Donnie Darko

This unnerving, electrifying film provides a unique take on the teen psyche in modern suburbia.

"...old woman, nicknamed the macabre Grandma Death, whispers into Donnie Darko's ear: “Every living creature on Earth dies alone.”..."

Feb. 22, 2002 Movie Review by Kimberley Jones

The Obsessive's Obsessive

Three former Austinites find Darryl Donaldson, 'Donnie Darko's '#1 Fan'

"..."How do I know that I'm Donnie Darko Fan No. 1? Because I am. So many..."

Feb. 25, 2005 Screens Feature by Spencer Parsons

The Box

Donnie Darko director Richard Kelly goes for full-fledged suspense in this studio thriller.

"...really, Kelly's terms, which, as in his breakthrough hit Donnie Darko, are infused with surreal, dreamlike, and philosophical elements...."

Nov. 13, 2009 Movie Review by Marc Savlov

Lucid Assembly

Richard Kelly on 'Donnie Darko: The Director's Cut'

"...legions of fans who latched onto Kelly's 2001 film, Donnie Darko, it makes perfect sense – maybe the only..."

Aug. 27, 2004 Screens Feature by Kimberley Jones

Brigsby Bear

A man searches for truth in nostalgia

"...James’ kidnapping case.) Viewers hoping for a foray into Donnie Darko territory will be disappointed by this shift in..."

Aug. 18, 2017 Movie Review by Steve Davis

Southland Tales

Six years after Donnie Darko, filmmaker Richard Kelly returns with this incomprehensible, self-indulgent mess of post-apocalyptic anxiety, political paranoia, and pop-culture references.

"...Dunn and Kevin Smith. It’s been six years since Donnie Darko came out of nowhere and introduced the independent-film..."

Nov. 16, 2007 Movie Review by Josh Rosenblatt

Domino

Attention-deficit filmmaking reaches a new pinnacle in Tony Scott's hyperstylized portrait of a bounty hunter as an iconic bad girl.

"...object. But what the film (with a script by Donnie Darko’s writer-director Richard Kelly) neglects is the creation of..."

Oct. 14, 2005 Movie Review by Marjorie Baumgarten

The Chumscrubber

Teens, suburbia, five sets of dysfunctional parents, and the suicide that looms over it all.

"...it hits the same beats as 2001’s cult hit Donnie Darko, only far less effectively. No 6-foot fanged rabbits..."

Aug. 5, 2005 Movie Review by Kimberley Jones

Hearing Voices

An institution unto itself, the DVD commentary track can provide insider dish, impressions of mommy, and the startling depths of one movie star's know-how (or lack thereof).

"...DONNIE DARKOTwentieth Century Fox Home Video, $14.98"This film kind of..."

Jan. 17, 2003 Screens Feature

Austin Film Festival: Mental Illness in the Movies

Donnie Darko, Fight Club scribes on the sanity spectrum

"...of sanity . John August (Big Fish), Richard Kelly (Donnie Darko), and Jim Uhls (Fight Club) are all writers..."

Oct. 26, 2014 Screens Post by Rod Machen

This Is Electroclash

Eighties retro-synth bands like the Faint, Fischerspooner, and Austin's This Microwave World prove that the best way to move forward is to look back first.

"...From Donnie Darko to music's biggest new buzzword, "electroclash," there's no..."

April 25, 2003 Music Feature by Michael Chamy

Mad World

The year in albums, 2002

"...Damn that Donnie Darko...."

Jan. 3, 2003 Music Feature by Raoul Hernandez

For Your Consideration ...

Austin Film Festival Preview

"...(10/13, 9:40pm, Arbor 1)DONNIE DARKO..."

Oct. 12, 2001 Screens Feature

Art, Movies, Sports, and More Recommended Events

Pack your weekend with the best happenings around town

"...live nature painting with Mathilde.   – Kat McNevins Donnie Darko..."

March 21, 2025 Arts Feature by James Scott

DVDanger: 'Enemy'

Jake Gyllenhaal versus Jake Gyllenhaal. And spiders.

"...Remember when Jake Gyllenhaal became famous with Donnie Darko, and then he became replaced by a guy..."

June 28, 2014 Screens Post by Richard Whittaker

Austin Film Festival Announces Conference Slate

Panelists include Jenji Kohan, Rian Johnson, and more

"...Helgeland (42) • Rian Johnson (Brick) • Richard Kelly (Donnie Darko) • Chris Lowell (Veronica Mars) • David Lowery..."

