Donnie Darko

[pescado]

honestly... i hope the 'top 10' films recommended werent intended as 'the most important films worldwide' or something. if so a remedial course in the auteurs of film history is needed.

You tread on my dreams. Remember, Deceive the Emperor to cross the Sea, all truths are hidden where they will be seen by all.

i hope this doesnt seem like a slight.. it certainly isnt. there are SO many amazing movies out there i think relate to human nature, psychopathy, religion, etc.

i would be more than willing to list a few of my faves if anyone is remotely interested.

Please do :)

as for DD. bits of the movie were quite interesting.. the disrupted space time thing with the visitor, the woman who had written the book about time travel. i remember feeling disappointed by the end though.. havent seen the movie in quite some time.

I don't think the movie had anything to do with time other than as a grand deus ex machina. Time was simply a vehicle, the contents of the delivery van are more important than the body and driver combined.

As always we see what we want to see first, then what we are meant to see, and then what we need to see.

my recollection is quite cloudy of the movie seeing i saw it once and it was years ago when i did.. my analysis of the movie is limited. maybe i should watch it again sometime.

and once again atreides.. i didnt intend on slighting you. my choice of diction was maybe seemed a little 'challenging' (ie. remedial).. truth be told i listened to the podcast, which was very interesting btw.. and was thinking 'oh at the end theyre listing relevant movies at the end of the cast.. maybe some i've never heard of before' maybe it was my disappointment shining through.. seeing i knew all the movies listed.

 

[Beau]

My second faveourite scene was not actually included in the first release of the movie, but was viewable as one of the deleted scenes. It was a scene between Donnie and his psychiarist in which Donnie had asked if he was going to be put on more drugs, but the psychiatrist replied "You don't have to take them anymore, there only Placebos, they don't really do anything". I thought this sumed one of the main themes of the film nicely,in that there was no real problem with Donnie, orther than he would not conform to "The norm", and type of behaviour demanded by the system, and they just created a false treatment for his condition as they knew there was nothing really wrong with him in the first place.

This scene is included in the Director's Version. One of my favorites parts as well. I was wondering how the shrink could do that and still tell the parents that Donnie was a paranoid schizo. She drew my ire for sure.

 

[melatonin]

One of the few films that isnt over-rated. I think its about alien abduction.
My favourite line was when donnie asked the alien " why are you wearing that rabbit suit?". He replied " Why are you wearing that human suit".

My take on the film - Donnie had been recieving visitations from aliens throughout his life. This meant that he was never brainwashed in the normal way most people are - because his mind was too fragmented and dissociated. He questioned everything, and saw straight through the bullshit of life.
The aliens had also programmed him to follow a certain path using brainwashing techniques of their own.

What happened at the start of the film was a flash-forward of what would happen in his future. The alien wore the bunny suit to remind him what route he would take.

 

[RedFox]

One of the few films that isnt over-rated. I think its about alien abduction.
My favourite line was when donnie asked the alien " why are you wearing that rabbit suit?". He replied " Why are you wearing that human suit".

My take on the film - Donnie had been recieving visitations from aliens throughout his life. This meant that he was never brainwashed in the normal way most people are - because his mind was too fragmented and dissociated. He questioned everything, and saw straight through the bullshit of life.
The aliens had also programmed him to follow a certain path using brainwashing techniques of their own.

What happened at the start of the film was a flash-forward of what would happen in his future. The alien wore the bunny suit to remind him what route he would take.

One of my favourite films too.
*spoiler alert if you haven't seen it* Its not about alien abduction though. Their are no aliens at all. I took it to be about psychosis to start with.
The guy in the rabbit suit (and it is a human), is the guy Donie Darko shoots near the end of the film. His names Frank.

Its about time travel, and a tangent universe (the world will end in 28 days...). More so Donie Darko is the hero tasked with closing off this tangent universe (granted certain powers because of this task). I didn't know about the hero or tangent universe aspect until I read more about the film after watching it.
It makes watching it a second time more interesting.

