4 8D - The Michigan Daily - New Student Edition - Tuesday, September 3, 2002 'Donnie Darko' finds second life on DVD By JeffrDickerson Daily Arts Editor "Donnie Darko" was released in October of last year without an ounce of publicity promoting the film. It debuted in a truly limited release on only 58 screens around the country. While the film was well Courtesy of Warner Bros. The adventure continues 17 years later on DVD. 'The Goonies' are still good enough received by critics, it was not enough to bring people into theaters and the film earned a meager $500,000 at the box office. Maybe it was the lack of a major star that prevented "Donnie Darko" from succeeding. Maybe it was the deficiency of the advertising. Or perhaps it was that people are sim- ply not interested in the story of a teenage boy troubled by visions of a giant bunny rabbit named Frank. DONNIE DV Picture/Sound Movie: *** Features: ** By Lyle Henretty Daily Arts Writer "The Goonies" may just be the last great children's movie that adults liked as much as the kids. It has adventure, romance, terror and the patented "Truffle Shuffle." The 1985 film centers on a group of outcast kids looking for a little THE G fun on the eve of the D demolition of their pic-P turesque New England Picture/Sou town. When they follow Movie: **i a family of convicts into Features: * an abandoned restaurant, they begin an adventure Warn that leads them into hid- den caves, pirates and a freaky piano made of bones. The commentary track is done by Director Richard Donner ("Super- man," "Lethal Weapon") and the entire gaggle of Goonies, from Jeff Cohen (Chunk) to the self depricating Corey Feldman (Mouth). When the commen- tary feature is enabled, the viewer is treated to a wide-screen view of the cast as they look now. This is a special treat for fans who grew up on the film, though it is slightly depressing to learn that Chunk has slimmed down signifi- cantly. Other features include a short docu- mentary of behind the scenes footage, showing a tired Donner sarcastically The year is 1988. The town is Middlesex, Va. Donnie Darko (Jake Gyllenhaal, "October Sky") is a high school kid with emotional problems, uncer- tain of his purpose in life. One night, Donnie is led to a golf course for an unexpected meeting with Frank, a giant bunny rabbit who instructs him the world will end in 28 days. While Donnie is on the links chatting away with the six-foot-tall hare, a jet engine crashes into his bedroom, destroying a large portion of his family's upscale suburban home. Richard Kelly's "Donnie Darko" is not your typical matinee fare. Writer/Director Kelly is one of the most promis- ing young directors in years. For a feature film debut, "Donnie Darko" exhibits the polish of a sea- soned veteran. The film has a distinct visual appear- ance due to the use of a special kind of film used for low lighting situations. The visual composition of the film captures the essence of the late '80s, as does the soundtrack of Tears for Fears and Duran Duran retro classics. The cast is strong throughout,, including Mary McDonnell ("Dances with Wolves") as Mrs. Darko, Drew Barrymore ("E.T.") and Noah Wyle ("E.R.") as Donnie's teachers, Patrick Swayze ("Dirty Dancing") as a self-help guru and Oscar nominee Katharine Ross ("The Graduate") as Don- nie's psychiatrist. For those who missed the low budg- et film in theaters, "Donnie Darko" is DARKO now available on DVD in an impres- sive release from 20th Century Fox. The presentation of the film is excel- lent, with sharp visuals and a promi- : *** nent 5.1 surround sound audio track. ** Menus are well designed, keeping with * ** the visual theme of the film. While the standard features of the DVD are near perfection, the bread and butter of the disc are the abundant extra features. "Donnie Darko" includes two commentary tracks, one with director Kelly and star Jake Gyllenhaal, the other with supporting cast members, including McDonnell, Barrymore and Ross. The commen- taries provide a wealth of information on narrative questions and the making of the film. There are over 20 deleted scenes with director's commentary, most of which are extraneous additions to previous scenes. Other