"October 1988 and small town USA is about to witness the end of the world". The write-up on the DVD case is certainly not wrong. Donnie Darko is the beautiful but heartbreaking story of Donnie, a teenager with a mental illness.
The film’s narrative begins when Donnie is lured from his bed by a startling voice that leads him to sleepwalk outside to confront an over-sized bizarre looking rabbit named Frank. He returns home the next morning to find he has narrowly missed death, after discovering that an aeroplane engine has fallen mysteriously into his bedroom.
Frank convinces Donnie into believing that the world will end in 28 days and as a result Donnie's disturbing images intensify and his behaviour becomes less and less stable. It would appear that his schizophrenia has really set in, but is there something more sinister behind his strange thoughts?
This movie certainly is unique in the way the story is presented - a continuous unsettling atmosphere, dark laughs and intriguing, likeable characters. Kelly's use of a mixture of different genres creates an interesting take on teenage lust, love, feelings, obsessions and the human brain.
Whatever themes you draw upon watching, it is clear that there is no one meaning that can be taken from this film. Blending together mental illness, time travel, social and political issues it is certainly not a film for a lazy Sunday afternoon! However, it is agreed that Donnie Darko is an incredible piece of quirky cinema that was produced upon the unfortunate idea that the universe doesn't have the ability to play fair.
EMMA BREWARD
No comments:
Post a Comment