Demands multiple viewings.

Rating: 8/10 (28 July 2006)

Donnie Darko is an entertaining, well thought out film with a mysterious aura and a sense of mystery and foreboding throughout. These rare and difficult elements that have been woven into this film combine with several other things creating something memorable.
There is a healthy mix of rather dark humour early on as we witness our hero swearing at and around his family which integrates with the amusing one-liners he is using them with. This is combined with the suspense which builds and surprises which crop up now and again very early on in the film. You are left guessing and attempting to work things out from the very first frame. The feeling that everything is, in actual fact, normal is very much present as there are no complicated settings, nor are there unfamiliar characters. Everything is everyday and familiar, in fact the closest thing there is to any abnormality when it comes to the setting is the time of the film takes place which is in the late 1980's.
This clash of an everyday world setting but mysterious aura throughout works very well as we attempt to work out what's going on but at the same time, realise that the mysterious element is still there through the character of Donnie. One other thing is that the rest of the characters seem to act 'crazy' in their own unique way. Everyone has a fault and everyone has a goal; whether it be a schizophrenic trying to work out what's going on, a pervert trying to 'heal' people or even if it's an obsessive person bent on making sure a certain music band containing young girls is a success over everything else. Each person is searching and we, the audience, are searching with them. We are with them through their highs and lows and Donnie's therapy sessions act as checkpoints for this journey as we go deep into his mind during hypnosis. This little technique acts as a good suspense filler too, but it often also produces a few laughs. This is very clever.
Throughout this film, there is a definite element of confusion. I was never 100% sure as to what was going on but this is healthy as films like this demand a second viewing anyway. We ask ourselves: what do the dreams mean? Why is all this happening and what's causing it? This, to me, made me feel like the film was coming together like a puzzle and every time a dream came along, it was as if I'd suddenly found a piece which linked up several others. The film unravels in this way and it's not too demanding yet at the same time, it doesn't insult the viewer.
With wonderful music throughout, using both popular tracks from the era and instrumental music, along with a clever manipulation of the speed of the footage; both fast and slow, Donnie Darko is a very clever film and well worth a watch.