Post by Boz on Aug 26, 2006 13:21:36 GMT
Donnie Darko
Directed by Richard Kelly
2001
In 2001, 26-year old rookie director Richard Kelly, fresh off four years in USC’s prestigious film program and a couple of harebrained short films, put together a story about a seemingly average teenage boy plagued by hallucinations in which a giant, skull-faced rabbit tells him that the world will end, and turned it into a film that would quickly become a cult classic among cinema buffs and teenage audiences alike. It’s name? Donnie Darko. Sound interesting? It sure is.
Kelly immediately sets the tone, starting off with a silent, nightmarish sequence which quickly fades into reality, or at least what we perceive to be reality. The interesting thing about this film as a whole is the fact that our main character Donnie’s strange visions are never clearly distinguished as authentic or imaginary. We are seeing the events of the film through the eyes of Donnie, to which these hallucinations are a reality. But these same visions are consistently labeled by others as purely the work of Donnie’s mind. We as the viewers must decide what we believe. Could Frank the Rabbit simply be a physical emodiment of urges and temptations within all of us, merely appearing to Donnie as a discernable being because of his supposed psychosis? Or are Donnie’s theories about time travel, fate, and destiny given validity by the film’s conclusion? And were his visions a reality?
Kelly’s choice to blend these elements early on serves to put us the viewers in the mind frame of Donnie. We never know what to believe. In the opening scenes, we are clued into the time frame of the film through subtle clues; fashion trends, product appearances, vocabulary usage, etc. When we are finally shown a graphic directly indicating the date, it appears on the tail end of an episode of psychosis, with a matter-of-fact label beneath it indicating the time remaining until the supposed end of the world. Even now we are being manipulated, our normal thought processes being distorted. Kelly’s choice to freely slip in and out of slow-motion also serves to alter our perceptions of time and reality, in the most simplistic of ways.
Donnie’s real world itself is strange in its own right. We see a strange vision of the past; traditional and clichéd late 80’s American suburbia, but it’s peppered with strange occurrences and inconsistencies. It appears sunny and bright, but there is a dark underside we’re soon exposed to. Even the perfectly normal looking scenes in broad daylight are sometimes accompanied by disturbing ambience music, giving every scene an offputting feeling of general unease. Between the portrayals of Donnie’s dreams, director Kelly showcases our familiar setting with a hint of a scornful tone, complete with its seemingly braindead, extreme conservative teachers, its financially successful, emotionally empty middle-aged couples, sucking on cigarettes and reading Stephen King novels, and its youngster’s casual prejudice against the fat asian girl with a speech impediment. Obviously, black humor plays a big part in Kelly’s presentation of his characters and setting, oddly fitting amidst the more surrealistic segments of the film. Notice the prominent display of the American flag in Donnie’s teacher’s box of belongings. Interesting message to send in a film that seems to be launching an underlying attack on good old fashioned Americana and suburban comfort.
Donnie begins to openly rebel against the overbearing and hypocritical society that surrounds him, with what initially seems to be no personal motive outside of his obedience to his imaginary “friend” Frank, but then slowly morphs into a festering sense of insubordination within his own mind. We see him talking to Frank, the giant psychotic rabbit, in his hallucinations, where he’s ordered to cause chaos with an assurance that “everything’s going to be alright,” and then we watch as he goes and does these things, whether under his own power or not. The most interesting aspect of the interweaving of these two drastically different storylines is that Kelly provides no direct explanation or contrast between the two main themes. What are we, as the viewers, supposed to imply from this juxtaposition? What is the connection, if any? We only begin to come upon answers in the conclusion of the film, and even then, nothing is presented very clearly. Eventually, mostly all who opposed Donnie or disagreed with his principles are exposed to be shallow, imbecilic individuals themselves, so what does this say about Donnie’s actions? Is he absolved of all wrongdoing because he is ultimately proven to have the most respectable intentions among the bunch? These are questions that we must decide upon for ourselves.
Kelly’s masterful work behind the camera serves to present our story in an interesting manner, whether lending room for interpretation during Donnie’s hallucinations, or gracefully gliding through the hallways of the high school like the observant passerby. While the use of special effects is somewhat substandard here, (the film was made for under five million) it’s intended effect is preserved and helps add to the surrealistic tone of the piece. Add in fine choices in music and lighting, as well as some especially powerful scenes of intense editing, and Kelly’s finished product really leaves a lasting impact.
While the ending here can’t very well be easily figured, and there is no real clear message that resonates (especially with Kelly’s choice of his final image), it’s a film that deserves multiple viewings; for Kelly’s direction, for Gyllenhaal’s performance, for full appreciation of all the ideas presented and all the questions posed. We’re left with a feeling of reality slipping through our fingers like sand, the parameters of time discarded, with only one simple reassurance; everything’s going to be alright.
