A Scanner Darkly DVD > Reviews > A Stunner Darkly!

Author's product rating:   

Did you enjoy it?	Loved it
Story	Outstanding
Characters / Performances	Good
Special Effects	Outstanding
How does it compare to similar films?	Good

Advantages:	Saddening, deep and surreal
Disadvantages:	Can be difficult to follow

Recommend to potential buyers:

yes

Full review

“What does a scanner see?
Into the head? Into the heart?
Does it see into me? Clearly? Or darkly?”

Originally having gone to see this film at the cinema, I was debating about what to expect from Richard Linklater’s ‘A Scanner Darkly’. I had been utterly intruiged by the ghoulish advertising and darkly presented posters, but lingering in the back of my mind was the constant image of what Linklater had directed so far. From the family orientated, metal-headed antics in ‘School of Rock’ to the light hearted underdog story of ‘Bad News Bears’ a year later, his films are usually great for a laugh. This preconcieved opinion of what was to come was soon shattered, as I realised that this was not going to be another funny but forgettable Channel 5 afternoon film, but a dark and challenging masterwork, that would turn Linklater’s reputation on its head. Cor!

PLOT:

Anaheim, California, and ‘seven years from now’ America has lost the war on drugs. Twenty percent of the population are addicted to ‘Substance D’- otherwise known as ‘Death’. It destroys the link between the two hemispheres of the brain, leading to complete mental deterioration and, as increasingly explored in this film, paranoia.

“Substance D. "D" is dumbness, and despair, desertion-desertion of you from your friends, your friends from you, everyone from everyone. Isolation and loneliness... and hating and suspecting each other, "D" is finally death. Slow death from the head down.”

Keanu Reeves is Robert Arctor, an undercover narcotics agent assigned to infiltrate the drug supply chain. On the one hand, he is ‘Fred’, a non-existant codename, dressed in a ‘scramble suit’ to conceal his identity. He is ‘the ultimate everyman’. On the other, Arctor is a drug user and a lowlife, friends only to those he is monitoring. He lives in a beaten down house with his ‘friends’ Jim Barris (Robert Downey Jr.), Freck (Rory Cochrane) and Luckman (Woody Harrelson). Arctor develops a love interest in fellow addict ‘Donna Hawthorn’ (Winona Ryder) and is frustrated as Donna refuses Arctor's sexual advances and Arctor's roommates question the nature of their relationship.

Arctor soon finds himself increasingly addicted to Substance D, as his mental state deteriorates into paranoia and despair, especially when the time comes for him to become a ‘Scanner’, and spy on himself…

“Everything is not going to be OK”

From the graphic and disturbing opening images of Freck’s ‘aphid’ infestation, accompanied by the teary twang of guitar, it becomes clear that the viewer is in for a two hour rollercoaster ride of horror and surreality. To some, this will be a treat. Fans of ‘Donnie Darko’ and ‘Fight Club’, will feel very much at home with the concepts and feelings associated with this film, but many will find it just too dark. There are some moments that will cause even the most accustomed of cult-veterans to recoil in sadness and shock.

The plot is flawless and challenging throughout, designed to keep the viewer thinking. The happenings are never anything less than inspiring, thought provoking and moving. With more twists and turns than the ‘Sixth Sense’, the plot unravels brilliantly along with Arctor’s mind, until its mind-blowing and saddening climax. Having said that, the plot is incredibly complex and difficult to follow, and may take several viewings to fully understand and appreciate. Brilliant, but complex almost to the point of unintelligability.
Underappreciated also is just how funny this film can be. Granted, it’s obviously not a comedy, but the drug-induced ramblings and insane actions of the housemates can be darkly funny, often raising a wry smile.
But what did disappoint for me was the underdevelopment of Donna and Arctor’s relationship. I feel that too much focus was placed upon solely Arctor as a character, without exploring the connections he had with the people around him, though this is absolutely understandable when having to condence a jam-packed and relentlessly relevant novel into a two hour slot.

CHARACTERS:

The characters are wonderful and diverse, and every actor and actress gives an absorbing performance.

Keanu Reeves, an established veteran of surreal sci-fi, doesn’t fail to impress, playing both Arctor and Fred with distinction. He creates a perplexing, deep character in Arctor.

Winona Ryder, depite playing one of the films smaller roles, is fantastic as ‘Donna’, and Harrelson and Downey Jr. invent hilarious and eccentric characters that never fail to raise a smile, contributing very well to the feel of the film. No doubt though that this is Reeves’ show, as most of the screen time is on him, even taking long periods out of the brain-razzling action to deliver a monologue from Bob’s brain.

