique, surely, but it’s one that I have to give out in this month especially.

Donnie Darko is a great classic, with a complex story and a memorable score. The characters aren’t truly strong in their acting, and the effects can be detrimental, but I highly recommend seeing it as a film.
As a horror movie, however, I feel it’s better you go with something else.

Description

“Why are you wearing that stupid bunny suit?”
“Why are you wearing that stupid man suit?”

Truth be told, I wasn’t planning on talking about Donnie Darko, and for two reasons:

Firstly it’s because I’ve never seen it, and only recently done so due to my photography class which wanted to give us students a break to watch some horror films.

The second, and biggest reason, is because I thought the film wouldn’t be my type. I’ve always heard of how this movie in particular required reading of outside material and multiple viewings in order to understand it. I don’t have trouble in understanding a film’s story (The fact I got Inception on my first viewing might be evident) but I just don’t see much of the appeal in a film that built on confusing its audience, at least in the level these sorts of films do it.
Still, that would just stop me from truly judging a film on its merit if I were to just ignore it on this idea alone. I have to see it, whether by my choice or not, and all I got to do is hope that it ends up being something worth watching at the end of it all.
So is Donnie Darko a film worth watching? Well, let’s see.

Donnie Darko is a teenager with psychotic issues who wakes to see a figure in a strange rabbit suit, who leads him out of his home in the middle of the night; when Donnia wakes, he returns to find that his room has been destroyed by a falling jet engine. Afterwords he tries to go through a normal life, only to find that he’s suffering from the constant visions of the rabbit who goes by Frank, which cause him to question his sanity… and as well what is happening to the world around him. The figure Frank warns Donnie that within 28 days the world will end, and that it’s only through Donnia can he save it. Faced with this warning of an upcoming apocalypse, Donnie tries to understand what’s going on around him, all the while questioning things such as space and time, the will of God, destiny, and what it means to truly have control over your own fate.

Donnie Darko, both the film and character, are depressing but also containing moments of positivity. Scenes can move between being serious and full of sorrow to being genuinely funny and realistic in its tone. Relationships between characters are realistic, as well some reactions to the actions they commit to each other. When characters make jokes to each other, or in general, it’s believable in that it sounds like something someone would say, especially at the time. As for scenes that are dramatic, they work, though some characters don’t emote as strongly as the scene requires (especially so with the main character Donnie Darko himself). This is a well acted, believable movie, so I don’t find fault in this aspect.
Now, the story working around the characters are good, as for the characters themselves… they’re not as great. I’m not saying they’re bad, or that there are any terrible actors, they just aren’t as great. Sure, the story around them is interesting, but the characters never go beyond an ok performance. Donnie Darko’s actor is great, as for the performance of Frank, but everyone just feels like ordinary people (which for a more down-to-earth movie is great, but it doesn’t give much in a memorable act).
The effects is mostly cgi and some interesting editing, and they are not that good. I think much of the effects does get in the way of really understanding what is going on in the film, as some of the edits can feel out of nowhere. One particular edit is around the ending where SPOILERS time-travel is involved, and the way the scene portrays the action is both confusing and a bit laughable. This, and other scenes, become harder to understand with how the movie tries to get across much of the supernatural occurrences that happen around Donnie. Some moments are easier to understand than others, but a majority of the time it’s just all so confusing. I don’t know how, at the time, they’d be able to get across what they need with special effects, but surely there must’ve been a better way.
Now the one issue I personally have with the movie, and this may be a petty one, but the film itself isn’t that scary. It’s certainly a great story, and one that affected me with how sad it can get, but the film isn’t at all scary. There can be moments that could be seen as being psychological horror, and perhaps some imagery and ideas can be horrific, but the film is very weak as a horror movie. It’s a petty critique, surely, but it’s one that I have to give out in this month especially.

Donnie Darko is a great classic, with a complex story and a memorable score. The characters aren’t truly strong in their acting, and the effects can be detrimental, but I highly recommend seeing it as a film.
As a horror movie, however, I feel it’s better you go with something else.