Donnie Darko: Cerebral Workout

Rating: Null/10 (7 November 2005)

Donnie Darko is an original science fiction film that leaves a thoughtful viewer pondering well after the closing credits.
Plot Summary: The story chronicles the strange experiences of Donnie Darko (Jake Gyllanhaal), a sensitive and intelligent high school student struggling with schizophrenia. His schizophrenic episodes, and the imaginary friend he interacts with during them, seem to give him supernatural powers that manifest themselves in reality, which brings into question whether these experiences are fantasy at all! This uncertainty of fantasy and reality continues throughout the film. When a motivational speaker comes to town preaching about the harmfulness of being inhibited by personal fears, Donnie chastises him, claiming that he is not realistic. He asserts that there are problems in this world that are more complicated, that cannot be remedied so easily.
On a lighter side, the film resembles many of suburban teen films of the 80's, almost to the point of parody. There's the Asian girl who is aggressively assaulted by bullies and has a crush on Donnie, the relationship Donnie establishes with an out of town girl trying to escape a difficult past, the quarreling between Donnie and his Harvard-bound sister, the dead beat dim-wits Donnie hangs out with, and the retro soundtrack used during scenes in and around the high school
The most haunting part of this film is how so many of the characters seem as if they know more than they let on; that they understand something that we don't. I wish they would let me know because I have yet to reach a satisfactory understanding of the film  it will, therefore, require a second watching which I look forward to because it is, indeed, entertaining, cerebral and well-acted.