Donnie Darko (2001)

A troubled teenager is plagued by visions of a large bunny rabbit that manipulates him to commit a series of crimes, after narrowly escaping a bizarre accident.

Director:

Richard Kelly

Writer:

Richard Kelly

Stars:

Jake Gyllenhaal, Holmes Osborne, Mary McDonnell

Top 250 #178 | 11 wins & 12 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Jake Gyllenhaal	...	Donnie Darko
Holmes Osborne	...	Eddie Darko
Maggie Gyllenhaal	...	Elizabeth Darko
Daveigh Chase	...	Samantha Darko
Mary McDonnell	...	Rose Darko
James Duval	...	Frank
Arthur Taxier	...	Dr. Fisher
Patrick Swayze	...	Jim Cunningham
Mark Hoffman	...	Police Officer
David St. James	...	Bob Garland
Tom Tangen	...	Man in Red Jogging Suit
Jazzie Mahannah	...	Joanie James
Jolene Purdy	...	Cherita Chen
Stuart Stone	...	Ronald Fisher
Gary Lundy	...	Sean Smith

Storyline

Donnie Darko doesn't get along too well with his family, his teachers and his classmates; but he does manage to find a sympathetic friend in Gretchen, who agrees to date him. He has a compassionate psychiatrist, who discovers hypnosis is the means to unlock hidden secrets. His other companion may not be a true ally. Donnie has a friend named Frank - a large bunny which only Donnie can see. When an engine falls off a plane and destroys his bedroom, Donnie is not there. Both the event, and Donnie's escape, seem to have been caused by supernatural events. Donnie's mental illness, if such it is, may never allow him to find out for sure.

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Plot Keywords:

vision | teacher | school | vandalism | insanity | 

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Taglines:

The cult phenomenon returns summer 2004. (director's cut re-release)

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Genres:

Drama | Sci-Fi

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for language, some drug use and violence

Details

Official Sites:

Official site

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

30 January 2002 (France)

Also Known As:

Donnie Darko: The Director's Cut

Filming Locations:

Santa Clarita, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$4,500,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

£191,348 (UK) (25 October 2002)

Gross:

$727,883 (USA) (1 October 2004)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Pandora Cinema, Flower Films (II), Adam Fields Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

113 min 133 min (director's cut)

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Frank says the world will end in "28 days 6 hours 42 minutes 12 seconds." That figure is not random: it comes from adding or subtracting 1 from each part of the figure 27d 7h 43m 11s, which is the precise length of one lunar month (by one of the less-used definitions - sidereal instead of the usual synodic).

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Goofs

When Donnie is talking about time travel with his science teacher for the first time, the slinky around his neck changes positions from behind the collar of his shirt to around his neck when the camera switches between frontal and rear angles.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Elizabeth: I'm voting for Dukakis.

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Crazy Credits

"Proud to Be Loud" Performed by The Dead Green Mummies -- this song is actually performed by the band Pantera. (The Dead Green Mummies do not exist.) Pantera has all but disowned their first four albums, this song is track 5 on the fourth of those albums, "Power Metal." The band presumably did not want to be credited with the song (as they don't consider any of their pre-1990 material part of their discography) and made up the name The Dead Green Mummies.

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Connections

References C.H.U.D. (1984)

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Soundtracks

"Mad World"
Written by Roland Orzabal
Performed by Gary Jules and Michael Andrews

User Reviews

compelling, eerie, intense, haunting, evocative, potent, sad, heroic

Being an angst-ridden teenager has never been easy, especially when you can see what's down the road, and it looks a lot like the end of your world.

Writer and Director Richard Kelly is an artist whose films I will anticipate and Jake Gyllenhaal is truly remarkable among a very rich cast. He plays a troubled young man with a brilliant intellect and a vast imagination, struggling with the boredom of standard education, and a society afraid of its own shadow (e.g. contemporary America). An imaginary friend, Frank - a seven foot tall metal-headed skull-faced demon-rabbit saves his life by removing him from the the scene of a catastrophe just before it occurs, only to lead him down an alternative path to an even more terrible oblivion complete with forecasts of doom, psychiatrists, and self-help charlatans.

This film feels as creepy as any well-made ghost story I have ever seen, yet redefines the genre of supernatural storytelling in a very unique and original way.

Donnie Darko is a film about heroism and sacrifice, decorated with disturbing imagery, the horror of everyday life, and a soundtrack reminiscent of Lynch's best. It is also a film worthy of several viewings and at least as many varied interpretations.

I can not honestly recommend this to anybody who attends films for the pure sake of entertainment. Nor can I recommend it to people who need straight answers or have limited attention spans. It's art, and does not need to provide pat explanations for itself. As entertaining as this film may be, it has an unrelenting and merciless dark side, and might disturb even the most veteran indy film carmudgeon.

This is a great film. See it.