Unlikely heroes

"Richard Kelly's bold debut film is a social satire, a dark comedy, a science fiction time-traveling fantasy, and a suburban nightmare about an extremely intelligent, depressive, self-destructive, narcoleptic, gun-toting, sex-crazed, teenaged arsonist: Donnie Darko (Jake Gyllenhaal). But, like GHOST WORLD and RUSHMORE, it uses the trappings of the teen comedy as the entry point for a subversive and trenchant (and also wonderfully entertaining) look at American life. The difference between those films and DONNIE DARKO is that Donnie is an unlikely hero who just might save the world. Donnie falls in love with Gretchen (Jena Malone) and tries to figure out what his life means. Gyllenhaal leads an exceptional cast, bringing Kelly's twisted but humane vision to life. An exceptional performance is given by Mary McDonnell (PASSION FISH) as Donnie's mother".
Source: www.tower.com

"It's hard to imagine a more unlikely hero than Elliot Tiber, who wrote the book Taking Woodstock: A True Story of a Riot, a Concert, and a Life, which has been amusingly adapted by the screenwriter James Schamus.Demetri Martin, replete with a hooked nose and gaunt features, plays Elliot, one of life's unhappy nice guys. H He desperately needs to escape his adolescence and break ties with his overbearing parents, especially his mother (Imelda Staunton). They run a failing motel in White Plains, Woodstock. Ang Lee embraces the clichés, so it's violet dresses for the girls, and long hair and amusing facial hair for the boys – when they're actually wearing clothes, that is.

As Elliot tries to come up with ideas to save the motel and re-invigorate the community, we meet an array of kooky characters: his proud father Jake (Henry Goodman), the mad experimental theatre group leader Devon (Dan Folger), the chocolate milk-making neighbour Max (Eugene Levy) and the best friend, Billy (Emile Hirsch), a Vietnam veteran who looks like he's just out of his nappy. Lee shows that there were freaks in this town way before the hippies arrived. Elliot's desperation sees him call the producer Michael Lang (Jonathan Groff) when he hears the neighbouring town of Walkill won't licence the concert. And the rest, as they say..."

Source: www.independent.co.uk