Ahoy, squirts! Quint here with a review of the much anticipated (at least by people like me) director's cut of DONNIE DARKO, a film that I'm sure Richard Kelly made around my personal fetishes... I mean, it has both Jena Malone and Drew Barrymore, two girls that make this seaman's red go up, if you know what I mean... No, not that... I mean I have huge crushes on them both! Especially Drew... ever since I was a kid and saw a TV special she hosted on the 25th Birthday of Disneyland... Man, I loveses me my Drew Barrymore!
Sorry, got a little distracted there... Without any more lust-filled ramblings, here's the review!!!
Ahoy Quint,
I'm a long time reader, a first time contributer, a part-time video store employee and, for the three weeks that started last Friday, the 21st, a full-time SIFF moviegoer.
I've been in movie theaters for more hours this last week that I've been at home, so now seemed like a good time to pause and take accounts of just what I've seen.
For now, I give you my reactions to "Donnie Darko-The Director's Cut." I saw this yesterday at the press screening (which was open to full-series passholders), and I must first apologize to the Seattle Times revewer who was sitting directly behind me and was sprayed with pieces of grey matter when my mind was completely blown all over again.
It seemed unlikely that Richard Kelly would be able to improve on the stunning mix of regan-era teenage angst, superheros and hard sci-fi. And in fact the changes he did make are, for the most part, only cosmetic in nature. We do not learn anything that was not already in the movie or in the deleted scenes and other features on the DVD. Nor are the events as they occured in the original movie any different in the director's cut (no upbeat alternative ending, thank god.) *Nonetheless, spoilers below(?)*
The obvious changes are as follows: Pretty much all deleted and extended scenes have been reintegrated into the film. Also, some of Donnie's visions have been recut with better articulated editing and visual effects including a "Requium for a Dream"-style dialating eyeball that reacurrs several times. Likewise, our final trip through the wormhole is almost completely redone with a video-screen motif and a liquid tunnel effect replacing the "movie in rewind" sequence of the original. The video-monitor look of this sequence for some reason seemed to signal to me a more sinister involvement by the "FAA" guys than I had previously thought.
Some scenes are now preceded by glimpses of pages of the "Philosophy of Time travel" book that is given to Donnie and explains some of the things that are happening. All of this text is on the DVD and the movie's official web site, but now new viewers can hopefully understand the ins and outs of Kelly's "Tangential Universe" concepts more deeply upon their first viewing of the film.
*Spoilers End*
Like many people, I watched this movie when it came out on DVD in 2002 and was quickly becoming a legitimate cult hit. Since then the film has made up for its disapointing theatrical run (the weekends before and after 9/11/01) by grossing over $10 Million on video with no marketing to speak of. Even so, for the vast majoriety of its fans, "Donnie Darko" has been an exclusively home video experience.
Amazingly, Kelly has accomplished quite a feat, making his movie more accessible while still bringing it closer to his original vision. Still, the greatest thing about a theatrical release for DD-DC is that it would provide both fans of the movie and new viewers a chance to see a six-foot bunnyrabbit, projected thirty-feet high, looming over us as if accusing us of all the apathy, ignorance, and "negative energy" we have ever been responsible for in our miserable little lives. Boo-Ya! I say, and bring on the "Fuck-Ass!"
Call me Gooter The Bad Mamma-Jamma.
