Donnie Darko (Jake Gyllenhaal) is a Middlesex high schooler that suffers from mental disabilities, and has refused to take his medication. One night during the 1988 presidential election, the grotesque, demonic, giant rabbit known only as “ frank”, tells him that the world will exactly end in 28 days, six hours, forty two minutes and twelve seconds, and the tangent universe shall be no more. He then returns home the next morning to find that “ frank” may have saved his life from being obliterated by a jet engine that falls from the sky, which crashes into his bedroom. He then carries on living the tangent universe, and faces many hallucinations/visions of “ frank”, which results in him causing many acts of vandalism and worse. Are we predestined to take a set path/route through life? Could this path be dictated by a God? How could it be possible to travel through time, anyway? Can we change time itself? The film holds know obvious answers, and moves slowly to the conclusion. The soundtrack is perfectly used, with a mix of eighties pop and alternative music that really enhances the scene.
This film never fails to run out of energy, it never fails to surprise, to wake/shake the audience, it never loses the ability to affect you, what more you could you ask from a film? Donnie Darko is an intriguing, haunting, gripping, and deeply moving and is very mysterious. Donnie Darko is true cinematic achievement and highly recommend you go see this film. (look at for Patrick Swayze in a blatant bid at a career comeback with his cameo appearance as a dishonest motivational speaker! )