_http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Donnie_Darko

In October 1988, teenager Donnie Darko (Jake Gyllenhaal) has been seeing a psychiatrist because of his troubled history.[...]

Writer/director Richard Kelly does not deny the validity of personal interpretations, but has expressed his own theories through the extra commentary on the two DVDs, and in various other interviews. According to Kelly, at midnight on October 2, a "Tangent Universe" branches off the "Primary Universe" around the time when Donnie is called out of his bedroom by Frank, immediately before the appearance of the Artifact, the faulty jet engine. The inherently unstable Tangent Universe will collapse in just over 28 days and take the Primary Universe with it if not corrected. Closing the Tangent Universe is the duty of the "Living Receiver", Donnie, who wields certain supernatural powers to help him in the task.

Those who die within the Tangent Universe and would not have died otherwise are the "Manipulated Dead" (Frank, Gretchen). Frank, at least, is also given certain powers in that he is able to subtly understand what is happening and to contact and influence the Living Receiver via the "Fourth Dimensional Construct", water. All others within the orbit of the Living Receiver are the "Manipulated Living" (e.g., Ms. Pomeroy, Dr. Monnitoff), subconsciously drawn to push him towards his destiny to close the Tangent Universe and, according to the Philosophy of Time Travel, die by the Artifact.

Frank appears in the story in two guises. First, there is the dead Frank who appears to Donnie as a premonition from the future of the Tangent Universe in the disturbing rabbit suit. This Frank is aware of Donnie's destiny and impels Donnie to realize it through his manipulation. Second, Frank appears alive as Donnie's sister's boyfriend, whose fate unfolds within the Tangent Universe by means of Donnie's successes in realizing his mission. Donnie fatally shoots this Frank near the end of the film, fulfilling Donnie's destiny as the Living Receiver and resolving the Tangent and Primary Universes.

 

[Lindenlea]

I saw this film quite a few years ago on my son's recommendation, at first I sort of understood it, though I thought it was weird especially the time loops.

Much water has gone under the bridge since then (finding this forum), my son has the DVD so I think I'll give it another whirl or two and see my take on it through different eyes.

Thanks for the reminder.

 

[melatonin]

Hi RedFox,

Yeah, ive read the official explanation for the film before. I come to the same conclusions for myself. I dont think a film-malker would necessarily be honest about a film if it was about stuff 99.999999999999999% of people couldnt even imagine happening. (that actually was).

 

[StrangeCaptain]

Ahhh... Donnie Darko... Donnie Darko...

This is my 3rd favorite movie ever (the director's cut, that is) though I am not sure I am to be trusted as "The Good, The bad, and The Ugly" is my 2nd favorite movie ever.

This movie is placed during one of the most naive times ever in American history, early 90's pre-tech companies stock market crash. For me, there is a subjectively emotional element to the film as I was going to a private high school for a couple of years, and this film very well captures that feel down to the detail of the purged English teacher who's mistake was to simply to do something slightly different to encourage her students to think a little.

I can definitely empathize with that feeling of the unrelenting plasticity of American culture at that time with an underlying feeling of oncoming doom. It is why we loved punk rock and post-punk music so much, us disillusioned teenagers. It seemed to pick up on and tell the truth about the deep neurosis that was barely hidden under the facade of productionless wealth that the US had at that time. This movie expresses that I think.

Donnie Darko himself... I love unlikely heroes. His smile as he knows his fate... He knew what he had to do to shut down the tangent universe and he did it. Absolutely beautiful...

This tangent universe idea causes me to place this film in the genre of science fiction, and thus, it is one of the most unusual science fiction film movies ever.

As others have said, there is something pleasant abotu how the characters have vague feelings of association with the others that shared their experiences in the other universe.

Finally... That gym teacher... She is the epitome of everything I don't like about American culture.

