The whole thing has to do with time travel…. No possessions, no curses. He went back in time to before his mom and sisters plane engine crashed through the roof so he DIES this time, thus changing the future. Everyone connected to Donnie remembers what happened in a way.
I'm late to this reaction, but there is no hallucination. Richard Kelly wrote this as a superhero movie. Everything that Donnie is experiencing is happening.
The original theatrical cut of Donnie Darko is far superior. Too much is spelled out in this version. If Richard Kelly truly intended this to be be his vision of the film, it's no wonder he's disappeared from cinema. This Directors Cut is the idiots guide to Donnie. No offence. No one's fault but Kelly's.
It's really not Kelly's fault. He had no choice in the matter when it was first released. He initially wanted his theatrical cut to be the only version, but the film producers forced him to re-edit and dumb down the film because they thought the film was so strange that the audience would need to be spoon-fed the story. If you're going to blame anyone for the "Director's Cut," then blame the short-sighted, lame producers who forced Kelly to change the structure of the film and demanded him to spell out the movie for audiences.
Notes: - Often, jet engines do have a spiral or other pattern, in order for airport staff to be able to tell if the engine is running or not (the rule of thumb is that if you can't see the lines if the spiral, it's moving too fast or you to be around) - The therapist might not have been able to go to the police without at least notifying Donny's parents; in many states, there are laws about doctor-patient confidentiality (the Catholic Church has a similar doctrine called the "seal of the confessional"). The film "Grosse Pointe Blank" has this as a major plot point. - For another great film with a very young Jake Gyllenhaal, check out "October Sky"; for another good film with Maggie, see "Stranger Than Fiction" -Other bizarre/surreal films that I'd recommend: Dramas: Slaughterhouse-Five, A Clockwork Orange, Trainspotting, and Goodbye Lenin. Comedies: One Crazy Summer, Cabin Boy, Coneheads, and Me, Myself & Irene (which has a character's split personality as a major plot point)
Donnie saved Gretchen's life. He went back in time to get killed by the jet engine. That way, he'd never meet Gretchen, and they'd never go to that party or Grandma deaths house, and Gretchen would never die. He sacrificed his life to save hers. So he was actually a hero. And since he lived through an alternate 28 days, he could do anything he wanted since it would all be erased anyway.
It’s a superhero movie with all of the usual tropes removed: he has a secret identity and superhuman powers, but we never get to see them, only the after effects. (That’s how he got the axe in the statues head so high off the ground.)
If you search, you can go down a massive rabbit hole about Donnie Darko theories. One of my favorites suggests that Donnie has been time traveling like this for a long time, perhaps years, back and forth, over and over (like Groundhog Day), and the audience sees bits of this without realizing that enormous time jumps are actually being displayed. So we see Donnie mature from beginning to end. This would explain why he smiles in the first scene, lying in the road. He has traveled back in time again successfully, and realizes it, and bikes home. He is a kind of time-traveling superhero. Others suggest that the fate of the entire universe is in Donnie's hands. It gets trippy. The original cut leaves enough spooky uncertainty to allow all sorts of interpretations, imho. I haven't seen the director's cut. Maybe it pushes it a different way.
"I doubt your commitment to sparkle motion!" 🤣🤣🤣 Beth Grant is a 'that guy' actress who pops up in so much good stuff. She's co-starred in 3 Best Picture winners - Rain Man, No Country For Old Men, and The Artist
A great movie but somewhat bizarre. Another movie like this is The Butterfly effect 2004 (Theatrical version only), Another great Jake Gyllenhaal movie is Prince Of Persia 2010.
Other young actors of note in Donnie Darko are Jenna Malone (Gretchen) and James Duvall (Frank). James is in a mix of independent and mainstream movies, following in the footsteps of his father (Robert Duvall). Try Nowhere, The Doom Generation, and SLC Punk for some of his 90s indie work. Go, Gone in 60 Seconds, and Independence Day for some of his early studio work. Jenna is also in a ton of stuff, but I'd recommend Sucker Punch, Saved, and Nocturnal Animals (also with Jake) for more of her.
I'm still not entirely sure, if this a good movie or a bad movie. But, what i know.. i kinda like it. I particularly enjoy two elements of the film: the main character himself, and the dialogue. Donnie is an interesting protagonist. He doesn't really fit into any of the typical "high school movie hero" archetypes, and the way he thinks and sees the world is fascinating to view. I like how dry he is especially compared to his friends. And the dialogue is, in my opinion, is a perfect blend of realistic and fantastical. Lots of memorable lines: "Everyone dies alone." But with all the critical praise for the film, some also consider it more nonsensical than philosophical, and there are endless interpretations about the meaning of the film, particularly the ending.