Directed by Richard Kelly
2001
In 2001, 26-year old rookie director Richard Kelly, fresh off four years in USC’s prestigious film program and a couple of harebrained short films, put together a story about a seemingly average teenage boy plagued by hallucinations in which a giant, skull-faced rabbit tells him that the world will end, and turned it into a film that would quickly become a cult classic among cinema buffs and teenage audiences alike. It’s name? Donnie Darko. Sound interesting? It sure is.
Kelly immediately sets the tone, starting off with a silent, nightmarish sequence which quickly fades into reality, or at least what we perceive to be reality. The interesting thing about this film as a whole is the fact that our main character Donnie’s strange visions are never clearly distinguished as authentic or imaginary. We are seeing the events of the film through the eyes of Donnie, to which these hallucinations are a reality. But these same visions are consistently labeled by others as purely the work of Donnie’s mind. We as the viewers must decide what we believe. Could Frank the Rabbit simply be a physical emodiment of urges and temptations within all of us, merely appearing to Donnie as a discernable being because of his supposed psychosis? Or are Donnie’s theories about time travel, fate, and destiny given validity by the film’s conclusion? And were his visions a reality?
Kelly’s choice to blend these elements early on serves to put us the viewers in the mind frame of Donnie. We never know what to believe. In the opening scenes, we are clued into the time frame of the film through subtle clues; fashion trends, product appearances, vocabulary usage, etc. When we are finally shown a graphic directly indicating the date, it appears on the tail end of an episode of psychosis, with a matter-of-fact label beneath it indicating the time remaining until the supposed end of the world. Even now we are being manipulated, our normal thought processes being distorted. Kelly’s choice to freely slip in and out of slow-motion also serves to alter our perceptions of time and reality, in the most simplistic of ways.
Donnie’s real world itself is strange in its own right. We see a strange vision of the past; traditional and clichéd late 80’s American suburbia, but it’s peppered with strange occurrences and inconsistencies. It appears sunny and bright, but there is a dark underside we’re soon exposed to. Even the perfectly normal looking scenes in broad daylight are sometimes accompanied by disturbing ambience music, giving every scene an offputting feeling of general unease. Between the portrayals of Donnie’s dreams, director Kelly showcases our familiar setting with a hint of a scornful tone, complete with its seemingly braindead, extreme conservative teachers, its financially successful, emotionally empty middle-aged couples, sucking on cigarettes and reading Stephen King novels, and its youngster’s casual prejudice against the fat asian girl with a speech impediment. Obviously, black humor plays a big part in Kelly’s presentation of his characters and setting, oddly fitting amidst the more surrealistic segments of the film. Notice the prominent display of the American flag in Donnie’s teacher’s box of belongings. Interesting message to send in a film that seems to be launching an underlying attack on good old fashioned Americana and suburban comfort.
Donnie begins to openly rebel against the overbearing and hypocritical society that surrounds him, with what initially seems to be no personal motive outside of his obedience to his imaginary “friend” Frank, but then slowly morphs into a festering sense of insubordination within his own mind. We see him talking to Frank, the giant psychotic rabbit, in his hallucinations, where he’s ordered to cause chaos with an assurance that “everything’s going to be alright,” and then we watch as he goes and does these things, whether under his own power or not. The most interesting aspect of the interweaving of these two drastically different storylines is that Kelly provides no direct explanation or contrast between the two main themes. What are we, as the viewers, supposed to imply from this juxtaposition? What is the connection, if any? We only begin to come upon answers in the conclusion of the film, and even then, nothing is presented very clearly. Eventually, mostly all who opposed Donnie or disagreed with his principles are exposed to be shallow, imbecilic individuals themselves, so what does this say about Donnie’s actions? Is he absolved of all wrongdoing because he is ultimately proven to have the most respectable intentions among the bunch? These are questions that we must decide upon for ourselves.
Kelly’s masterful work behind the camera serves to present our story in an interesting manner, whether lending room for interpretation during Donnie’s hallucinations, or gracefully gliding through the hallways of the high school like the observant passerby. While the use of special effects is somewhat substandard here, (the film was made for under five million) it’s intended effect is preserved and helps add to the surrealistic tone of the piece. Add in fine choices in music and lighting, as well as some especially powerful scenes of intense editing, and Kelly’s finished product really leaves a lasting impact.
While the ending here can’t very well be easily figured, and there is no real clear message that resonates (especially with Kelly’s choice of his final image), it’s a film that deserves multiple viewings; for Kelly’s direction, for Gyllenhaal’s performance, for full appreciation of all the ideas presented and all the questions posed. We’re left with a feeling of reality slipping through our fingers like sand, the parameters of time discarded, with only one simple reassurance; everything’s going to be alright.