American Beauty+ Catcher in the Rhye+ a genius named Richard Kelly= Donnie Darko

Rating: 10/10 (8 August 2006)

If you are a teenager or remember your years as a confused teenager living in an upper middle class suburb, you probably will feel identified with Donnie Darko. Yes, I think that it is important to focus in the time travel aspect of the movie; but the reason that made this movie become one of my favorites is that it portrays perfectly what a confused teenager feels like: afraid of growing up because he feels that all adults are hypocrites (similar to the way Holden Caulfield felt in J.D.Sallinger's "The Catcher in the Rhye"), afraid of being alone and not understanding the purpose of existence nor the existence of a God (as portrayed in judeo-Christian religions).
Another aspect that is very well portrayed is the relationships among adolescents; and between adolescents and adults. The deep relationship that Donnie and Gretchen (his new girlfriend) have is represented perfectly, with all the psychological complexities that exist between humans. Gretchen is a girl that seeks for protection (for she has lead a tough life: his stepfather stabbed his Mom) and finds it in Donnie. The relationship couldn't possibly be more inspiring.
Other aspects of the suburban life portrayed it he movie are the way in which people live. Some are forced to conceal who they are because they are afraid of being judged. (This aspect of the movie is very similar to what happens in the suburb in which Sam Mendes' "American Beauty" takes place).
And where did I leave a six-foot rabbit, time travel, a jet engine that falls into a house, "The Philosophy of Time Travel"...well I don't want to mess with it for, if you haven't seen the film yet, I would probably spoil it for you. Another great aspect of the movie is that it can be interpreted in endless different ways, and they all are perfectly correct. The interpretation is as subjective as the way a confused teenager perceives the world.