Warning to all those who have not seen it who might... This is a weird movie!

Oh yeah... The psychologist... She has been mentioned already. At that time, there was a huge drug rehabilitation center and counseling industry, and most of these people did not know their own arses from a hole in the ground, so again, this is a very accurate element for expressing the mood of those times for a teenager. Having gone to a treament center or going to group therapy or seeing a psychologist was practically a membership card for the confused and rebelling youth of those times.

 

[Beau]

This movie is placed during one of the most naive times ever in American history, early 90's pre-tech companies stock market crash.

Actually, the movie is set in Fall 1988. Remember the dinner table discussion about voting for Dukakis.

 

[StrangeCaptain]

This movie is placed during one of the most naive times ever in American history, early 90's pre-tech companies stock market crash.

Actually, the movie is set in Fall 1988. Remember the dinner table discussion about voting for Dukakis.

O my god. That is even funnier. That would have been my 1st or 2nd year at that private school. Explains the teenage identifiaction I get out of it... Somehow that late 80's early 90's time swirls together into a sort of homogenously shallow time in my mind. Shallow in the sense of popular culture... And little sub-cultures popping up where teenagers where trying to rebel against this sort of suburban homogeneity. I guess many of the excessively large, shoddily built homes and subdivisions that are now fodder for the sub-prime loan crisis were in there increasingly explosive growth cycle at this time. Not long after that would have been the first invasion of Iraq...

Sorry for the rambling... There is just something oddly nostalgic about this movie to me.

 

[Mrs.Tigersoap]

That movie is in my top 10 list, for sure. I especially like the long scene in slow/fast motion with Head over heels by Tears for Fears (actually, I used to really dislike Tears for fears until I saw that movie!). It's one of these movies you need to see several times to really get, I think (a bit like Mulholland Drive). It does a brilliant job at recreating that end of the 80's atmosphere and has some really interesting characters in it. The character of the teacher who is ready to defend paedophile Jim Cunningham (Swayze)in particular is really creepy and so spot on.
Well worth seeing imo...

 

[Beau]

Yes, this is one of those films that pays off with repeated viewings. The soundtrack is really excellent and I also love the pacing and the atmosphere. And quite the all-star cast, very good acting all around IMO. I've read complaints about that before, in particular Drew Barrymore, which I felt were undeserved. I actually really connected with her character and the other teacher, they both played very important roles in Donnie's life to get him off the alternate timeline and they seemed to represent a new way of thinking that struggled against the "old guard", represented by Jim Cunningham and his most fervent follower, Kitty Farmer, the teacher and head dance instructor of Sparkle Motion.

The cover of Tear For Fears' Mad Mad World by Gary Jules is fantastic IMO: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DR91Rj1ZN1M

 

[Cosmos]

Donnie Darko is one of the best movies, I've ever watched!
masterpiece

 

[Lindenlea]

Its about time travel, and a tangent universe (the world will end in 28 days...). More so Donie Darko is the hero tasked with closing off this tangent universe (granted certain powers because of this task). I didn't know about the hero or tangent universe aspect until I read more about the film after watching it.
It makes watching it a second time more interesting.

So true, I did manage to get my son's copy and watch it again on the weekend, it all made sense second time around.

 

[Bluestar]

The cover of Tear For Fears' Mad Mad World by Gary Jules is fantastic IMO: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DR91Rj1ZN1M

One of my all time favorite songs.

I saw Donnie Darko, many years ago, by myself. Had no one to go over the movie with. Really liked the movie, but was confussed. Actually, from what I remember, I thought it was about one's life passing before there eyes before they died kinda thing. Will have to see it again now that I have all this great info from here.

 

[lucasraffablog]

¿Se han dado cuenta de que esta película habla sobre el amor/miedo, viaje en el tiempo, cuarta dimensión, Dios, destino, universo, vida programada, educación real, etc.? It´s an amazing movie guys, amazing.