A Scanner Darkly (15)
THE drug-addled writing of sci-fi author Philip K Dick gets a suitably experimental treatment in Richard Linklater s latest, A Scanner Darkly. Using the same rotoscoping technique he used in Waking Life, the film was shot as live action with animation b
THE drug-addled writing of sci-fi author Philip K Dick gets a suitably experimental treatment in Richard Linklater's latest, A Scanner Darkly.
Using the same 'rotoscoping' technique he used in Waking Life, the film was shot as live action with animation being 'painted' on afterward to create a surreal feel.
The story, set in the not-too-distant future, is based around Keanu Reeves as an undercover drug cop who is himself addicted to the latest designer drug, Substance D.
When necessary, he wears a suit which blurs his face, meaning that nobody, sometimes even himself, knows who he really is. Things get even more complicated when he finds himself targeting himself in a big sting.
The cast, many of whom have had their own brushes with substance abuse, includes Robert Downey Jr, Woody Harrelson as fellow stoners and Winona Ryder as the equally-addicted love interest.
There is a certain amount of pseudo waffle going on here with plenty of self-indulgent stoner dialogue but the film does have a certain amount of depth, with subtexts of Big Brother watching you.
Most Read
- 1 Range Rover stopped towing ‘insecure trailer’ on A1(M) in Stevenage
- 2 'Jobs will be lost' if Stevenage TK Maxx fails to relocate
- 3 Police called to concern for welfare after 'youths' seen on Stevenage roof
- 4 Crackdown on anti-social behaviour in Letchworth and Baldock
- 5 Iceland offers over 60s discount on shopping bill every week
- 6 Plans to demolish riding stables to make way for housing
- 7 Man wanted in connection with police officer assault could be in Hitchin
- 8 End of an era? Future of Crucial Crew scheme relies on new co-ordinators
- 9 Can you answer these 10 GCSE questions designed for 16-year-olds?
- 10 Hitchin to host Platinum Jubilee Carnival to honour Queen
While A Scanner Darkly doesn't quite work - there are times when it drags - it is a striking looking film. Other Dick adaptations have ranged from the downright awful to much-admired movies such as Blade Runner and, while A Scanner Darkly isn't at the top of that range, it is at least a good effort.