features include a music video, pro- duction stills, filmographies, TV spots and a theatri- cal trailer. Far and away the most entertaining feature is the full version of Jim Cunningham's (Patrick Swayze) "Cunning Visions" videos. The intentionally cheesy infomercials include a spoof audio commentary, mocking the traditional DVD commentary. "Donnie Darko" suffered from ill timing. The scene where the engine of a 747 comes plummenting onto Donnie's queen bed was too reminiscent of the acci- dent in Queens that took place shortly after Sept. 11. If originality meant anything in film, "Donnie Darko" would be stamped with an array of awards and lucrative box office receipts. Sadly, originality is looked over in favor of formulaic plots and sequels in Hollywood today while films like "Don- nie Darko" go in and out of theaters relatively unno- ticed. The film is hard to classify and ascribe a genre to, part of the reason why "Donnie Darko" failed financially. Thanks in part to a comprehensive DVD, Richard Kelly's time-traveling-sci-fi-bunny- rabbit-opus might end up becoming a cult classic. 4 t 04 iOONIES VD ind: **** er Bros. contemplating suicide, as well as writer/produc- er Steven Spielberg looking suspiciously like Howard Stern. The disc also includes a ridiculously long ver- sion of Cyndi Lauper's "Goonies R Good Enough" video featuring wrestling luminaries "Captain" Lou Albano, 4 Remembering 'Saved by the Bell' and the 10 greatest episodes of all time "Rowdy" Roddy Piper and Andre the Giant. Along with a standard preview, the deleted scenes sadly add little to the disc. Most of the scenes are banal, and the much touted "octopus" scene looks cheesy and was clearly deleted from the movie for a reason. All in all, this disc is a must-have for fans, but those that buy it will probably wish it had a little more. 4 By Luke Smith Daily Arts Editor p PDamf 0/ 1aff 249 E. Liberty " Ann Arbor, MI 48104 734.213.1655 " Full Body Waxing * Therapeutic Masage * Land and foot Exfoliation Walk-Ins Welcome / , I 10% discount with this ac Undoubtedly one of NBC's smartest moves was purchasing the rights to "Good Morning Miss Bliss" from Dis- ney. The major network proceeded to reform the show and enigmatically move the majority of the cast to sunny Bayside High School in California. From here, viewers followed the cast of "Saved by the Bell" through some tumultuous and rocky times at Bayside High..Viewers smiled together when Zack Morris called his first "time out" in the "Aloha Slater" episode. They cried when Zack and Kelly crumbled because of an older man. Audiences let out a collective groan when Kelly Kapowski (Tiffani-Amber Thiesen) was zipped away for a series of episodes known simply as "The Tori Episodes." 10. Stevie : 8th Grade - Original air date: 03/11/89 This episode was part of the Indiana fiasco. We saw a young debonair Zack Morris pursuing a fictitious starlet named Stevie. Stevie (a former student of Miss Bliss) is in town for a concert she's performing. She stayed at Miss Bliss' house incognito to avoid being found and forced to sign what had to be legions upon legions of scream- ing middle-school children's lock- ers. Zack ends up kissing the Stevie-in-disguise and does- n't realize it till she's long gone, perhaps in a town we can only assume is some- where in Iowa, making nice with another boy with sandy blonde hair. 9. The Friendship Business: 9th Grade - ' Original air date: 11/04/89 When Mr. Tuttle pro- poses a business project, v the gang launch itself. into it full force. Zack's capitalistic urges take 3 over on this episode, F where we get our first glimpse of the shrewd economist beneath the surfer fagade. His over- whelmingly powerful leadership eventu- ally polarizes the gang into two factions: Friendship Bracelets and Buddy Bands. The game goes sour when some feelings get hurt, but at the end, the gang reunites peacefully, launching a product that com- bined both projects with Love Cuffs. 