Arrow Films debuts 4K restoration of cult favorite Donnie Darko in both theatrical and director’s cuts
Arrow Films has announced the March 31st domestic theatrical debut of the 4K restoration of Richard Kelly‘s cult hit Donnie Darko. Following a wildly successful re-release in the UK for its 15th Anniversary, the film will return to theaters in cities across the United States. 15 years before Stranger Things combined science-fiction, Spielbergian touches and ’80s nostalgia to much acclaim, Kelly set the template and the benchmark with his debut feature, Donnie Darko. Initially beset with distribution problems, it would slowly find its audience and emerge as arguably the first cult classic of the new millennium. The 4K restoration of Donnie Darko will premiere at the Vista in Los Angeles on March 30th, and officially open in Los Angeles at the Cinefamily and in New York at Metrograph on March 31st.
Described by director Richard Kelly as “The Catcher in the Rye as told by Philip K. Dick,” Donnie Darko combines an eye-catching, eclectic cast: pre-stardom Jake (Nightcrawler, Brokeback Mountain, Nocturnal Animals) and Maggie Gyllenhaal (Sherry Baby, The Dark Knight), Jena Malone (The Hunger Games: Catching Fire, The Neon Demon), the late heartthrob Patrick Swayze (Dirty Dancing, Ghost), Drew Barrymore (E.T., Grey Gardens, Santa Clarita Diet) Oscar nominees Mary McDonnell (Dances With Wolves, Passion Fish, Battlestar Galactica) and Katharine Ross (The Graduate, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, The Stepford Wives), and television favorite Noah Wyle (ER, Falling Skies) and an evocative soundtrack of ’80s classics by Echo and the Bunnymen, Tears for Fears, Duran Duran and more.
The brand-new 4K restoration was produced by Arrow Films from the original camera negatives and supervised and approved by Kelly and cinematographer Steven Poster. The 4K restoration premiered to a packed audience at the National Film Theatre in London on December 17th, 2016, with an introduction by Richard Kelly.
Both the theatrical cut and the director’s cut are being made available to venues via a partnership with Cartilage Films, and locations will vary.
Donnie Darko will also return for weeklong theatrical runs in Denver, Columbus, Pittsburgh, Phoenix and San Francisco on March 31st, and in El Paso and Detroit on April 7.
Special screenings include Jacksonville, Austin, Dallas, Honolulu, Lubbock, Baton Rouge, Sioux Falls, Oklahoma City, Tucson, Durham and Stamford throughout March and April.
Check your local listings.
