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Occasionally a film will grasp the communal conscious- ness, off ering insight into the way in which we behave towards each other, as well as ourselves. The most eff ective of these films utilize dispa- rate forms and ideas that cut across boundaries of division such as genre and audience. Richard Kelly's debut feature Donnie Darko (2001) is a stunning hybrid, occupying genres as eclectic as science fiction, coming-of-age drama and social satire. As well as being intelligently written, ingenious- ly structured, well-performed and dramatically engaging, the film is technically beauti- ful. Well-shot and making excellent use of the frame, the film, especially Kelly's extended director's cut, re- leased some three years after the original theatrical version, weaves subtle but striking visual eff ects and science fic- tion themes seamlessly into a particularly organic character- based drama. It is arguably for these reasons, as well as the film's exemplary use of 1980s period music, that the film has gained cult status and is viewed by many as a contemporary classic.
From the outset, Donnie Darko establishes itself as a period film with a social comment to make about the dysfunction that lay under the surface of middle-class, suburban America during the Reagan/Bush era of neo- conservative politics. The film opens with a dining table con- versation about the upcoming 1988 presidential election, with Donnie's sister Elizabeth firmly arguing for candidate Michael Dukakis, against patriarch Eddie who favours George Bush senior.
This opposition between left and right wing politics is maintained amongst almost all of the adult characters in the film. Personal growth guru Jim Cunningham and his entourage, headed by the bird-like gym teacher Kitty Farmer, are portrayed as selfish, right-wing capital- ists, contrasted against the younger and freer think- ing English and Science teachers, Ms Pomeroy and Professor Monnitoff . These characters are portrayed as being more open and in touch with the younger generation, providing the students with Graham Greene's The Destructors as an English text and ruminat- ing with Donnie on the pos- sibilities of time travel.
The adult characters in the community and the insti- tutions to which they are tethered (school, family) cre- ate a platform through which Donnie is able to channel his own emerging identity and personal...