Honestly, I’m not sure if I’m going to be able to tell you either. I saw “A Scanner Darkly” and I think I understood it, but it is just one of those films that defy explanation. One thing, however, is evident. “A Scanner Darkly” is wildly entertaining and bizarrely poignant.

The plot, and I assure you there is one, is this. Seven years from now a drug epidemic is sweeping Los Angeles. The (fictional) drug is a pill called Substance D, and it causes the left and right hemispheres of the brain to battle each other for supremacy, resulting in paranoia, hallucinations, and insanity. We get a first-hand example of these effects in Bob Arctor (Reeves) and his friends, Barris and Luckman (Robert Downey Jr. and Woody Harrelson, both pitch-perfect). All three are hardcore addicts, but Bob is also secretly a scanner, a futuristic undercover cop devoted to ending Substance D forever. As the film progresses, Bob must discover the truth about where the drugs are coming from, while battling his debilitating addiction at the same time.

	"A Scanner Darkly" Entertainment Art Written and directed by Richard Linklater Based on the novel by Philip K. Dick Starring Keanu Reeves, Robert Downey Jr., and Winona Ryder Rated R for drug and sexual content and a brief violent image Released July 7, 2006

Whew! There’s no question that this film is confusing (it’s based on a novel by Philip K. Dick after all, a surefire sign that you’re in for something mind-bending). The film plunges you right into its pre-constructed world with little explanation, and it can be incredibly jarring. That, however, might be precisely the point. In a world where the characters have trouble discerning fantasy from reality, it feels appropriate that the audience should feel the exact same way.

This in no way means that the film still isn’t great fun. Hilarious rants and ramblings are peppered in between plot developments, causing you to laugh at the characters and feel pity for them at the same time. The film is also filled with several striking visuals, most notable of which is the opening image of a man with bugs literally crawling all over his skin. I’m still on the fence about whether or not the use of rotoscope—in which animation is digitally painted on top of real footage of the actors—was actually necessary, but there is no denying that it lends itself nicely to the film’s psychedelic feel.

“A Scanner Darkly,” I’m afraid, does not feature any pirates, nor does it star Johnny Depp (although it could be a distant relative to Depp’s own “Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas”). If you’re looking for something a tad more cerebral, however, this film is definitely your drug of choice.

Comments

Read the Book Written by Guest on 2007-03-04 01:49:41 This is based on a the novel "A Scanner Darkly". It's a science fiction novel that is based on things happening during the Nixon administration. This howvere, is unimportant. To help you understand it you need to know that Keanu's two characters dont know eachother exist because of the pills. So Fred is spying on Arctur and starts to figure it out. When hes told it blows his mind and hes sent to New Path, however this was planned by te police to get evidence on New Path...be open minded when watching it. The ending is the most important.

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