Donnie Darko

Donnie Darko is a disturbed adolescent from a semi-functional, upper-middle class family, gifted with a sharp intellect and vivid imagination…

Aroview: Admired by critics and an ardent fanbase for its originality and eclecticism, this quirky teen fantasy is arguably a slick patchwork of other movie fragments, born from the subconscience of an obsessed movie geek.

Set nostalgically in the 1980s, its vision of a bright yet misunderstood teen misfit hovers between David Lynch’s suburban nightmare and John Hughes’ angst-romanticism, depending on whether or not young Donnie’s taken his medication. Has a sizeable cult following with mainly those of the same generation as its director (b. 1975) lapping up its bold eclecticism, outsider sensibility, 80s Brit-pop soundtrack (remember Tears for Fears?) and loudly applauding its twist ending.