better each time i see it

Rating: Null/10 (18 June 2003)

The first time I saw Donnie Darko, I was unsure of what I should have "gotten" out of the film. That uncertainty prompted me to watch the movie three more
times, in order to understand it better. In a world where so many movies take the viewer by the hand and coerce them into an uninspired emotional payoff, it was quite refreshing to finish watching Donnie Darko and have no idea
whatsoever about how I should feel.
The story combines so many good elements, you can't help but find something
entertaining about it. There are the simple pleasures of 80s nostalgia, Kevin Smith-ish discussion about the Smurfs, and some really well-delivered comic
moments. Then you have the darker, more thought provoking stuff about time
travel, alternate realities and destiny. I might go so far as to say, this movie has everything.
The film's end is one that reminds me of high school, when my English class
would debate the intended meanings of various symbols in literature. I'm not sure what the writer intended, but Donnie Darko can definitely be interpreted in multiple ways. As a matter of fact, I'm interpreting it in multiple ways at this very moment.
Whoa.