Ami Arcos: Donnie Darko

Film Research

The film starts with Donnie Darko, a troubled teen with mental issues, riding his bike as the sun sets.

Donnie has dinner with his family and his older sister reveals that his has not been taking his medication. Resulting in a riff between him and his family.

Donnie has a vision of a sinister figure in a rabbit costume. The figure known as 'Frank' reveals that the world will end in 28 days. During this encounter Donnie sleepwalks out of the house avoiding death when a plane engine mysteriously falls on his house directly on his room.

Donnie starts spiraling and starts seeing the dark rabbit figure more as his visions become more frequent. He starts therapy sessions. His therapist sure that Donnie is experiencing hallucinations due to schizophrenia.

He starts to act up a lot at school as he experiences darker visions. Rebels against a motivational speaker.

His visons cause him to engage in reckless activities like flooding the school. Little by little people in his life start to feel the negative effects of Donnie's actions.

While watching a movie with his new girlfriend, Gretchen, Donnie sees Frank and asks him to take off his rabbit disguise. Revealing a man with a bloodied eye. Frank tells Donnie to burn the house of the motivational speaker. The fire reveals the truth about the speaker as child abuse material is discovered in his home.

Donnie's mother and younger sister leave town. Donnie and his older sister Elizabeth, throw a Halloween party. During which he leaves with Gretchen only to be attacked by school bullies. During the altercation a car runs over Gretchen, resulting in her death.

The driver is revealed to be Frank, Donnie's sisters boyfriend who sports the same macabre rabbit costume. In a fit of rage, Donnie shoots him in the eye, killing him.

Taking his girlfriend's body, he returns home to find a vortex forming, he later goes to a cliffside and observes a vortex rip a plane with is mother and younger sister apart.

Events leading up to the doomsday start to replay and Donnie time travels back to the day the engine fell on his room. This time he is in the room when it falls, ultimately killing him.

Because of his death, everything that happened in those 28 days are no longer real All the people that Donnie affected become unaffected. Gretchen rides her bike and recalls never meeting him.

Essay

Donnie Darko is the story about a troubled teen who struggles with mental health issues and behavioral problems. He lives with his family but feels isolated and alienated. He stops taking his medication. One night he gets a vision from a sinister looking rabbit who goes by 'Frank'. Frank tells Donnie that the world will end in 28 days. Donnie wakes up in a field and later finds out that part of a plane engine fell on his house, specifically his room, essentially escaping death. After that incident, Donnie starts experiencing more disturbing dark visions. He starts therapy. His therapist expresses concern over his growing hallucinations and is positive that Donnie has schizophrenia. He experiences bizarre incidents that blur the line between reality and fantasy. He starts acting more erratically in school and starts a romantic relationship with Gretchen. He engages in reckless acts like flooding the school and burning down the house of a motivational speaker. Donnie and his sister Elizabeth, throw a Halloween party. Gretchen comes over and reveals that her mom is missing and is worried. Donnie and her make love and later leave the party only to be confronted by the school bullies. While in an altercation with the bullies, a car drives erratically and ends up running over Gretchen, killing her. The driver is revealed to be Frank, Elizabeth’s boyfriend who coincidentally also wears the rabbit mask and costume. Donnie shoots Frank in the eye, killing him. He takes Gretchen's body and heads home to find a vortex forming. Events that have happened in the last 28 days start replaying. Eventually leading back to the day the engine fell on his house. This time the engine kills Donnie. Leaving all the people who have been affected by his actions unaffected.

This film deals with a lot of concepts of existentialism and is very thought provoking in nature. The dark elements and dark scenes add to the effect. There are times where the lighting is too dark and scenes are hard to see. The film uses a lot of cool tone colors, as well as some stills that add to the mystery. There are still shots throughout the movie and quick cuts to add emphasize on the thrill. The use of special effects strengthen the concept of Donnie’s spiral into darkness and visual hallucinations. The film also relies on dialogue and the camera movements to convey the message of dissociation. Donnie's experience with isolation seems to dissipate towards the end as he falls in love with his girlfriend and is no longer afraid to die alone. He scarifies himself at the end to ultimately save the people he loves the most like his girlfriend and family. The theme of destruction leads to creation is heavily emphasized.

Words to Idea + Thesis Statement

5 words: Dark, Psychological, unsettling, mysterious, thought-provoking

Donnie Darko, a troubled teen, gets a dark vision from a sinister looking rabbit named frank. Frank tells Donnie that the world will end in twenty-eight days. Throughout the film, Donnie gets alienated from his loved ones and society as a whole as he deals with mental issues. Donnie spirals into darkness and questions what is reality and imaginary. He embarks on a journey of free will and existentialism as a whole.