History Film / DonnieDarko

''Donnie Darko'' is a 2001 American ScienceFiction PsychologicalThriller film written and directed by Creator/RichardKelly. Creator/JakeGyllenhaal stars in the title role, with Creator/JenaMalone, Creator/DrewBarrymore, Creator/MaryMcDonnell, Creator/KatharineRoss, Creator/PatrickSwayze, Creator/NoahWyle, Creator/SethRogen and Creator/MaggieGyllenhaal in the supporting cast.

* {{Deconstruction}}: Of coming-of-age movies, time travel, and the concept of alternate universes. What happens when an alternate universe is abandoned? Does it keep going, cause a TimeCrash, or more? Most importantly, [[ExpendableAlternateUniverse what happens to the people living in said universe?]]

* SetWrongWhatOnceWentRight: In a particularly dark version of this, Donnie has to [[spoiler:let himself be impaled by debris from the falling jet engine]], as by not [[spoiler:dying when the engine hit the house]], Donnie has doomed the universe.

* SetRightWhatOnceWentWrong: In a particularly dark version of this, Donnie has to [[spoiler:let himself be impaled by debris from the falling jet engine]], as by not [[spoiler:dying when the engine hit the house]], Donnie has doomed the universe.

* DepartmentOfRedundancyDepartment: Donnie refers to Frank as a "6-feet tall bunny rabbit".

'''Frank:''' [-Why are you wearing that stupid man suit?-]

''Donnie Darko'' is a 2001 ScienceFiction PsychologicalThriller film written and directed by Creator/RichardKelly. Creator/JakeGyllenhaal stars as the title character, with Creator/JenaMalone, Creator/DrewBarrymore, Creator/MaryMcDonnell, Creator/KatharineRoss, Creator/PatrickSwayze, Creator/NoahWyle, Creator/SethRogen, and Creator/MaggieGyllenhaal in supporting roles.

On October 2, 1988, troubled teenager Donnie Darko encounters a figure in a demonic rabbit costume while sleepwalking. The figure introduces himself as "Frank" and tells Donnie that the world will end in 28 days, 6 hours, 42 minutes and 12 seconds, moments before a jet engine crashes into Donnie's bedroom. Donnie credits Frank with saving his life by causing him to sleepwalk out of the house, and begins to do his bidding while gradually trying to uncover the strange events around him, which [[MindScrew may or may not]] be related to TimeTravel, an [[AnotherDimension alternate dimension]], and/or his worsening [[TheSchizophreniaConspiracy schizophrenia]] in ways that still bear interpretation, analysis and confusion to this day.

[[quoteright:300:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/donnie_darko_poster_1.jpg]]

On October 2, 1988, troubled teenager Donnie Darko sees a figure in a demonic rabbit costume while sleepwalking. The figure introduces himself as "Frank" and tells Donnie that the world will end in 28 days, 6 hours, 42 minutes and 12 seconds, moments before a jet engine crashes into Donnie's bedroom. Donnie credits Frank with saving his life by causing him to sleepwalk out of the house, and begins to do his bidding while gradually trying to uncover the strange events around him, which [[MindScrew may or may not]] be related to TimeTravel, an [[AnotherDimension alternate dimension]], and/or his worsening [[TheSchizophreniaConspiracy schizophrenia]] in ways that still bear interpretation, analysis and confusion to this day.

''Donnie Darko'' is a 2001 ScienceFiction PsychologicalThriller film written and directed by Creator/RichardKelly. Creator/JakeGyllenhaal stars as the title character, with Creator/JenaMalone, Creator/DrewBarrymore, Creator/MaryMcDonnell, Katharine Ross, Creator/PatrickSwayze, Creator/NoahWyle, Creator/SethRogen, and Creator/MaggieGyllenhaal in supporting roles.

** Donnie mentions the [=DeLorean=] from ''Film/BackToTheFuture'' (also stating that he enjoys the movie itself for its "futuristic" look), and both movies have the number 88 as an important plot point.

* SmallReferencePools: Most of the music in the film is NothingButHits, and as soon as TimeTravel is brought up, Donnie references [[Film/BackToTheFuture the infamous DeLorean]].

* BungledHypnotism: Donnie's psychiatrist uses hypnotism to investigate [[AllTherapistsAreMuggles what she thinks]] are his paranoid hallucinations. One of her questions causes him to [[HormoneAddledTeenager fixate on his sexual fantasies]] instead, forcing her to wake him up in a hurry when he [[ADateWithRosiePalms starts to reach into his pants]].

''Donnie Darko'' is a 2001 ScienceFiction PsychologicalThriller film written and directed by Richard Kelly. Creator/JakeGyllenhaal stars as the title character, with Creator/JenaMalone, Creator/DrewBarrymore, Creator/MaryMcDonnell, Katharine Ross, Creator/PatrickSwayze, Creator/NoahWyle, Creator/SethRogen, and Creator/MaggieGyllenhaal in supporting roles.

