Donnie Darko

this was a perfect balance of comedy and mystery / fantasy, while also highlighting (briefly) other issues. with the education system in this, you see how certain texts and literature (that are considered more graphic) are frowned upon as it may be detrimental a developing student’s mental state, and they are weirdly force-fed content that is ‘positive and uplifting’. donnie, understanding that there are nuances to the ‘love vs fear’ framework they are taught, is ostracised for mentioning this. it does feel intentional, as if it could be related to society, at least at a certain point in time. don’t get me wrong, he has his issues, but at least there seems to be a strange feeling of innocence in his honesty, which is very contradictory to how he actually speaks, i know. jake gyllenhaal, was unsurprisingly phenomenal, he plays the depressed high schooler really well, and i find his character acting as a sacrifice pretty symbolic. it was as if it serves as an awakening to those have memories of donnie, trying to push the school’s boundaries by going against the grain as aggressively as he did, and to follow suit. great soundtrack to top it all off. lovely lovely watch