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Movies / On DVD / A Scanner Darkly
A Scanner Darkly

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A Scanner Darkly (2006)

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Reviews Counted:166

Fresh:112

Rotten:54

Average Rating:6.5/10

Consensus: 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.

Rated: 15 [See Full Rating] for drug and sexual content, language and a brief violent image

Runtime: 1 hr 40 mins

Genre: Action/Adventure

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... 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. [More]

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

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

Director: Richard Linklater

Director: Richard Linklater
Screenwriter: Richard Linklater
Composer: Graham Reynolds
Studio: Warner Independent

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Reviews for A Scanner Darkly

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1 - 20 (sorted by date; UK critics are listed first)
Bubble View | 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 >> >|
Arrange By:Fresh | Rotten | Comments | Name | Source | Date
 
 
Reviews
Tomatometer Critic Review Category
tomato

Anton Bitel

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

Full Review Source: | comment Comment | Jun., 13 2007 04:48 AM

Channel 4 Film

tomato
4/5

Joe Utichi

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 Source: | comment Comment | Aug., 26 2006 04:03 AM

FilmFocus

tomato
3/5

Robert Hanks

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 Source: | comment Comment | Aug., 19 2006 03:59 AM

Independent

tomato
3/5

David Edwards

You’ve never seen anything like this before due to some simply astonishing animation.

Full Review Source: | comment Comment | Aug., 18 2006 03:15 AM

Daily Mirror [UK]

tomato
4/5

Kim Newman

Its intelligence makes it near-essential viewing.

Full Review Source: | comment Comment | Aug., 18 2006 03:15 AM

Empire Magazine

tomato
4/5

Matthew Turner

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 Source: | comment Comment | Aug., 17 2006 03:16 AM

ViewLondon

tomato
3/5

Paul Arendt

It's never less than incredibly beautiful to watch.

Full Review Source: | comment Comment | Aug., 15 2006 03:16 AM

BBC

tomato
4.5/5

Rich Cline

A churning passion inside this eerie dramatic thriller really gets under our skin.

Full Review Source: | comment Comment | Jul., 15 2006 04:01 AM

Shadows on the Wall

tomato
4/5

Wendy Ide

It's one hell of a trip, but a bit of a comedown.

Full Review Source: | comment Comment | Jun., 13 2006 06:08 PM

Times [UK]

tomato
3/5

Peter Bradshaw

Not a triumph, but a clever rendering of the subversive spirit of Philip K Dick.

Full Review Source: | comment Comment | Jun., 13 2006 05:59 PM

Guardian [UK]

tomato

Fernando F. Croce

Ponders the inherent doom of Slacker transgressors

Full Review Source: | comment Comment | Aug., 30 2009 01:33 PM

CinePassion

N/R

Felix Vasquez Jr.

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: | comment Comment | Apr., 29 2009 03:16 AM

Cinema Crazed

N/R

Peter Keough

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: | comment Comment | Apr., 23 2009 03:16 AM

Boston Phoenix

tomato
3/5

Brian Marder

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: | comment Comment | Nov., 20 2008 03:16 AM

Hollywood.com

N/R

Bob Mondello

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: | comment Comment | Oct., 18 2008 05:32 AM

NPR.org

tomato
3/5

Jim Lane

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: | comment Comment | Aug., 07 2008 03:16 AM

Sacramento News & Review

tomato
6/10

Brandon Fibbs

Too talkie to be legitimately entertaining, too dark to be wholly enjoyable and too muddled to be entirely comprehensible, A Scanner Darkly stands as a creative, if unengaging interpretation of its source materia

Full Review Source: | comment Comment | Feb., 28 2008 02:26 PM

BrandonFibbs.com

tomato
3/5

Rob Gonsalves

Linklater may have admired the novel -- I do, too -- but that doesn't necessarily make him the ideal director for this material.

Full Review Source: | comment Comment | Aug., 13 2007 06:03 PM

eFilmCritic.com

splat
C-

Ted Murphy

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 Source: | comment 2 Comments | Jul., 14 2007 11:24 AM

Murphy's Movie Reviews

splat
2.5/4

Joe Lozito

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: | comment Comment | Jul., 14 2007 04:54 AM

Big Picture Big Sound

 
 
1 - 20 (sorted by date; UK critics are listed first)
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Latest News for A Scanner Darkly

January 09, 2007: Online Film Critics Name Their Year-End Favorites
Hosted right here at the illustrious Rotten Tomatoes is the official website of the Online Film Critics Society, an international group of flick analyzers who put their heads... More...

August 31, 2006: A Taste of What's "Next" for Nicolas Cage
Any time I hear the phrase "movie based on a Philip K. Dick story," I know I have to do a little more research. The next PKD adaptation is Lee Tamahori's... More...

August 08, 2006: Paul Giamatti to Star as Philip K. Dick
He night not be as famous as H.G. Wells or Isaac Asimov, but ask a sci-fi enthusiast what they think of Philip K. Dick, and get ready for a lengthy conversation. The late and... More...

July 24, 2006: Box Office Wrapup: "Pirates" Passes $300M; "Lady" Stumbles
Johnny Depp made this weekend's four new releases walk the plank as his megablockbuster Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest became the first film of the year to spend... More...

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