Donnie Darko

Donnie Darko with its compelling storyline gives raise to different interpretations, every time I watch it. The movie is tagged as “drama, mystery, and science-fiction” by IMDB. How well does the movie fulfill these genres?

The first time I watched the movie, I only appreciated the science-fiction side of the movie. I saw it as a movie exploring the theme of parallel universes and time travel. The movie was portraying the events that occurred in two different universes. There are multiple universes where the same incidents are happening at different times, that is, if these incidents from different universes are to be mapped on a single time scale. The creation of a worm hole connecting two universes, sends across Frank and an engine from a plane that crashes from one universe to the other, effecting changes in the other universe. This creation of worm hole repeats itself endlessly and the character Frank in the form of bunny rabbit, who travels to another universe through a worm hole, affects the incidents in the other universe by manipulating Donnie Darko to be inside his room. The official interpretation of the how the concept of time travel is dealt in the movie is different and is based on extra material outside of the movie and is beyond the scope of this review.  Later on, when I watched the movie for a second time, I felt that the concept of time travel was just a theme used to explore the philosophical concept of the existences of multiple realities.

There are multiple realities existing in the universe. The existences of these realities are a result of exercising our freewill. We have a choice to act in a certain way and powered by this choice we can change the course of things that happen in this world. Donnie has the choice to walk out of his room before the plane crashes and stay alive to kill Frank, see his first girlfriend die, burn the house of John Cunningham (the police finds paedo-pornography in his house when the house burns and they arrest John) or die. His death before these incidents take place would would mean that he would not kill Frank, his girlfriend may not die (she dies because she accompanies him to Roberta Sparrow’s house), and John Cunningham will not be arrested. Frank is nothing but an instrument in helping Donnie to exercise his freewill.  Does the movie have only philosophical underpinnings? If so, then it could have explored the concept much more deeply. For instance, it only looks at the freewill exercised by Donnie. Though Frank is instrumental in convincing Donnie to choose, Frank never chooses. It looks more like he is ‘destined’ to do it. As I watched the movie again, I felt the movie was not looking at the abstract philosophical concept of reality and the power to change reality through freewill, but at much more concrete issues.

The movie was dealing with the anxieties of a teenager who is feeling very lonely and afraid of accepting it. He is misunderstood by his family and some of his teachers. His ideas are radical and finds himself very removed from the society. He is further disturbed when Roberta Sparrow, a senile woman, whispers in his ears that every creature on this earth dies alone. The fact that one must die alone haunts him more than the fact that he feels alone in the world. In the end of the movie, he overcomes his fear to be alone and bravely meets death. His feeling of loneliness is bought out very beautifully in the song “Mad World”. I interpret the song the following way. Although there are familiar faces (family) around him, he can only see them racing through their lives and in the process making themselves miserable. He goes to his school with expectations of meeting new friends and learning new things in life and is let down badly. After going through the trauma of trying to be not alone he attains the maturity to be contended with death. For the lines from the song are ‘and I find it kind of funny, I find it kind of sad. These dreams in which I'm dying, are the best I’ve ever had’.

The movie at its face value appears to be a science fiction as it explicitly talks about the concept of time travel. Looking at the movie closely could make one think that it explores the abstract concept of reality and the manipulation of reality by using freewill. If so, then it had done it very simply. If it is viewed as a movie dealing with the anxieties of a teenager, then it had done well in exploring that topic. Therefore, I would say that the movie fits well into the categories of 'drama' and 'science fiction'. If we take the abstract philosophical concept of reality to fit the category of ‘mystery’, then it has not justifiably explored it.