A Scanner Darkly - Richard Linklater

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S E A R C H D V D B e a v e r

Directed by Richard Linklater
USA 2006

Set in a not-too-distant future where America has lost its "war" on drugs, Fred, an undercover cop, is one of many people hooked on the popular drug, Substance D, which causes its users to develop split personalities. Fred is obsessed with taking down Bob, a notorious drug dealer, but due to his Substance D addiction, he does not know that he is also Bob. Based on a classic novel by Philip K. Dick and directed by Richard Linklater. Filmed in live-action, and then animated using the same critically acclaimed process that Linklater used in his previous film, "Waking Life."

You can learn how to tell if you have a problem with substance abuse by reading up on numerous online resources and watching films on the subject.

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When, towards the end of ‘A Scanner Darkly’, a character conspiratorially confides that ‘the whole process is hidden behind the surface of our reality,’ he’s talking about the industrial manufacture of narcotics, but it takes only the smallest of synaptic leaps to apply his words to the socio-politics of the world he lives in, and the production of the film itself. Closely adapted from a novel by Philip K Dick – in whose work the daily experience of future life is frequently exposed as a strategically constructed tissue of mollifying deception – ‘Scanner’ is set ‘seven years from now’ in a Los Angeles where a quarter of the population is dependent on the powerful and ultimately lethal mind-bender Substance D. It’s a police state in which unaccountable authority is maintained through hypersurveillance and the cultivation of multiple strata of crippling paranoia, to which many citizens’ understandable response is a retreat from the world and even the self – a schism reflected on a formal level by a more subtle and sophisticated version of the digital rotoscoping technique Linklater used in 2001’s ‘Waking Life’, whereby live-action is rendered as eerily beautiful painted animation.

Excerpt from TimeOut Film Guide located HERE

Posters

Theatrical Release: May 25th, 2006 - Cannes Film Festival

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DVD Review: Warner - Region 1 - NTSC

DVD Box Cover		CLICK to order from:
Distribution	Warner Home Video - Region 1 - NTSC
Runtime	1:40:15
Video	1.78:1 Aspect Ratio Average Bitrate: 6.26 mb/s NTSC 720x480 29.97 f/s
	NOTE: The Vertical axis represents the bits transferred per second. The Horizontal is the time in minutes.
Bitrate:
Audio	English (Dolby Digital 5.1)
Subtitles	English, Spanish, French, None
Features	Release Information: Studio: Warner Home Video Aspect Ratio: Original Aspect Ratio 1.78:1 Edition Details: • Commentary by Richard Linklater, Keanu Reeves, Isa Hackett Dick (daughter of Philip K. Dick), and others • Two making-of documentaries (26:23 + 20:45) • theatrical trailer DVD Release Date: December 19th, 2006 Keep Case Chapters: 26

Comments:

The image is perfect - one of the advantages of its process of creation is the ability to seamlessly transfer the final product to DVD... and have it look quite flawless. It's progressive, 16X9 enhanced and put to a dual-layered DVD. The animation process bridges a nice gap between the easily discernable actors and advanced technological special effects. It may be one of the futures of the dissemination of the entertainment medium. Likewise the 5.1 audio is crisp and very effective for the film.

The commentary is a bit drab, but overall does ignite some occasional interest with production details and story development shining through. There are two healthy 'Making of' featurettes for those keen enough to delve into.

I really enjoyed the film, as I did 'Waking Life'. Linklater really has something and I am anxious to see his next project. He really seems to have his finger on the pulse of many societal switches. Philip K. Dick fans will eat this right up too. Recommended!