Donnie Darko (2001)
The darker version of Harvey.
Donnie Darko is the mind-bendingly confusing film about a troubled teenager and his visions of a man in a rabbit suit who prompts him to commit crimes in a quiet suburban neighborhood. While watching, I wanted to watch Harvey again, the more light-hearted version of a man seeing an imaginary rabbit. After Donnie Darko was over, I honestly wasn’t sure how I felt about it. While watching, I was just trying to figure it out, but couldn’t. I wonder if this is one of those movies you just won’t understand if you’re sober.
One of the things that confused me most about Donnie Darko was that it seemed to be so important. The film seemed to be trying to communicate so much to me, but I just didn’t get it. It’s filmed as though it’s a profound commentary about life and us not being alone, but it communicated its messages in such a confusing manner that I wondered if that’s really what it was about. I feel like the film loved itself way more than I did.
Despite all of my confusion while watching, I did appreciate Donnie (Jake Gyllenhaal) as the protagonist. He is clearly a very troubled kid and, while watching, it felt like I was watching him go down a really dark path. I saw Frank as a malevolent character and I desperately wanted Donnie to get the help that he needs.