I agree, i think it's a wonderfully well made film. Well acted, well written. As far as the story goes, I think it plays with logic itself, so it may come off as pretentious, but I found it more curious 🧐😌 Thanks for watching!
"What happened?" aside, its indictment of 80s, US, upper-middle class phony culture from a struggling kid's perspective is one of my favorite things. Tangent universe collapse, and the moral question of sortof... if you knew the total cost to everyone, is your survival worthwhile is, dark, difficult, and potentially problematic for goth/emo teens, but also something I've listened to elderly people grapple with. Movie affected how I think about that stuff.
I don’t think they’re afraid of him or anything either. His parents. They care about him and we’re sad to hear about what he’s going through. At least that’s what I got through their acting. He was never really violent towards any of his family members so I was never afraid for themz
It's pretty baffling how badly Richard Kelly defaced his own work with this director's cut. The theatrical cut is a beautiful and disturbing work full of atmosphere and humanity. This is awkwardly-paced, poorly edited, and full of random info dumps that interrupt the flow.
This Sci Fi movie is definitely a surprise happy to see you reacting to this Sci Fi movie. Haven’t seen this in a long time. Starting at 51:03 you are spot on in your review
Time gets split once Frank saves Donnie in the beginning. Donnie is then living in a separate timeline and it is too fragile to sustain and when it collapses it will destroy both universes.Donnie is the chosen and Frank is his guide to restore balance (the engine) he is given powers (water, fire, metal, telekinetic) to complete his journey….there is TONS more in this movie and it’s an absolute masterpiece
@@ShreeNation sad fact is The imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus Heath ledger passed during the making so they did a whole thing with the few known actors casted being replacements for Heath ledger's main character
I myself is a severely deranged person and I too can see a 6' invisible anamorphic rabbit I used to believe it was a djinn but then I found out Harvey is a puka an Irish mythical trickster this one has a name I don't invoke his name cause he still might be a djinn it warps reality and only I can see it
Well, now this is a Surprise!🤨I'd always heard of this Movie yet (somehow) never saw it, but based on what I'm reading so far🤔this should be very Interesting indeed! Never knew that Jake & Maggie Gyllenhaal were ever in the same thing, at the same time: they are siblings IRL. Gotta do more Research on this one before the Premiere, and as always🥰it's a Pleasure to see You again, My Friend!🫂 Fun-Fact: one of Patrick Swayze's BEST Movies ever was "Road House" ('89) and just recently, Jake Gyllenhaal starred in the Remake of "Road House"💪as Swayze's Character! That makes it Interesting to see them Both together in this...🤔
Hey Shree personally I think that what Donnie accepted at the end wasn't his death but his current life. I think he became aware of the other parallell universe where he died and how much he still meant to every character in the movie even though the main story didn't even happen in the other universe. I think that's why I was affected so much by the movies ending, because it basically showed that Donnies fears that "all creatures die alone" is simply not true!
Hey Shree . I watched this movie over twenty years ago and to be honest it kind of melted my brain lol . Serious ... i just dont get it until today :( . After this tough stuff i need some to just relax and chill ... like “Movie 43“ . Have a nice day ;)
The whole thing has to do with time travel…. No possessions, no curses. He went back in time to before his mom and sisters plane engine crashed through the roof so he DIES this time, thus changing the future. Everyone connected to Donnie remembers what happened in a way.
I can absolutely guarantee that this film will live in your head rent free for the rest of your life.
You're not wrong 😅
I'm late to this reaction, but there is no hallucination. Richard Kelly wrote this as a superhero movie. Everything that Donnie is experiencing is happening.
The original theatrical cut of Donnie Darko is far superior. Too much is spelled out in this version. If Richard Kelly truly intended this to be be his vision of the film, it's no wonder he's disappeared from cinema. This Directors Cut is the idiots guide to Donnie. No offence. No one's fault but Kelly's.
the music from the original has stayed on my play list for over 2 decades
It's really not Kelly's fault. He had no choice in the matter when it was first released. He initially wanted his theatrical cut to be the only version, but the film producers forced him to re-edit and dumb down the film because they thought the film was so strange that the audience would need to be spoon-fed the story. If you're going to blame anyone for the "Director's Cut," then blame the short-sighted, lame producers who forced Kelly to change the structure of the film and demanded him to spell out the movie for audiences.
