The original 'Donnie Darko' movie turned out to be a 'cult classic' and slowly gathered more and more momentum as the years went by. It's still totally watchable, even if you don't entirely understand it! It's weird, twisted and totally surreal science fiction about time travel and a revolting bunnysuit-clad man who warns a teenager in the eighties that the world is about to come to an end in a few days time. Yeah, I never said it was an easy watch and, if you're a fan of David Lynch's films, this should be for you.
However... and it's a BIG however, it's 'sequel' (in name only) just doesn't deliver. Its biggest problem is that it doesn't add anything new. In fact, you could almost consider it a 'remake.' It's story follows the original beat for beat, only with a sense of hollowness about it. Despite the actress who played Donnie's younger sister 'Samantha' (hence the 'S. Darko' title) returning, now much older, and experiencing the weird and sinister world her older brother once did, this one just didn't capture the same magic.It's certainly not the actors' fault this film doesn't succeed. They do their best with what's given to them. It's worth noting that this isn't written or directed by the man (Richard Kelly) who did the first one. Therefore it lacks the original's sense of visual style and flair, meaning the whole atmosphere just isn't there, along with the classic eighties soundtrack that 'Donnie Darko' possessed.
All the 'weirdness' is just copied - seemingly - for the sake of it, as if it's desperately trying to be 'out there' and 'deep and meaningful,' but really just coming off as bland and incomprehensible. Yes, the original was odd and many people ended up wondering what it was all about, but even if you didn't understand 'Donnie Darko' you felt like it was an experience worth investing your time in and it was definitely entertaining. My advice: just stick to the original.
6/10 Should probably keep you awake if Freddy Krueger was haunting your nights
No comments:
Post a Comment