On October 2, 1988, troubled teenager Donnie Darko sees a figure in a demonic rabbit costume while sleepwalking. The figure introduces himself as "Frank" and tells Donnie that the world will end in 28 days, 6 hours, 42 minutes and 12 seconds moments before a jet engine crashes into Donnie's bedroom. Donnie credits Frank with saving his life by causing him to sleepwalk out of the house, and begins to do his bidding while gradually trying to uncover the strange events around him, which [[MindScrew may or may not]] be related to TimeTravel, an [[AnotherDimension alternate dimension]], and/or his worsening [[TheSchizophreniaConspiracy schizophrenia]] in ways that still bear interpretation, analysis and confusion to this day.

* RomanticRibbing: After a terse argument with Donnie, his mother, Rose Darko goes to her husband Eddie, who demonstrates a downplayed version of this trope by reassuring and teasing her at the same time.

* SecretRoom: Guided by Frank, Darko sets [[spoiler:Jim Cunningham's house on fire. The firefighters later discover a secret room in the house behind a burned-down painting where Cunningham kept child pornography material. He gets arrested the next day.]]

** If you haven't seen ''Film/{{Harvey}}'', then much of the situational humor will fall flat. A [[InvisibleToNormals big white rabbit that no one can see]] as referenced by a hallucinating nice guy [[spoiler:and [[NotSoImaginaryFriend may or may not be real]].]]

** The scene where Donnie, Gretchen and Donnie's other two friends ride bikes after the Halloween party was Richard Kelly's tribute to one of his favourite films ''Film/ETTheExtraTerrestrial''.

* SophisticatedAsHell: When a political debate brings up Elizabeth's plans to not have kids until she's at least thirty,[[WhiteAngloSaxonProtestant Rose Darko]] calmly swirls her wine at dinner and asks her daughter if she believes Dukakis will protect the nation long enough for her to "squeeze one out".

* TheStoryThatNeverWas: [[spoiler:In the finale, Donnie goes back in time ([[MindScrew somehow]]) and allows himself to be crushed by the falling jet engine that had missed him in the beginning in order to change the sequence of events that led to his hallucinations driving him to commit arson, murder, and vandalism, his girlfriend to get hit by a car, and his mother and little sister to possibly die in a plane crash.]]

* SuburbanGothic: Donnie unveils some of the town's dark secrets but [[spoiler:when he dies,]] all of this is undone and life carries on as it always has.

* TwoDecadesBehind: Reportedly, the movie was set in TheEighties because that's when Richard Kelly grew up and he wouldn't be able to write a coming of age story in the 2000's due to lack of a frame of reference.

* WholePlotReference: To ''Film/TheLastTemptationOfChrist'' -- which is no doubt why it's in the movie. [[spoiler: Both films are about the protagonist seeing a happy life that they cannot achieve, as death is coming for them one way or the other, and realizing that if they accept their fate it will be better for everyone else.]]

* WholePlotReference: To ''Film/TheLastTemptationOfChrist'' -- which is no doubt why it's in the movie. [[spoiler: Both films are about the protagonist seeing a happy life that they cannot achieve, as death is coming for them one way or the other, and realizing that if they accept their fate it will be better for everyone else.]]

''Donnie Darko'' is a 2001 sci-fi psychological thriller film written and directed by Richard Kelly starring Creator/JakeGyllenhaal as the title character, with Creator/JenaMalone, Creator/DrewBarrymore, Creator/MaryMcDonnell, Katharine Ross, Creator/PatrickSwayze, Creator/NoahWyle, Creator/SethRogen, and Creator/MaggieGyllenhaal in supporting roles.

On October 2, 1988, troubled teenager Donnie Darko sees a figure in a demonic rabbit costume while sleepwalking. The figure introduces himself as "Frank" and tells him that the world will end in 28 days, 6 hours, 42 minutes and 12 seconds moments before a jet engine crashes into Donnie's bedroom. Donnie credits Frank with saving his life by causing him to sleepwalk out of the house, and begins to do his bidding while gradually trying to uncover the strange events around him, which [[MindScrew may or may not]] be related to TimeTravel, an [[AnotherDimension alternate dimension]], and/or his worsening [[TheSchizophreniaConspiracy schizophrenia]] in ways that still bear interpretation, analysis and confusion to this day.

* GoOutWithASmile: [[spoiler:Donnie laughs hysterically before he dies, presumably out of relief that he has fulfilled his role as the Living Receiver. The original script even included an image of Donnie after the jet engine kills him: atop the engine, impaled by a wooden beam from the bedroom floor, [[BloodFromTheMouth bleeding from the mouth]], but with his face left in an expression resembling a smile.]]

* DepartmentOfRedundancyDepartment: When asked by Ms. Pomeroy who Frank is, Donnie responds, "A six-foot-tall '''bunny rabbit'''". Dr. Thurman also refers to Frank with the same epithet when talking to Rose.