i think people have different interpretations of this film. i sort of relate it to the movie 'jacob's ladder' about the split seconds before death, what the mind goes through, where it goes just then. about how a lifetime can occur in just a click, and how an infinite number of possible universes/life paths awaits us at every turn.

I love this movie is great.

Superfan1984 said:

Which movie, 214? Donnie Darko or Jacob's Ladder?

Really dug it.

Superfan1984 said:

Ok, so, I have a question about this movie. I get what it is about, the time travel, the tangent Universe, etc. but what makes absolutely no sense to me is that, if he were going to end up back in his bed getting crushed by the engine- WHY did Frank come and get him in the FIRST place? I think this movie is overrated. I actually saw a guy at the bookstore a few weeks ago with a tattoo of Frank the bunny on his calf and I asked him the same question. He just looked at me like I was too stupid to get it. Can someone who's seen this movie please explain that to me? thank you

Richard Kelly's films are like David Lynch's: they are dreamlike, cinematic poems and there's no point in trying to rationalize everything because rationalization was not the director's intent. If u try u're missing the point. Just go with the flow.

As far as I'm concerned Donnie Darko is a masterpiece. Try the longer director's cut if u can get it, it doesn't explain anything more but it has delicious deleted scenes and it makes the movie even better!

[Edited 4/13/16 5:16am]

databank said:

Superfan1984 said:

Ok, so, I have a question about this movie. I get what it is about, the time travel, the tangent Universe, etc. but what makes absolutely no sense to me is that, if he were going to end up back in his bed getting crushed by the engine- WHY did Frank come and get him in the FIRST place? I think this movie is overrated. I actually saw a guy at the bookstore a few weeks ago with a tattoo of Frank the bunny on his calf and I asked him the same question. He just looked at me like I was too stupid to get it. Can someone who's seen this movie please explain that to me? thank you

Richard Kelly's films are like David Lynch's: they are dreamlike, cinematic poems and there's no point in trying to everything because rationalization was not the director's intent.

It was all aesthetic and pure beauty? "Cellar Door" ?

.

[Edited 4/13/16 6:50am]

Love love LOVE Donnie Darko. As for OP's question, basically what happens is that there's a glitch in the timeline and Donnie is the only one with the power to fix it. Several of the characters he interacts with in the movie (Frank, the girl who's name I can't remember, etc) are actually people who died in the timewarp and so are "sentenced" to basically assist him in fixing the glitch. There's a site I found that explained it all in pretty great detail, you should look it up.

Either way, AMAZING movie, and I've seen it several times but only just really clicked with it a couple months ago.