A Scanner Darkly
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Movie Reviews of A Scanner Darkly
Movie Review: The best and most faithful Dick adaptation
Summary: 5 Stars
There has been something like seven films made from the work of Phillip K. Dick. Most of them use his brilliant ideas as the foundation for an action movie, while completely discarding the plot (Minority Report is the worst offender). But this film really captures the story and spirit of the novel.
The cast might not look great on paper, but they really get the job done. Robert Downey Jr. is absolutely perfect as Barris; Harrelson and Cochrane are excellent as well, and Keanu and Winona (notoriously crappy actors) turn in a surprisingly convincing performance (it probably helps that their characters are stoned the entire film).
This is by far Dick's most personal story, and I'm glad it got the treatment it deserves. The story is actually semi-autobiographical, and Dick's own name appears along with his friends in the credits memorial, which is taken from the author's note that appeared at the end of the book. It's an important addendum, but I wish they would have included the whole thing.
There are a lot of things going on in this film. On one level, it's a Traffic-like exploration of the drug world. It's also a vision of a dystopic future where drugs have simultaneously become an epidemic and a big business (both in sales and treatment), and the rights of the people have eroded as a result. On another level, it's a story about paranoia and psychosis, something Dick was intimately familiar with. Finally, it's a heart-wrenching look at the cost of drug addiction, not unlike Requiem For A Dream, but it hits you a lot harder knowing that these characters were all based on real people.
In Dick's own words, "This has been a novel about some people who were punished entirely too much for what they did. They wanted to have a good time, but they were like children playing in the street. ... We really all were very happy for a while, but it was for such a terrible brief time, and then the punishment was beyond belief".
Overall, this is a must have for any Dick fan and anyone who enjoys trippy, drug centered movies.
Movie Review: Perfectly realized
Summary: 5 Stars
When I heard about this project, I was extremely skeptical. The novel ASD was one of the last of Dick's works to remain unspoiled by a faithless adaptation for the screen. Given Hollywood's track record with Dick, I thought this would probably suck. Even more than his other works, ASD is subjective, hallucinatory, multiperspectival, and generally ill-fit to be told in a linear format with recognizable actors. The animation seemed like a neat gimmick - just as it was in Linklater's "Waking Life" -but I didn't see how it could add anything to what I feel was a damn near perfect novel. But it really works - the animation distances the viewer from the narrative, giving the film an unreliable, dreamlike quality. This is a perfectly realized film that is 100% true to Dick's vision - and in some ways adds to it.
Despite being paranoid and surreal in the extreme, Dick's book had an uncanny authenticity. The characters are so believably messed-up and yet so sympathetic that the book is obviously a memoir, albeit one filtered through a very anguished mind. The secret to the film's success is the way that the ensemble cast captures Dick's horrifyingly ambivalent relationship with drugs and life outside the law. Everyone involved is exploring this same relationship on a extremely personal level. Keanu Reeves and Woody Harrelson are both long-time advocates for marijuana legalization. Robert Downey Jr.'s (sometimes brilliant) career has been stunted by narcotics, and Winona's embarrassing shoplifting arrest seems to have sidetracked her a bit as well. Their collective life-experience clearly informs this very emotionally-complicated presentation. Like Dick's book, the film simultaneously glorifies and condemns drugs, the law, and the industries of recovery. In this, Linklater and his actors capture both Dick's nihilistic humor and his compassion for the people victimized by the substance, the cops, and each other.
Movie Review: Canaries In The Coalmine
Summary: 5 Stars
Linklater delivers a faithful adaptation of Dick's novel, and that, along with the extraordinary group effort of all involved in bringing this most relevant story to our video-collective consciousness, results in a rare, science-fiction-esque-existential-dilemma with underscored warnings and cultural caveats far more urgent and dire today than even the corrosive social climate which fueled Philip K Dick to write the story. Little wonder how its central themes are largely misunderstood within a society long brainwashed through an external, centralized corporate/state power, and its far reaching, ever indoctrinating, media propaganda apparatus.
The disc itself has the usual features consumers have come to associate with the medium, including an audio commentary with input from Dick's two daughters. While A Scanner Darkly serves as a grim observation on America's quasi-semi-ocracy/oligarchic/totalitarianism, it is first and foremost a tale of existential search, of trying to understand god and cosmos, a tale of betrayal, of unrequited love. A devestating personalized look at how a controlled from the top-down society's views are coerced and manipulated individually and collectively, and how this impacts millions of innocent individuals who are systematically scapegoated for ideological gain and corporate profit.
Other essential social critics, such as Marcuse, Chomsky, Hunter Thompson, and the late comedian, Bill Hicks, often cited what is at the heart of this PKD story; the tribulations of the alienated individual who does not succumb to the mass conditioning of the day, and, even if they've committed no wrong - and in fact, often strive to impart a deeply moral message - are roundly attacked for nothing more than being a sentient individual attempting to find their way.
Movie Review: What a brilliant film. Intelligently written and beautifully done.
Summary: 5 Stars
Keanu Reeves is Bruce...no wait, he's Bob...or is he Fred? Well whatever his name was, here is a movie in which his much-maligned acting ability was able to shine. Have him play a confused, drug-addicted, undercover agent and he is rock solid.
Robert Downey, Jr. is one of the most enjoyable actors to watch these days. His personality was worked expertly into his character. He was certainly the highlight of the film.
This may not be the highest praise, but Woody Harrelson was incredibly believable as the burnt out friend who crashes at your place and brings nothing to the table. He was hysterical; it was great.
This was one of the most intelligently written movies I have ever seen. From the overall plot line to the dialogue, I am still impressed by it. I give credit to both Richard Linklater for his screenplay and direction and Philip K. Dick for birthing the story in the first place.
Richard Linklater's use of the animation overlay on the live-action was so effective in this story about drugs set in the future. But please do not think this is a movie about drugs...set in the future. This is a story about one man's struggle within himself. The inner reflection by Reeve's character, as it developed and delved ever deeper, was very entertaining.
I put off watching A Scanner Darkly for a long time, hesitant. I feel silly for having done so. I really really enjoyed this movie.
Movie Review: Awesome animation!
Summary: 5 Stars
I watched this movie at first because I am a fan of Keanu Reeves. His diverse range of projects and abilities has never failed to entertain me. Right from the first scene, I was crawling in my seat. It was realistically creepy... and if you watch the movie, you'll understand in which context I use that word. That drew me in.
It seems like the movie was shot in live action, but was animated over that to give it a very surreal (and futuristic?) feel. I can't imagine the amount of work that went into such a project, but I can tell you that it was effective for the story.
There are times in the movie where you're not sure where things are going and maybe feel like the story isn't going to go anywhere good, but what you are seeing is the effect that D is having on Arctur (our protagonist). It all comes together in the end and you find a new respect for what he was doing and what he went through.
I'm giving this movie 5 stars, because of the awesome animation, acting and scripting... yes, I liked it all. I will say, however if you are uncomfortable with movies that include a drug lifestyle that spirals out of control, this wouldn't be for you. This movie is a drama not an action film and the sci-fi aspect is of a world in the not too distant future, which means it's not much different than our own world, so don't expect aliens or flying cars. This is a character story and I think it's beautifully done.