Notes:
- Often, jet engines do have a spiral or other pattern, in order for airport staff to be able to tell if the engine is running or not (the rule of thumb is that if you can't see the lines if the spiral, it's moving too fast or you to be around)
- The therapist might not have been able to go to the police without at least notifying Donny's parents; in many states, there are laws about doctor-patient confidentiality (the Catholic Church has a similar doctrine called the "seal of the confessional"). The film "Grosse Pointe Blank" has this as a major plot point.
- For another great film with a very young Jake Gyllenhaal, check out "October Sky"; for another good film with Maggie, see "Stranger Than Fiction"
-Other bizarre/surreal films that I'd recommend:
Dramas: Slaughterhouse-Five, A Clockwork Orange, Trainspotting, and Goodbye Lenin.
Comedies: One Crazy Summer, Cabin Boy, Coneheads, and Me, Myself & Irene (which has a character's split personality as a major plot point)
Interesting, I had no idea about the spiral being real! 😯 Thanks for the recommendations!
Donnie saved Gretchen's life. He went back in time to get killed by the jet engine. That way, he'd never meet Gretchen, and they'd never go to that party or Grandma deaths house, and Gretchen would never die. He sacrificed his life to save hers. So he was actually a hero.
And since he lived through an alternate 28 days, he could do anything he wanted since it would all be erased anyway.
Interesting, I agree 👍
It’s a superhero movie with all of the usual tropes removed: he has a secret identity and superhuman powers, but we never get to see them, only the after effects. (That’s how he got the axe in the statues head so high off the ground.)
If you search, you can go down a massive rabbit hole about Donnie Darko theories. One of my favorites suggests that Donnie has been time traveling like this for a long time, perhaps years, back and forth, over and over (like Groundhog Day), and the audience sees bits of this without realizing that enormous time jumps are actually being displayed. So we see Donnie mature from beginning to end. This would explain why he smiles in the first scene, lying in the road. He has traveled back in time again successfully, and realizes it, and bikes home. He is a kind of time-traveling superhero. Others suggest that the fate of the entire universe is in Donnie's hands. It gets trippy. The original cut leaves enough spooky uncertainty to allow all sorts of interpretations, imho. I haven't seen the director's cut. Maybe it pushes it a different way.
I thought that scene with his mom was so sweet. Even though it was slightly funny because of the “whacko for a son” part.
I agree, it was a wholesome moment 😌
Yeah, this is why peeps need to just go with the theatrical version
literally the best movie ever made
"I doubt your commitment to sparkle motion!"
🤣🤣🤣
Beth Grant is a 'that guy' actress who pops up in so much good stuff. She's co-starred in 3 Best Picture winners - Rain Man, No Country For Old Men, and The Artist
That line delivery was awesome 😁😁
A great movie but somewhat bizarre. Another movie like this is The Butterfly effect 2004 (Theatrical version only), Another great Jake Gyllenhaal movie is Prince Of Persia 2010.
Thanks for the recommendations 😍🙏
Other young actors of note in Donnie Darko are Jenna Malone (Gretchen) and James Duvall (Frank). James is in a mix of independent and mainstream movies, following in the footsteps of his father (Robert Duvall). Try Nowhere, The Doom Generation, and SLC Punk for some of his 90s indie work. Go, Gone in 60 Seconds, and Independence Day for some of his early studio work.
Jenna is also in a ton of stuff, but I'd recommend Sucker Punch, Saved, and Nocturnal Animals (also with Jake) for more of her.
what is with seth rogen ?
Thanks for recommending 😍
I'm still not entirely sure, if this a good movie or a bad movie. But, what i know.. i kinda like it.
I particularly enjoy two elements of the film: the main character himself, and the dialogue.
Donnie is an interesting protagonist. He doesn't really fit into any of the typical "high school movie hero" archetypes, and the way he thinks and sees the world is fascinating to view. I like how dry he is especially compared to his friends.
And the dialogue is, in my opinion, is a perfect blend of realistic and fantastical. Lots of memorable lines: "Everyone dies alone."
But with all the critical praise for the film, some also consider it more nonsensical than philosophical, and there are endless interpretations about the meaning of the film, particularly the ending.
I agree, i think it's a wonderfully well made film. Well acted, well written. As far as the story goes, I think it plays with logic itself, so it may come off as pretentious, but I found it more curious 🧐😌 Thanks for watching!
