A Scanner Darkly

by Ari

In my article discussing what I feel are the most overlooked American films of the decade so far, I mentioned how Richard Linklater was arguably the second most underrated filmmaker working today behind David Gordon Green.  I sincerely hope his newest film, A Scanner Darkly, gives him the attention and praise he most certainly deserves, even if it’s highly unlikely.  A film like this is usually destined for a small embrace among a more specific audience, and even Linklater himself has stated that he had no delusions about A Scanner Darkly being mainstream.  It would be an optimistic moment for the industry and audiences if a film this smart and thought-provoking somehow broke through and became a success.  A Scanner Darkly is daring and complex, the exact sort of singular filmmaking Linklater has gained a strong reputation for.  This has been a fairly uninspired summer (and year), so it’s gratifying to see something so fresh and ambitious come out in theaters again.  This is a movie about ideas and themes (it is Philip K. Dick after all), and Linklater has the audacity to challenge the audience with layer upon layer of dense storytelling.

In the not too distant future, the war on drugs is lost and society is greatly affected by it.  A new drug, called Substance D, is addicting people right and left, causing mass confusion, paranoia, and death.  Or should I say, doom, despair, desolation, and death.  What’s interesting about this not-too-distant future society, is that the implication seems to be that everyone is hooked on this drug, whether they realize it or not.  Substance D is not only a complete release from reality, it’s control, manipulation, and oppression.  Which, of course, are the common themes of Philip K. Dick’s body of work.  To combat this drug, undercover police officers called ‘Scanners’ use the newest advances in technology to uncover and arrest the dealers.  This technology includes 24 hour surveillance and a uniform called the ‘scramble suit’ which conceals your true identity by constantly blinking into millions of different faces.

Fred (Keanu Reeves) is one of these Scanners, and he’s assigned to follow the daily activities of Robert Arctor, who is considered to be a supplier of Substance D.  What’s interesting about this assignment is that Arctor is in fact Fred, so he ends up investigating himself.  Arctor and his friends Barris (Robert Downey), Luckman (Woody Harrelson), Freck (Rory Cochrane), and girlfriend Donna (Winona Ryder) are major abusers of Substance D, to the point of hallucination, depression, and ceaseless paranoia.

Much of the film is spent with circular, bizarre conversations.  These sequences are not exposition, but strange and disjointed conversations by people who can’t quite tell whether or not things are real or imaginary.  This goes for the viewer as well.  A Scanner Darkly has an appropriately hallucinative atmosphere that questions the nature of reality.  The fascinating rotoscoped animation gives the film an unsettling and dangerous edge, perfectly matching the disturbing nature of the story.  This film deals with several powerful thematic elements, from the aforementioned and classical sci-fi concept of questioning reality, to issues of privacy and terror, to anti-establishment, government controlled manipulation.  The plot doesn’t truly reveal itself until the last half, but it’s not with a common, unsatisfying shocker gimmick that has plagued certain films in the past.  Like many of Philip K. Dick’s novels, the final layers of control are unveiled late in the story, for the bleakest and most depressing effects.  A Scanner Darkly isn’t afraid to explore the darker problems within our society, and that ambition is most definitely notable.

The animation is less exaggerated here than in Linklater’s previous rotoscoped feature, Waking Life, but it is crisper and more detailed.  Rotoscoping isn’t the most easily accessible visual style, but it works extremely well with A Scanner Darkly’s not so easily accessible content.  The Scramble Suit is an incredible image - one that displays the mighty fine work these animators accomplished with this film. Rotoscoping itself has advanced drastically since the work of Ralph Bakshi, and Linklater found an intriguing way to match it with the right material. Most admirable about this technique is how Linklater has reinvigorated the animated film for adult audiences in this country.  Animation isn’t restricted to a family demographic, and Linklater proves how artful and sophisticated it can be.  A Scanner Darkly, like Waking Life, is an intellectual work meant for adult audiences, and hopefully the technique doesn’t prevent it from enjoying a larger embrace.

The entire cast does some exceptional work.  Keanu Reeves gives his best performance since The Matrix, holding his own against the flamboyant Robert Downey Jr.  Woody Harrelson and Wynona Ryder are terrific, and Rory Cochrane almost steals the show as the paranoid, delusional, Freck.  The actors have great dialogue to chew on, and they make the most of it. Robert Downey gives the most entertaining and comedic performance I’ve seen so far this year - another excellent role for him following Kiss Kiss Bang Bang. It’s a great cast doing fantastic work.  Even with its dark thematic elements, A Scanner Darkly is often times hilarious, and the smart screenplay and lively performances provide a great deal of laughter.  Of course, that’s Linklater.  He understands how to strike the perfect balance of humor and drama.

A Scanner Darkly is one of Linklater’s finest achievements - a demanding work of intelligent, challenging fiction that is sure to place highly among the notable sci-fi films of recent years.