Waking Life
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Movie Reviews of Waking Life
Movie Review: A trip like no other
Summary: 5 Stars
As a character in this movie said, often it's very boring to hear about someone else's dream. They often don't make sense to either the dreamer or the victim of the recap, but when you yourself have a dream that bugs you all day, it's almost irresistible to tell others about it. It kind of feels like Rick Linklater, in making a movie like this, found a way to tell us all about some of his dreams, and the dreams of others, but without being boring at all. Far from it, in fact! It's exhilarating! It's sad and happy, hopeful and despondent, and most of all, thought-provoking.Of course, the movie itself is a dream, a stroll through someone's unconscious. It feels very personal, a feeling enhanced by the director himself appearing at both the beginning and the end ov the movie, almost as a guide both to the main character and to us, the viewers. It's as if Linklater is telling us, "Hey- are dreams cool or what?!" and at the same time showing us the message of his own dream creation.
We hear many people talk about their perspectives on reality, consciousness, and life in general, and this makes us feel like one of them, because we all wonder about these things from time to time. Any movie that can remind people that they are not alone in this world (without being smarmy) is a success in my book. Everyone has dreams, and this mere fact makes the movie work, because it appeals to a side of all of us. Not only that, it introduces the concept of lucid dreaming to anyone not already familiar with it.
This review is not a plot summary. To try that would be futile, because I'd only focus on the stuff I thought was cool. It's like a collection of seeds for each of us to sort through at leisure and cultivate on our own, and this very process makes it a unique and personal experience for everyone that sees it.
After seeing this movie, I began writing my dreams down, because I was so excited at the prospect of being able to control my own dreams. And any movie that inspires something like that in me is also a success in my book! See it and you won't be sorry!
Movie Review: A trip like no other
Summary: 5 Stars
As a character in this movie said, often it's very boring to hear about someone else's dream. They often don't make sense to either the dreamer or the victim of the recap, but when you yourself have a dream that bugs you all day, it's almost irresistible to tell others about it. It kind of feels like Rick Linklater, in making a movie like this, found a way to tell us all about some of his dreams, and the dreams of others, but without being boring at all. Far from it, in fact! It's exhilarating!Of course, the movie itself is a dream, a stroll through someone's unconscious. It feels very personal, a feeling enhanced by the director himself appearing at both the beginning and the end ov the movie, almost as a guide both to the main character and to us, the viewers. It's as if Linklater is telling us, "Hey- are dreams cool or what?!" and at the same time showing us the message of his own dream creation.
We hear many people talk about their perspectives on reality, consciousness, and life in general, and this makes us feel like one of them, because we all wonder about these things from time to time. Any movie that can remind people that they are not alone in this world (without being smarmy) is a success in my book. Everyone has dreams, and this mere fact makes the movie work, because it appeals to a side of all of us. Not only that, it introduces the concept of lucid dreaming to anyone not already familiar with it.
This review is not a plot summary. To try that would be futile, because I'd only focus on the stuff I thought was cool. It's like a collection of seeds for each of us to sort through at leisure and cultivate on our own, and this very process makes it a unique and personal experience for everyone that sees it.
After seeing this movie, I began writing my dreams down, because I was so excited at the prospect of being able to control my own dreams. And any movie that inspires something like that in me is also a success in my book! See it and you won't be sorry!
Movie Review: The best how to do animation DVD in the World
Summary: 5 Stars
The real utility of this DVD - "Waking Life" - is that it is the ultimate "how to" book for any would be animator in this 21st century and a counting.My comments arise from how I watched it - first without any of the special features, then I watched it with the text-feature, third I watched the movie under the animation and then I watched the special feature in which I watched the explanation by the director of how he had done things with the computer and why he had done so - or rather how he had managed to direct over twenty different animators and get it as seamless as he did - tips like taking the color from the movie instead of from the palette. I suppose if one animator did the entire movie that would be less an issue. As it is you may note that some of the other reviewers still note the movie is not seamless and no it is not but many of the methods that the director explains make it more so than would otherwise be so.
There is I suppose a message and medium issue - as for the message whether it is philosophy made simple or existentialism made simple to just concision is up to the viewer - If you view it 5x as I have you see how animation makes it work where the film does not - in the film there is too much information in how the speakers really look - each one could have been a movie in themselves and I can recommend the DVD to point new viewers to these ideas towards the real speakers - if you watch the film with the text on you can capture the names and hence go deeper - as it is - it is an astonishing concision of the meaning of lucid dreaming, cognitive science, existentialism and the big questions. And as the animation holds it together you hear not one speaker but twenty. And that is what makes it so extra-ordinary. The director tells you how they do that. I mean how they animate - it is amazing and an incredible act of kindness to share method. Wow wow.
Movie Review: Dreams within Dreams......
Summary: 5 Stars
In Steven Soderbergh's bit in this flick he tells of Louis Malle meeting with Billy Wilder and telling Wilder his latest film cost $2.5 million. Wilder asks what it's about and Malle says "A dream within a dream" and Wilder replies "Well, you've just lost $2.5 million". Richard Linklater knew what he would be up against with this film, and judging by some of the reviews here, he got that kind of response.First, the film looks great! Using computer animation layed over live action footage, Linlater tells a tale of dreams within dreams, with his hero meandering around encountering this one and that one, and soon realizing that the distinction between his life awake and his life asleep and dreaming has been blurred beyond recognition. I don't know any other way this dream-like state could have been conveyed WITHOUT the use of animation. The rocking, floating surrounding motions, and the fluid ever- changing visuals conveys the dream state better than anything we've seen previously.
As to the content of the encounters in the various vignettes that make up the film, I was always entertained by the intellectual prattle that ranged from fascinating to facetious, from the ridiculous to the sublime. I liked the fact that Linklater made a film that allowed people to expound on their obsessions and philosophy, whether crackpot or intuitive. It certainly was a different day at the cinema.
Finally, I congratulate the filmakers for their cleverness and for the sheer originality of the endeavor. It is very satisfying to see someone marry technology with inspiration and tell a tale, in this case various ideas about the conscious and the subconscious, in a way it never could have been told before, and with a method that perfectly conveys the ideas presented.
Certainly not for everyone, but well worthwhile for those seeking something different, done extremely well.
Movie Review: cinematic philosphy at it's best
Summary: 5 Stars
Waking life was an all encompassing theatrical release of the lost art of philosophy. When I watched this film, I was blown away by the merging of dripping salvador dali like imagery with very modern philosophic ideas. In particular I could relate to the professor who discussed the evolution of mankind as becoming, in modern times, accelerated... to the point where we can actually witness it in a span of a lifetime and that it has become instead of a physiological evolution, one of morality... where we begin to select one another based on criteria such as compassion and intelligence. In other words we are developing into a race of beings which is evolving through the developement of the mind. This is just one of the aspects of the film that I loved.
Another is the enigmatic study of language and other ideas discussed in the film. How do we interpret words like "love"? How did we develop our language and why? What purpose do our dreams serve?
One would benefit from their own studies of their dreams and an attempt to have lucid dreams through lucid dream learning techniques described in Stephen Laberge's "Exploring the World of Lucid Dreaming".
There are so many engaging ideas brought to life by this film that all I can say is that Linklater is a revolutionary in the art of capturing ideas in a cinematic format. "Dazed and Confused" was entertaining and a slice in the life of a teenager, but it was a commercial venture for him. "Waking Life" is food for thought for the free thinker and the open minded. Highly recomended for all who have independent thoughts about evolution, the develpoment of liguistics and the broad study of dream imagery.