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MOVIES / ON DVD / A SCANNER DARKLY
A Scanner Darkly

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A Scanner Darkly (2006)

66%
78%
78%
N/A
N/A
N/A
66 %
Reviews Counted: 164 Fresh: 109  Rotten:55 Average Rating: 6.5/10
 
Consensus: A visual and mind-blowing journey. A faithful adaptation of Philip K. Dick's novel, A Scanner Darkly takes the viewer on a visual and mind-blowing journey into the author's conception of a drug-addled and politically unstable world. more
 
Rated: 15
Runtime: 1 hr 40 mins
Theatrical Release: 18-08-2006
Synopsis:
Richard Linklater's adaptation of Philip K. Dick's classic novel is a challenging, mind-bending experience that cautions about the dangers of excessive drug use as well as the government's capacity to abuse and manipulate power. Using the same interpolated rotoscoping technique that... [More]
Richard Linklater's adaptation of Philip K. Dick's classic novel is a challenging, mind-bending experience that cautions about the dangers of excessive drug use as well as the government's capacity to abuse and manipulate power. Using the same interpolated rotoscoping technique that Linklater employed in 2001's WAKING LIFE, the film is an animated, trippy descent into one man's unraveling mind. Set in the not-too-distant future where a new drug, substance D, has created an epidemic, A SCANNER DARKLY charts the mental unraveling of Bob Arctor (Keanu Reeves). Arctor is an undercover cop who has been assigned to track a group of individuals who include the druggily verbose Barris (Robert Downey Jr.), the hyper-intense Luckman (Woody Harrelson), the ultra-paranoid Freck (Rory Cochrane), and the beautiful Donna (Winona Ryder). As the film unfolds and Arctor finds himself abusing substance D in order to maintain his façade, his mind begins to spin out of control, to the point where he doesn't know what's real and what isn't. Eventually, the truth comes out, leaving Arctor even more numbed. Linklater's surprisingly faithful adaptation of Dick's novel blends humor, drama, and Bob Sabiston's striking animation to deliver a thought-provoking film that will leave viewers as dazed as the film's protagonist. [Less]

Genre: Action/Adventure

Starring: Keanu Reeves, Robert Downey, Woody Harrelson, Winona Ryder, Rory Cochrane

Director: Richard Linklater
Screenwriter: Richard Linklater
Composer: Graham Reynolds

DVD Info

Release:

Oct 4, 2007

[DVD Details]

Blu-ray Features:

  • Widescreen 1.78

Audio:

  • Dolby Surround 5.1 English

Reviews

 
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1 - 20 (sorted by date; UK critics are listed first)
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Ratings Image

this dystopian paranoid thriller tracks addiction in all its highs and lows, and offers a dignified elegy for its misguided casualties.

Full Review | Comment
06/13/07 04:48 AM
Anton Bitel
Channel 4 Film
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
Ratings Image

That Linklater can keep a light tone running through the film in spite of weighty subject matter ensures that A Scanner Darkly is accessible enough for wide audiences without dumbing down for others.

Full Review | Comment
08/26/06 04:03 AM
Joe Utichi
FilmFocus
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It is not a great film, but an insidious one, the sort that gets under your skin. It leaves you scrabbling at aphids, hoping they really are in your imagination.

Full Review | Comment
08/19/06 03:59 AM
Robert Hanks
Independent
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You’ve never seen anything like this before due to some simply astonishing animation.

Full Review | Comment
08/18/06 03:15 AM
David Edwards
Daily Mirror [UK]
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Its intelligence makes it near-essential viewing.

Full Review | Comment
08/18/06 03:15 AM
Kim Newman
Empire Magazine
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
Ratings Image

Engaging, beautifully animated sci-fi thriller with superb performances and a script that manages to be funny, disturbing and thought-provoking all at once.

Full Review | Comment
08/17/06 03:16 AM
Matthew Turner
ViewLondon
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It's never less than incredibly beautiful to watch.

Full Review | Comment
08/15/06 03:16 AM
Paul Arendt
BBC
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A churning passion inside this eerie dramatic thriller really gets under our skin.

Full Review | Comment
07/15/06 04:01 AM
Rich Cline
Shadows on the Wall
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It's one hell of a trip, but a bit of a comedown.

Full Review | Comment
06/13/06 06:08 PM
Wendy Ide
Times [UK]
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Not a triumph, but a clever rendering of the subversive spirit of Philip K Dick.

Full Review | Comment
06/13/06 05:59 PM
Peter Bradshaw
Guardian [UK]
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Linklater may have admired the novel -- I do, too -- but that doesn't necessarily make him the ideal director for this material.

Full Review | Comment
08/13/07 06:03 PM
Rob Gonsalves
eFilmCritic.com
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a trippy movie that doesn't make it easy for the audience to follow. The story is complex and confusing and theanimation keeps the viewer from entering the tale emotionally or intellectually.

Full Review | Comment
07/14/07 11:24 AM
Ted Murphy
Murphy's Movie Reviews
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Click to read the article

Full Review | Comment
07/14/07 04:54 AM
Joe Lozito
Big Picture Big Sound
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Perhaps we are sick only so someone can sell us the cure.

Full Review | Comment
06/28/07 10:14 AM
Kevin Koehler
Pretentious Musings
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The movie isn't for those seeking a run-of-the-mill Hollywood film and it can't be viewed with a trace of passivity.

Full Review | Comment
05/02/07 06:22 AM
Christopher Smith
Bangor Daily News (Maine)
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I don't think the movie will appeal to a wide audience, but I could see it becoming a perennial cult classic, right up there with Repo Man.

Full Review | Comment
04/08/07 11:44 AM
Jette Kernion
Cinematical
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Linklater never pretends that he has all the answers, but he asks the questions in such an interesting, elegant fashion that you'll be glad you came along for the ride.

Full Review | Comment
03/24/07 11:26 AM
Brian Tallerico
UGO
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Has more to recommend it than arty graphics--as befits a movie made from one of Philip K. Dick's most acclaimed novels.

Full Review | Comment
02/22/07 06:50 AM
Rex Roberts
Film Journal International
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Acabando por revelar-se bem mais complexa do que poderíamos supor a princípio, a trama deste filme nos apresenta a um mundo sombrio e ameaçador no qual a máxima "os fins justificam os meios" acaba atingindo dimensões assustadoras.

Full Review | Comment
02/03/07 09:27 PM
Pablo Villaca
Cinema em Cena
Ratings Image

I think this is a film that would have been more effective as live action, rather than animation.

Full Review | Comment
01/18/07 06:47 PM
Robert Roten
Laramie Movie Scope
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