SOUND:

The score was provided by composer Graham Reynolds, and featured a mainly acoustic score, that worked really well with the darkness of the film. The composition and recording process took over one and a half years (the unusual time allotment was due to the film's time-consuming animation process) and it shows- being well thought out and gripping throughout. Impressively, the film features several Radiohead songs, (‘Fog’, ‘Pull Revolving Doors’, ‘Skatterbrain (Four Tet Mix)", ‘The Amazing Sounds Of Orgy’ and ‘Arpeggio’) as Thom Yorke worked very closely with Reynolds in the film.
Unsurprisingly then, the music is dark and atmospheric, to the point of disturbing, making it rather fitting.

SPECIAL EFFECTS:

But what truly makes this film stand out from the rest is the use of ‘Interpolated Rotoscoping’. It sounds very scary, but this is what turns conventional live-action footage into beautiful, animated stylization. This is no cartoon though, instead, the Rotoscoping accentuates the arbstractness of the film. It is haunting to watch, without detracting from the film. Shown off particularly with the ‘scramble suit’- a mix of millions of images of different people, forming a ‘vague blur’ of faces and features, the effects are beautiful. They won the OFCS AWARD for BEST ANIMATION TECHNOLOGY last year, and quite rightly so.
The idea of Rotoscoping is particularly effective as it makes you feel like you are a ‘scanner’, spying on the characters, This makes for very absorbing viewing, and well worth the 500 hours of animation that was put into it. Superb.

DIFFERENCES TO THE BOOK:

Of course, this film is an adaptation of Philip K. Dick’s 1977 novel of the same name. Editing has meant for some changes to the original version, listed as follows:

• The film opens with ‘seven years from now’ ; this would mean it takes place in 2013, whereas the original text was set in 1994. This is an indication of how this film has been updated and revamped for modern viewers. Eg. some of the technology has been updated - cell phones replace pay phones.
• The novel's characters of Jerry Fabin and Charles Freck are combined into Freck.
• All mention of the 'cephalochromoscope' (or 'cephscope'), a recreational device belonging to Arctor which he suspects as having been sabotaged, has been removed.
• A number of subplots were not included in the film, such as Arctor visiting a female friend affected by domestic violence, Donna's hate towards the Coca-Cola company and Arctor's attempt to admit himself to New Path in hopes of tracking down a drug smuggler believed to be hiding there.

SPECIAL FEATURETTES:

The special features are also very entertaining.
The following extras are included: the theatrical trailer; ‘Weight of the Line,’ an animation tales feature; ‘One Summer in Austin,’ a documentary on the filming of the movie; and audio commentary from Keanu Reeves, director Richard Linklater, producer Tommy Pallotta and Phillip K. Dick's daughter, Isa Dick Hackett.

The featurettes offer an interesting insight into how and where ‘A Scanner Darkly’ was filmed, as does the cast and crew commentary. It is always interesting to hear what Linklater has to say about his work, and his ideas about the film are enlightening. It was also fantastic to hear the voice of Dick’s daughter, Isa, and to get a look at Philip K Dick’s probable thoughts about the film adaptation, and her presence sparks and interesting discussion about the process of adapting the film from the novel, which may not have been included in her absence.

But by far the best feature was the one on Rotoscoping. It was truly wonderful to see how the animated characters were brought to life, and really makes you appreciate the time and effort that went into creating this film, both in and out of the animation studio.

In conclusion, ‘A Scanner Darkly’ is nothing short of revolutionary! Granted, it will not be everyone’s cup of tea, but I found it saddening, beautiful, moving, enlightening and darkly funny. I came out with a lot of questions in my mind (and a slight throbbing!), and came to look at the world differently ever since. It is evidently a cult-classic in the making, and is nothing short of thought-provoking. If you want to watch a film that is dark and inspirational, but don’t mind sacrificing a lot of brain energy, time rewatching and a neurofen or two, then look no further than ‘A Scanner Darkly’.

SPECIFICATION:

Amazon.co.uk
£4.98 inc. delivery
Classification: 15 years
Studio: Warner Home Video
DVD Release Date: 22 Jan 2007
Run Time: 120 minutes
Number of discs: 1

DVD Features:
• Main Language: English
• Available Audio Tracks: Dolby Digital Surround 5.1
• Director's commentary
• One Summer in Austin: The Story of Filming ‘A Scanner Darkly’
• The Weight of the Line: Animation Tales
• Theatrical trailer