8. Screech's Spaghetti Sauce: 12th Grade - ; Original air date: 09/19/92 When the gang discovers that Screech's grandma makes a mean spaghetti sauce, Zack's capitalist urges resurface. While working on a television show in their communications class, the gang decides to market "Screech's Secret Sauce." Putting the Prego on the pasta, however, is the appearance of one time lolita Punky Brewster (Solei Moon Frye) as Screech's materialistic girlfriend. Robin is no sweetheart, and she proceeds to jerk around the brillo-haired Samuel Powers (Screech, to the fair-weather fans). Eventually, Robin gets hers, and the gang discovers that Screech's "secret" sauce was simply ripped from a cookbook, but the gang again slides by, just like the bus in the morning, when the 'larm let's out a warning. "The sauce-a you can have, but the secret, she's-a mine!" 7. The Fabulous Belding Brothers: 10th Grade - Original air date: 12/09/90 When principal Richard Belding allows his rogue younger brother Rod to step in as a substi- tute for the class, the gang takes an immediate liking to the free-wheeling Belding. Rod's aspirations for the group entail him taking the crew on a class trip. Rod's youthful desires take precedent over his concern for the kids, leading him away from the "Saved by the Bell" universe and off skirt- chasing after a flight attendant. The elder Belding steps in, cov- ers for his kid brother and promises to take the gang on the trip. Only then do Zack and company realize they, have the "better Beld- ing." 6. Check Your Mate: 11th Grade - Original air date: 10/05/91 This episode puts Screech and his beret on the cover of Chessboy maga- zine. The beret was the gift of Screech's heartthrob Violet (yes, that's Tori Spelling). When the beret is stolen by the Master twins, Screech loses his ability to play chess. Russian exchange student Peter Breznev poses a formidable oppo- nent for the feathery Screech, but he overcomes the Breznev block and regains his beret. 5. The Wicked Step-. brother: 11th Grade -. Original air date: 11/02/91 When Jessie's mother gets married, the hell really begins in the form of Eric,q her East Coast step-sib- k k ling. Eric terrorizes the gang, and it appeared r that Zack had met his match. However, eventual- ly the gang usurps Eric's felonious attempt at blackmail, and Eric returns to New . York with his tail between his legs. 4. No Hope WithA Dope: 11th Grade - Original air date: 11/30/91 Bayside gets cho- sen to shoot a real life anti-drug spot with superstar Johnny Dakota, who claims that the stick girl is Kelly, but with "more curves." It is uncovered through the sleuthing of the gang that Dakota him- self uses drugs. In the episode's climactic ,former NBC CEO Brandon Tarticoff makes a guest spot. 3. Jessie's Song: 10th Grade - Original air date: 11/03/90 "I'm so excited, I'm so excited. I'm so ... scared." 2. Rockumentary: 11th Grade - Original air date: 11/30/91 Part two of the special hour of all-new "Saved By the Bell" episodes features a very special guest star in Casey Kasem. Kasem gives us a pre-VH 1's "Behind the Music" look at Zack's band the Zack Attack. When Zack nods off, he and the gang are transported into a fantasyland where the Zack Attack have the biggest song in the land in "Friends Forever." Like all great bands, they break up and go their separate ways, only to reunite at the show's conclusion. A major highlight of this episode is Screech's marriage to a cheerleader, which is unveiled as one of the secrets to happiness by the high dork. 1. The Last Dance: 11th Grade - Original air date 9114/91 When Zack and Kelly go to the prom, it isn't for love. Instead, it is for the show's loyalists to watch one of the saddest moments in televi- sion history. Zack and Kelly slow dance to a painfully somber ren- dition of "How am I sup- > < posed to live without you," ~lip-synched by Slater and Jessie. The episode was followed by a series of post-breakup episodes in which we watched a defeat- ed Zack mope and whim- per in solitude. We remember seeing the cutout of Kelly drop down in Zack's room, and we remember their first kiss. From the show's jump to NBC, we watched Zack fall head over heels for Kelly and eventually make the perfect couple, for the perfect show. ..... . . . . . . . - We Deliver Prescriptio We AwCPt oa aoite -insuranC* prescT~9iO ° . The/ Village Apothecary 1112 S. Univ. A2 48104 Phone:663-5533 4 Neill C74+/-1DC:5 nM 1 UI [I IUI'C If 11 U a