Sept. 3, 2013 Screens Post by Monica Riese

Source Code

These strangers on a train are players in a gripping science fiction roundelay.

"...a model of the nail-biting, race-against-time-and-again template. Gyllenhaal, as Donnie Darko, found himself in a related predicament once before,..."

April 1, 2011 Movie Review by Marc Savlov

Love & Other Drugs

A pharmaceutical salesman with devastating charm and a woman who has no interest in settling down learn that love is the best drug of all.

"...Gyllenhaal has always done better with edgy material – Donnie Darko, The Good Girl – that subverts his sunny,..."

Dec. 3, 2010 Movie Review by Kimberley Jones

Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time

Jake Gyllenhaal stars in this nearly bloodless, family-friendly throwback to a cinematic age when Persian palace intrigue, winsome princesses, and ambitious princes ruled the back lots.

"...of kingdoms, but quite unlike Gyllenhaal's breakout role of Donnie Darko, who also had trouble with the proverbial sands..."

May 28, 2010 Movie Review by Marc Savlov

A Decade Under the Influence

The 'Chronicle' movie critics take a look back at what the Aughts wrought

"...no less uncanny that Richard Kelly's apocalyptic puzzle box Donnie Darko, a hot ticket at the 2001 Sundance Film..."

Dec. 25, 2009 Screens Feature by Marc Savlov

The End of the World as He Knows It

Richard Kelly does decadence plus dystopia in Southland Tales

"...for Richard Kelly, the writer/director of 2001 cult hit Donnie Darko? Critics at Cannes in 2006 were so loudly..."

Nov. 16, 2007 Screens Feature by Spencer Parsons

Over the Wall

Echo & the Bunnymen's guitarist Will Sergeant didn't much care for Donnie Darko.

"...AC: How did you guys feel when Donnie Darko came out, and all these bands started citing..."

March 17, 2006 Music Feature by Christopher Gray

Thumbsucker

The plot realistically mimics a teenager’s adriftness and tendency toward hairpin-turn mood shifts as it bounds from the wonderfully affecting to the decidedly idiosyncratic to the occasionally absurd.

"...a showboating part – Justin is no Igby or Donnie Darko – but he quietly burrows in under the..."

Oct. 7, 2005 Movie Review by Kimberley Jones

Mysterious Skin

With this disturbing story about the lingering affects of child sexual abuse, Gregg Araki creates a film that is psychologically rich, emotionally haunting, and technically superior to anything he has ever done.

"...this polished ensemble drama. Often Mysterious Skin conveys a Donnie Darko sense of vague environmental threat and the untrustworthiness..."

July 1, 2005 Movie Review by Marjorie Baumgarten

Kino Eye

Texas platters

"...Ranaldo and Kim Gordon. Capper "Split the Seal," titled "Donnie Darko" on the band's 2003 EP, is the secret..."

April 23, 2004 Music Review by Michael Chamy

Queer Comedy, a Goth Market, and More Community Events

Recommended happenings for your calendar's approval

"...Let’s see what we remember about the 2000s: Donnie Darko, Britney Spears, Ocean’s 11, the “War on Terror,”..."

March 15, 2024 Arts Feature by James Scott

SXSW Film Review: Linoleum

Jim Gaffigan plays two roles in this tale of a life unrealized

"...but maybe think of something along the lines of Donnie Darko mixed with I’m Thinking of Ending Things for..."

March 16, 2022 SXSW Post by Trace Sauveur

New Di$count $inema Series Revs Up at Blue Starlite

Jon Moritsugu heads to Terminal USA

"...feature, Numbskull Revolution, a vicious art world parody starring Donnie Darko's James Duval filmed partly in Marfa two years..."

July 23, 2021 Screens Feature by Tim Stegall

Frank Wo / Men Collective's Virtual Show Offers a Warped Sense of Control

In K ! :D D: Ö, you get to not only watch these kinetic provocateurs move through virtual environments, but also influence their actions

"...course? Is this experience going to give us sugar-frosted Donnie Darko flashbacks?..."

Dec. 11, 2020 Arts Feature by Wayne Alan Brenner

The Austin Chronicle Halloween Costume Contest

"...Missy Osterman - Donnie Darko..."

Oct. 29, 2020 Photo Gallery

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