This year marks the 15th anniversary of Donnie Darko, a film that quickly gained cult status for its unusual themes and intricate plot. In our second part of the Cult Classic Quarterly series, Kevin Bird takes a closer look at what continues to fascinate audiences about this movie.
A crashing jet engine, time travel and a giant ominous rabbit – Donnie Darko is an absurd film. It defies any sort of conventional filmic structure and contains a fragmented collage of various tropes. It combines sci-fi, horror, and psychological mystery with a coming-of-age story. Like most cult classics, it initially flopped at the box office, grossing only $110,000 in its opening weekend. It was only afterwards, through word of mouth, that the film rapidly gained attention and attracted a devout following and a reputation as an endearing, ‘must watch’ indie project. A quick Google search reveals countless theories and explanations for the convoluted plot and disjointed narrative. It is a film that offers endless possibilities for the viewer to fester over. But beyond the complications of the plot, there is plenty more that appeals to audiences.
This is a film obsessed with the passage of time. During their first encounter, Frank (the man dressed in the horrifying rabbit costume) tells Donnie (played by a baby-faced Jake Gyllenhaal) that the world will end in precisely 28 days, 6 hours, 42 minutes, and 12 seconds. Likewise, the film has 28 scenes and notably, was also shot over a period of 28 days. Furthermore, the time period of the story is particularly significant in terms of understanding its popularity. Set in 1988 in a cosy Reagan-era suburban America, it appealed to those who faced the unknown turn of the millennium when it was released, and offers a nostalgic look back at a decade that everyone has fallen for.
For the majority of cult films, there is a tendency to drift away from the traditional structure and content of mainstream film, resisting the formulaic constraints of Hollywood and experimenting with the medium on the whole. Donnie Darko is no different; it is the ultimate gross inversion of the familiar suburban American Dream ideal. The protagonist represents the angst and uncertainty around growing up and navigating the cliques of high school. This is personified by Donnie’s perception of reality. He sees things that no one else can (wormholes and Frank included) and he is truly isolated from his peers as his inner and outer worlds collide.
Much has been said about the significance of the tangent universe and the Philosophy of Time Travel book and how they might bring a coherent meaning to the storyline. Donnie’s fervent interest in the mysterious book, given to him by a unhinged neighbour, accelerates the chain of events that leads to his quest to save the world from destruction. However, such a focalised view is missing the point. There is no conventional ‘meaning’ to the film, it is open to all sorts of outlandish speculation (which has added to its cult status). What the motif of time travel does add is the sense of fragmentation that comes from the attempt to form an identity, particularly for young people.
Like many cult films before it, Donnie Darko’s main following consists of young people. In line with this, the director decides to unleash the inner fears of youth and forces them to collide with reality itself. What is created from this is perhaps the most honest depiction of alienated youth in Hollywood yet. It is a world devoid of meaning and overflowing with ambiguity and complications. Donnie Darko depicts isolation at its most grotesque and extreme and takes a bold step forward by showing the nightmarish side of youth in American cinema.
Donnie Darko is a film that will undoubtedly withstand the test of time and retain its place as a cult classic for many more years to come.
