Donnie Darko: The Director's Cut

Critics Consensus

Retaining the hauntingly enigmatic atmosphere of its prior incarnation, Donnie Darko: The Director's Cut offers a more satisfyingly realized sense of mythology and theme.

90%

TOMATOMETER

Total Count: 42

90%

Audience Score

User Ratings: 12,672
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Movie Info

In a funny, moving and distinctly mind-bending journey through suburban America, one extraordinary but disenchanted teenage is about to take Time's Arrow for a ride. October 2nd, 1988: just another ordinary day in Donnie Darko's teen-aged existence. He's taken his medication, watched Dukakis & Bush debate, and had dinner with the family. Then an outrageous accident occurs, which just misses claiming Donnie's life. As Donnie begins to explore what it means to still be alive, and in short order to be in love, he uncovers secrets of the universe that five him a tempting power to alter time and destiny. From 26 year-old first time writer-director Richard Kelly comes the provocative DONNIE DARKO, a genre busting fable that blasts the American suburban drama into a wildly imaginative realm of time travel, alternative universes and the manipulation of one's fate. But at the core of DONNIE DARKO is the simple story of a boy trying to make a stand in a lonely, chaotic world - and discovering that every little thing he does counts on a cosmic scale. Originally screened at the 2001 Sundance Film Festival, DONNIE DARKO became one of the festival's most talked-about and debated films, praised for blending sci-fi fantasy with an original vision of a modern suburbia teetering on the edge of dread and disaster. The question became: what is DONNIE DARKO? Is it a look back at the underbelly of the Ferris Bueller and Back to the Future era? Or is it a wild journey into multiple realities and multiple outcomes? Is it the story of an increasingly cynical, hypocritical society on a crash-course with apocalypse? Or is it a fairy-tale about a teen hero who changes the world around him? Is this the cosmic death knell of the Regan Era, or a portrait of a troubled community redeemed by the hand of God? The surprising answer is that DONNIE DARKO is all of these - a deep inquiry into the recent past and the possibilities for the future all wrapped up in the story of a teenager unlike any you've met before. Writer/director Richard Kelly purposefully wanted DONNIE DARKO to be vast enough to mean different things to different people. But he offers this guidance for the mind-blowing ride ahead: "Maybe it's the story of Holden Caulfield, resurrected in 1988 by the spirit of Philip K. Dick, who was always spinning yarns about schizophrenia and drug abuse breaking the barriers of space and time. Or it's a black comedy foreshadowing the impact of the 1988 presidential election, which is really the best way to explain it. But first and foremost, I wanted the film to be a piece of social satire that needs to be experienced and digested several times." DONNIE DARKO - THE DIRECTOR'S CUT features 20 minutes of never-before-seen footage; new & enhanced visual effects and new music. -- (C) Newmarket Films
  • Rating:
    R (adult situations/language, violence)
  • Genre:
    Drama, Horror, Science Fiction & Fantasy
  • In Theaters:
     wide
  • On Disc/Streaming:
  • Box Office:
    $538,574
  • Runtime:
  • Studio:
    Newmarket Films

Cast

Daveigh Chase
Drew Barrymore
Jake Gyllenhaal
Jena Malone
Maggie Gyllenhaal
Noah Wyle
Patrick Swayze
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Critic Reviews for Donnie Darko: The Director's Cut

All Critics (42) | Top Critics (11) | Fresh (38) | Rotten (4)

View All Critic Reviews (42)

Audience Reviews for Donnie Darko: The Director's Cut

  • Nov 08, 2014
    Richard Kelly revisits his cult thriller Donnie Darko with a Director's Cut that tries to offer a clearer vision. Inserting excerpts from "The Philosophy of Time Travel," the story gains a more structured format; as sections of the narrative are categorized by the element of tangent universe time travel that are being focused on. There are also hints of an observer that is overseeing this correction of the tangent universe. But these observer scenes feel out of place and clash stylistically with the tone and look of the rest of the film. Another unfortunate change in this cut is the soundtrack, which is less evocative and organic. Also, the addition of more dialog and voice-over scenes for the Frank character causes him to lose some of his mystique. But for the most part, the performances and storytelling are especially strong and compelling. Donnie Darko: The Director's Cut succeeds at clearing up some of the ambiguity and mystery of the theatrical version, yet in doing so part of the film's allure is lost.
    Dann M Super Reviewer
  • Apr 17, 2011
    It might be longer, and may only have more scenes than the original, but oddly enough, it comes nowhere close to being as good as the theatrical cut.
    Bryce I Super Reviewer
  • Dec 19, 2010
    Quite a revelation. A must-see.
    Wildaly M Super Reviewer
  • Jun 24, 2010
    I love the directors cut even more then the theatrical version. this movie is funny, wierd, orginal and much more. this is one of the best films ever made. A
    Richard C Super Reviewer
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