"What happened?" aside, its indictment of 80s, US, upper-middle class phony culture from a struggling kid's perspective is one of my favorite things. Tangent universe collapse, and the moral question of sortof... if you knew the total cost to everyone, is your survival worthwhile is, dark, difficult, and potentially problematic for goth/emo teens, but also something I've listened to elderly people grapple with. Movie affected how I think about that stuff.
Interesting, thanks for sharing your perspective 🙏 Truly a unique film!
I don’t think they’re afraid of him or anything either. His parents. They care about him and we’re sad to hear about what he’s going through. At least that’s what I got through their acting. He was never really violent towards any of his family members so I was never afraid for themz
“Wake up.”
-frank
🥶
It's pretty baffling how badly Richard Kelly defaced his own work with this director's cut. The theatrical cut is a beautiful and disturbing work full of atmosphere and humanity. This is awkwardly-paced, poorly edited, and full of random info dumps that interrupt the flow.
This Sci Fi movie is definitely a surprise happy to see you reacting to this Sci Fi movie. Haven’t seen this in a long time. Starting at 51:03 you are spot on in your review
Thank you so much!! ☺️🙏
Time gets split once Frank saves Donnie in the beginning. Donnie is then living in a separate timeline and it is too fragile to sustain and when it collapses it will destroy both universes.Donnie is the chosen and Frank is his guide to restore balance (the engine) he is given powers (water, fire, metal, telekinetic) to complete his journey….there is TONS more in this movie and it’s an absolute masterpiece
The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus, and A Scanner Darkly can definitely go on the list of weird movies
Thanks for the recommendations 😍
@@ShreeNation sad fact is The imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus Heath ledger passed during the making so they did a whole thing with the few known actors casted being replacements for Heath ledger's main character
You look happy as fuck during this recording I love it ! :) great energy! Always beautiful miss!
Thank you, I'm always happy watching weird movies 😃🤭 Appreciate it, hope you enjoyed!
I myself is a severely deranged person and I too can see a 6' invisible anamorphic rabbit I used to believe it was a djinn but then I found out Harvey is a puka an Irish mythical trickster this one has a name I don't invoke his name cause he still might be a djinn it warps reality and only I can see it
Well, now this is a Surprise!🤨I'd always heard of this Movie yet (somehow) never saw it, but based on what I'm reading
so far🤔this should be very Interesting indeed! Never knew that Jake & Maggie Gyllenhaal were ever in the same thing,
at the same time: they are siblings IRL. Gotta do more Research on this one before the Premiere, and as always🥰it's a
Pleasure to see You again, My Friend!🫂
Fun-Fact: one of Patrick Swayze's BEST Movies ever was "Road House" ('89) and just recently, Jake Gyllenhaal starred in
the Remake of "Road House"💪as Swayze's Character! That makes it Interesting to see them Both together in this...🤔
Pleasure's all mine 😊 Now I gotta see Roadhouse as well! This was truly a unique film like no other. Hope you enjoy the premiere! 🙌
@@ShreeNation I'm sure that I will...😘👌
@@ShreeNationYou'll need a cold shower after Roadhouse 😳
Hey Shree personally I think that what Donnie accepted at the end wasn't his death but his current life. I think he became aware of the other parallell universe where he died and how much he still meant to every character in the movie even though the main story didn't even happen in the other universe. I think that's why I was affected so much by the movies ending, because it basically showed that Donnies fears that "all creatures die alone" is simply not true!
Thanks for sharing 😊🙏
Most people didn’t have computers then bc it’s supposed to be 1988. I think there was a steel safe behind his portrait that had the CP.
I just saw Bad Boys Ride Or Die. It was awesome
Nice, hope you had a good time!
I like how you were acting like Donnie was a psychotic mass murderer the whole time lol.
Hey Shree . I watched this movie over twenty years ago and to be honest it kind of melted my brain lol . Serious ... i just dont get it until today :( . After this tough stuff i need some to just relax and chill ... like “Movie 43“ . Have a nice day ;)
I feel you, not so much about Movie 43 😂 Thanks for watching!
@@ShreeNation oh what a pity . I was really hoping for your reaction . To me its one of the most funny movies ever .
???.....and one more thing...???😮
🤣 you and me both
Hi Shree
I liked the idea but I thought the movie was trying a bit too hard to be weird
Mékelkone... elle a rien compris au film
director's cut ruins it