American filmmaker James Richard Kelly wrote and directed the Hollywood classic sci-fi movie Donnie Darko but its lesser-known sequel continues to haunt him.
Released in 2001, the thriller became an instant cult classic amongst film fans and is widely considered to be one of the greatest independent films of all time. It’s set during the presidential election of 1988 as a teenager sleepwalks out of his house in the night and meets a demonic rabbit that predicts the world is going to end in 28 days and everything around him begins to turn into chaos.
With an all-star cast, made up of Jake Gyllenhaal, Drew Barrymore and Patrick Swayze, it’s no wonder the film continues to remain a must-watch of the genre, and so it begs the question – why does its sequel border unspoken territory with the director, Kelly? As it turns out, the follow-up film, S. Darko, had nothing to do with him and everything to do with director Chris Fisher.
In an interview with PopMatters magazine, Richard Kelly made it clear about his lack of involvement in the sequel. He said: “I hate it when people ask me about that sequel because…I had nothing to do with it.
“And I hate it when people try and blame me or hold me responsible for it because I had no involvement. I don’t control the underlying rights to the Donnie Darko franchise.
“I had to relinquish them when I was 24 years old. I hate when people ask me about that because I’ve never seen it and I never will, so… don’t ask me about the sequel…Those people are making lots of money. They’re certainly making lots of money.”
The 2009 addition to the series was less well recieved and boasts an embarssingly low score on the review site Rotten Tomatoes, at a meer 13%. One review says: “Why does this exist???? Donnie Darko is a cult classic, beloved by many, but it’s also one that does not ask for a sequel.
“Long before tired lazy legacy sequels were common, we got this monstrosity about Donnie Darko’s little sister.” Another unimpressed viewer wrote: “What a travesty… A shameless, hollow copy of the first film, that only works to cheapen its predecessor. This is the worst kind of cash-grab. It’s a shining example of all style, no substance.”
The plot of the sequel is centred around Donnie Darko’s little sister, Samantha, seven years after the first film. She runs away with her friend and embarks on a road trip, when their car breaks down and she she begins to sleepwalk and experience all sorts of bizzare visions.
In her imagination she meets a whole bunch of different people, as she time travels and tries to understand the looming threat to the world. Soon enough, a catastrophe strikes, and she needs help in turning back time to save her own life.
Someone else wrote: “Absolute trash. Takes everything enjoyable and interesting about Donnie Darko and abandons it. But let’s face it, any sequel was bound for failure.”
If you’re curious to see how the two films compare, you can rent the lower-rated addition to the franchise, S.Darko, on both Amazon Prime and Apple TV. Meanwhile, the Richard Kelly original, Donnie Darko, remains available to stream on Amazon Prime.