Donnie Darko

kano476 · 06-11-2003 12:48am #1

I saw this movie a few days ago and I have to say it confussed me a hell of a lot! I pretty much got the story right up until the end when it takes one of those twists and you find out he was dead. So did none of the events previously in the film happen? Or was he actually dead all along? If so then I dont get the part about him being able to see the future and see the guy (the bunny suit fella) he kills! And if he was actually dead from the start, where the hell did the planes engine come from beacause in the rest of the movie it came from the one his mom and sister were on when the end of the world was happening.

if anyone has a clue of waht the hell im on about then please help me clear up this!

gandalf · 06-11-2003 1:04am

Do a search on Donnie Darko there are some excellent threads on this forum about it.

Damn fine film imho.

Gandalf.

Makaveli · 06-11-2003 1:48am

And use spoiler tags.

BANZAI_RUNNER · 06-11-2003 4:17am

ok, basically he was not dead from the start
The planes engine came from the future.....i dont know, dont ask
The world was going to end in 30 days , but only for him
The rabbit was a not part of his timeline , thats why he didnt die at start.
the 30 days were for him to sort things out in his life.
and the rest of the explanation requires a vast knowledge of quantum physics and temporal dynamics, which I dont have, so in closing.............watch it again ......and again.......and again like i did and then draw your own conclusions, i think thats what the writer intended us to do :ninja:

ixoy · 06-11-2003 10:34am

Want an explanation? Get the DVD and read Roberta Sparrow's book, which is on the DVD. That explains a lot more!

dangerman · 06-11-2003 3:01pm

this is an amazing film.

just do a search, there's a lot of info out there.

and listen to the directors (richard kelly? cant remember if thats the right name) commentary on the dvd, he pretty much explains it as he talks through.

Grom · 06-11-2003 3:05pm

I thought I would clear a few things up.It has been about 6 months since I saw this film but however I will try to jog my memory

Darko had a premenition if you will.He saw what was going to happen to him before it happened.

The reason his mother and sister was on that plane was a direct result fo what donny darko had done.His mom went on that plane due to the fact that darko burnt down the house and prono was found there for the regular teacher couldnt go and his mother had to.Donny darko seen this and hence at the end of the film he choose not to take these paths and stay.

Its more a film of twisted reality premenitions and paths to choose however it is still ****ing quality

mr_angry · 06-11-2003 3:18pm

Go to the website: www.donniedarko.com . If you can find your way through the puzzles, it gives you a look at Roberta Sparrow's book, which explains a lot.

The basis of it is that by avoiding the falling jet engine in the first place, a tangent universe was created (an alternative universe, with a very short lifetime). The collapse of this universe is inevitable, yet the people in it will do anything to ensure they survive. Its the job of Frank the rabbit to ensure that everything is set back to normal.

All round, pretty confusing, but a great film.

Elmo · 06-11-2003 7:00pm

The reason his mother and sister was on that plane was a direct result fo what donny darko had done.His mom went on that plane due to the fact that darko burnt down the house and prono was found there for the regular teacher couldnt go and his mother had to.Donny darko seen this and hence at the end of the film he choose not to take these paths and stay.

Well was he right to stay if he new what was going to happen?

1. He did the right thing burning down the house
AS IT LED TO THE ARREST
2. Or did he do the right thing by not leaving his bed and saving the rabbits life.

Quatre Mains · 07-11-2003 4:25am

Originally posted by mr_angry4
The basis of it is that by avoiding the falling jet engine in the first place, a tangent universe was created (an alternative universe, with a very short lifetime). The collapse of this universe is inevitable, yet the people in it will do anything to ensure they survive. Its the job of Frank the rabbit to ensure that everything is set back to normal.

- sounds as good as anything esle I've heard. But the fact that he just stays in the bed laughing still confuses me - is it a conscious suicide attempt and he's laughing at his discovery that death is the answer to all his problems, or is he just happy that everything worked out ok for the others?

Neil

Andrew Duffy · 07-11-2003 11:29am

At the end, everyone is "remembering" events that happened to them in the tangental universe (in the future!); Frank holds his eye, the pervo guy is crying, etc. I think Donnie is happy because he is remembering meeting his girlfriend and giving her a seeing to at the party.
Alternatively, if you assume that Donnie knows exactly what already happened in the tangent universe (albeit in the future), and knows that if he gets out of bed he'll create another one and have to deal with that.
By reading the book on the web or DVD you also find out that Frank is just a normal kid, but by dying in the tangent universe he became able to move back and forth through time. He was chosen, as was Donnie, to ensure that the plane crash happened so that the normal universe could continue to exist.

Donnie Darko

Comments