Donnie Darko Director’s Cut: Region 1 NTSC (20th Century Fox)
vs. Region 2 PAL U.K. Version w/ Hologram Cover
Picture: B+
Sound: B/B+ (for DTS) Extras:
B Film: B+
This purpose of this review is not to revisit much of what
was said in the current review for the theatrical cut of Donnie Darko, first made available on DVD and reviewed for this
site, but rather to go into more detail about the difference between Richard
Kelly’s new director’s cut and the theatrical cut. This review will also point out differences between the Region 2
PAL version, which is the directors cut versus the U.S. release of that same
directors cut. Relatively speaking the
biggest glaring difference is the exclusion of the better audio format, that
being DTS, for the U.S. releases, but on the Region 2 disc the option is either
Dolby 5.1 or a really awesome DTS 5.1 mix.
My take on the director’s cut is that of fulfillment as I
felt that more gaps were closed off that the theatrical cut missed. There are a few longer scenes that capture
more of Donnie’s family and relationships are slightly more embellished making
it a more complete tale. The actual
time differences are odd here simply because of the 4% PAL speedup, which makes
the film roughly about 2 hours, which is almost as close to the theatrical cut,
but the directors cut in NTSC available here in the states is probably
somewhere around 14 minutes longer.
Now, the real question that most people tend to bring up
is which version to get. For me that’s
an easy question, which is to get any version!
The reason here is pretty obvious and that is that this is one of the
most unique films to come out in a long time and both U.S. versions released
are cool since the director’s cut and the theatrical cut are very good and both
contain different commentary addressing different issues on the film. The extras on both the Region 2 Directors
Cut and the Region 1 Directors Cut are identical with the exception of the
audio choices. As already mentioned
that the Region 2 offers the better DTS sound option, which knocks the time
travel right out of the Dolby version.
I could easily name several good examples of where the DTS
audio annihilates the Dolby track, but I will only name a few that stuck out in
general. During the Tears for Fears
track Head Over Heels we are riding
along on a tracking shot introducing us to characters inside the school where
the actress Jena Malone slams her locker, but only in the DTS playback do you
notice how loud it is because you typically only hear the music being played
over the scene. Also the song itself in
Dolby sounds flat and non-dimensional, but with the DTS option we here a very
enclosed version of the song that drives the film along at a much better
pace. Those who are fans of the song
will be happy to know the fidelity is good.
Also during the moments such as ‘crashes’ or the ‘time-travel-The Abyss-water-jelly’ we get a very
visceral feel in DTS of the sound traveling through the room or when Donnie
tries stabbing Frank through the watery portal and we hear the pounding, but in
DTS we ‘feel’ that pounding enter the room.
One other note as far as the film goes here on the Region
2 disc and that is that the picture is a little softer with less detail than
the original DVD released of the theatrical cut, but I attribute some of that
to the conversion of the video master from NTSC to the PAL format, rather than
a disc problem. Even with a new
transfer and new set of DVDs, it is still going to take a digital High
Definition format to truly capture all the subtle visual details of the film,
but the new DVDs will due until Fox picks an HD format to back.
To get more specifically technical, the anamorphically
enhanced 2.35 X 1 image is somewhat improved here, though the film is shot with
a slightly hazy look to equate the late 1980s and edge into the Horror
genre. Cinematographer Steven Poser,
A.S.C., pulls off some of the strongest work of his career and uses the scope
frame more effectively than most films have in the last five to ten years. The new NTSC version shows some improvement,
while the PAL version offers NTSC speed up, but a slight edge as a trade-off in
color and (to repeat) slightly less detail.
Color is superior to the first DVD in both cases, particularly in
range. In this respect, they are
even. The sound that was first issued
on the previous DVD as Dolby Digital 5.1 only is here in a new Dolby mix in the
Fox disc, while the PAL version has an even better DTS track. In any of the new cases, there is still a
gap between the original sound and the new sound effects and music
additions. It is awkward in all cases,
but smoother by default on the superior DTS PAL track. A CD soundtrack has been issued since our
original review was posted. Imagine how
this is going to sound in MLP or DTS HD?
