...Bizarre. I... can't quite, um, figure out what everyone likes about this movie. It wasn't what I expected, which I like. However, this is largely because it was compared to the "Butterfly Effect" as its superior. I disagree with both counts: "Butterfly Effect" is the better movie, but there is very little in common between the two. Besides that they are creepy and involve time.
"Donnie Darko" has "mastered" the art of subtle "psycho"logical thrilling. It has also "mastered" the art of bullshit. It claims to be very thought provoking and deep, but it's really just a hoax. It's pretending to be deep by being angst-y. But in the end, everything is pointless. Which, I suppose, might have been the point... while I appreciate the irony, I still don't like the film.
The story is pretty tightly woven and well knit. It is tight, makes sense (for the most part) as it progresses, but it is revealed to have a hundred loose ends around the frayed edges which it simply doesn't tie in. It's best not to think about the mechanics of the movie too much, really, because they aren't explained. Movies involving time-travel have a hard time with consistency and not making a fool of themselves through some paradox and this is no exception.
The characters are a bit bland as well, though they were played well by really recognizable actors. The closer the film gets to the end, the more bizarre they become and the more pointless their roles become. It was overall disappointing. The more movies of Jake Gyllenhaal's I watch, the longer I am waiting for one to be really good. On the contrary, I am becoming more impressed with Maggie Gyllenhaal's roles; she was more fun to watch in this movie.
Despite all my criticism, the movie was a little enjoyable. It did creep me out a bit, so it succeeded it what seems to be it's primary objective. If you like subtle psycholocial thrilling, it's a very good movie.
If you like a movie that's more polished, it's not that brilliant.
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