Why do you call it an 18 Speed bike when it only has 9 gears?

So, my Philip K. Dick mode is now out. I read the book before my viewing of A Scanner Darkly. It's a fantastic book with vivid characters, vivid ideas, vivid pothead comedy, vivid drama and a very big feeling of touch at the end. It's a highly good read, I suggest it to anyone out there who enjoys reading. All around the book would appeal to any type of reader.

I don't do book reviews all too well but I can do movie reviews.



A Scanner Darkly the movie has the characters from the novel and there paranoid dialogue. There is some of the best dialogue I've ever seen in a movie in this movie. Its highly good for those of us who like our conversations to be laden with many topics, ideas, and comedic tones to make it light hearted. For some of the better moments in the movie, I give my hat too Woody Harrelson. Though he plays just a supportive character, he is the comedic relief and he plays it to perfection. Though he is using great source material of Ernie Luckman. In the book, the character didn't pop as much, but seeing him come to life and as animated as Woody Harrelson was, it was a joy to watch.

The movie follows Bob Arctor (Keanu Reeves) and his close knit gang of fellow dopers. They all do various sorts of drugs but most noted the new Substance D. Taking place in Southern California, Bob Arctor and friends have pretty much a very quiet life of drugs, alcohol, and conversations about everything and nothing. It would seem nothing happens in Arctors life but he holds a secret that he is not only a fellow doper, but also a undercover cop trying to bust drug dealers and criminals. To keep his identity safe, he uses a suit called a Scramble Suit which transforms what he looks like from over a million different set types and it gives him a very monotone voice. All goes well until the Substance D he's been taking beings to adversely affect him so much that he begins to loose his mind and his bearing of reality. Okay plot put aside.

The movie as you can tell is portrayed in a very unorthodox fashion. Its called Rotoscope. What the film makers did was shoot all of the movie as a regular movie and then go back frame by frame and animate it. Its very interesting and for the most part complements the movie quite well with its doped out characters. My only problem is that it began to be a little much in some spots, not enough in others, and more of a distraction than a advancement. Vehicles move in a very awkward fashion, and objects move around as the camera pans, it makes things feel awkward. When everything is still, it looks great, which is why the stills of the movie look fantastic and really intriguing, but when shown moving it is a different experience. Often when the camera panned, the objects in the movie had to compensate and they didn't have the correct shading, light, or just look that felt right. This however also helped in some scenes by the fact that since all of these characters are always on drugs, it gave the audience that sense of being drugged as things move or don't move in what we normally view them too.

The acting is pretty damned good on all accounts. As mentioned before, Woody Harrelson plays perfect perfection, Robert Downy Jr. also plays perfect, Rory Cochrane plays better perfection then the rest as a paranoid drug user who sees bugs that don't exist. Keanu plays like Keanu, it's hit or miss in scenes. I had no real complaints about Winona Ryder. All in all the characters played very well and they had great source material to work from. Many if not all the scenes are lifted directly out of the book. Some things are shown directly to the audience where as the book left it inferred.

My biggest complaint is how the plot developed. Yes I loved the book. The book also however has extensive inner monologues. Because of this, it was very hard for it to be explained in movie senses. So because of this, the transformation that happens to Bob Arctor isn't as pronounced and isn't as profound as it was in the book. Some things should of been done however those who read the book and watched the movie filled it in, I'm positive and certain from my fellow movie goers, those who didn't read the book had a hard time and I was able to fill in the gaps. That is a flaw and its a disappointing one. I suppose a way of remedy for the movie and yes it is a very difficult problem is of course more of the movie. Clocking in only at one hour and forty minutes.

A Scanner Darkly is a good movie. I liked it. It is a great movie however since its only in limited theaters its not as wide spread. But I agree for it to be in limited theaters, its a very out there movie and shown in a very out there way. I doubt mainstream could take it. That is the most unfortunate part about the whole movie. A Scanner Darkly is a dark comedy and tragedy.