Extras on both include a new commentary by Kelly and
director/friend Kevin Smith on DVD 1 that has its moments, but is uneven and
may be counterproductive to some extent to the intent of the film. It is no match for the two commentaries son
the first version of the DVD. DVD 2
offers the trailer for the film’s re-release, a production diary with
cinematographer Poster helping Kelly scout locations and blocking out shots in
advance during the period of July 15 – August 30, 2000 (also available with
Poster’s commentary; the program runs 12 chapters at about 53 minutes and is
the strongest extra on the set, especially with the commentary), They Made
Me Do It – The Cut Of Donnie Darko (a British-produced featurette which
runs just about 28 minutes, features a very familiar rabbit conducting the
interviews, is shown in anamorphically enhanced 16 X 9/1.78 X 1 video, and
shows that it was an immediate hit there in the U.K., though it low-balls its
success in the U.S. somewhat by the editor of Empire Magazine in particular), a
storyboard-to-screen featurette in four chapters with four different sequences
that runs about eight minutes and #1 Fan – A Darkomentary. This is the winner of a fan contest that had
many submissions where Darryl Donaldson proves he is the #1 fan of the
film. Shot in 1.33 X 1 video, it is
amusing and even counts the ways he is a fan.
He is American in the U.S., does a surprise interview with some of the
cast, encounters Kelly at a fan show and this runs just over 13 minutes. It is “fascinating” to say the least. The Newmarket PAL version also offers the Mad
World Music Video, TV Spots, cast/crew interviews, trailer of the first
theatrical release, B-roll Footage, Cunning Visions Infomercials, Cast &
Crew Filmographies and 20 Deleted And Extended Scenes With Optional Commentary
By Richard Kelly. These are all great
extras and Fox was smart to reissue the film with them here. Also, be warned that the Region 4 PAL set
does NOT have DTS, so be careful when ordering the PAL version.
One problem with the picture is that the new digital
additions are a bit overdone and almost superfluous, but they do not match the
visual aesthetic of the film enough.
The extra scenes match the original footage quite well, but it should be
noted that there is more extra footage on the director’s cuts of original
scenes shot than was included as an extra on the original U.S. DVD. To the lazy and even ignorant people who
said both were the same, put your cappuccino down and wake up. The new cut has some more footage and all
the re-added footage works well. That
is why the new cut is still better than the old, despite the digital
additions. In the case of the sound, besides
the noted fidelity differences, there is an issue with the opening of the
film. Originally, the Echo & The
Bunnymen hit Killing Moon was used and served as an existential motif
(intended or not), versus the trivial and silly use of “moon” songs in the
likes of John Landis’ An American Werewolf In London. The thoughtful opposition to that 1981 hit
is especially lost with the change to the later INXS hit Never Tear Us Apart. While both songs can claim to be from the
time, and the INXS record is the same year as the time of the film (and their
last big hit of that decade before their decline), the original song was a
classic from a band that (outrageously) never had a Top Forty Pop hit in the
U.S. (though their videos sold their work well), Killing Moon conveys
something more personal and points much better to the isolation of Donnie
himself. The INXS version was on
original cuts, but it is one change, which director Richard Kelly should have
kept. He says the reference is to the
Darko family, but there had to be a better choice, even if this scene was cut
to fit the INXS song.
As for using a hit from a band who’s lead singer (Michael
Hutchence) killed himself, that is at least a distraction form the story and
the only false note the entire new cut offers.
Either version is worth getting, though neither have the extras, especially
the previous set of great commentary tracks, from the first release. The PAL version has a flicker hologram cover
that changes form the original poster to the new one back and forth, plus has
that DTS. The film was never DTS
theatrical, so that is a nice plus. The
new U.S. version comes in a white paperboard case that shows Donnie as an
anatomy breakdown chart. It is rare,
but all three versions of the film on DVD are worth having, and fans will want
them all.
- Nate Goss &
Nicholas Sheffo
