Cool News
The Infamous Jedger Hoover and Harbinger Plug Into A SCANNER DARKLY!!
SPOILER ALERT !!
The Infamous Jedger Hoover and Harbinger sent in these reviews from a recent screening of A SCANNER DARKLY, at Brandeis University.
I’ve been curious to see where this film would fall on the Phillip K. Dick Adapt-O –Meter; previous ports of Dick’s material-to-film have been all over the place.
Took me a long time to see the warm heart buried inside of BLADE RUNNER’s cold exterior; I respect the film now more than ever (where’s that damned super-mega-DVD with 900 trillion different edits of the film on it? WB has been promising it for years! At least now it’ll be in HD, I guess…).
I thought TOTAL RECALL was a blast (although it’s a bit repetitive…run…shoot…fight… and Goldsmith kinda ripped off Basil Poledouris’ CONAN THE BARBARIAN theme). I really miss that Paul Verhoven.
Some of MINORITY REPORT was rather well done, but the gimmick dried up for me pretty quickly.
PAYCHECK came from an apparently lobotomized John Woo, whose unaired pilot for the LOST IN SPACE redux series wasn’t the disaster I expected it to be - although I understand why it didn’t get picked up. His name has been attached to a new MASTERS OF THE UNIVERSE movie. That’s…either insanity, or genius.
Anyone remember SCREAMERS with Peter Weller?
All things being equal, that’s a lot of Dick to compete with (ahem). If early indications are correct, sounds like Richard Linklater met the challenge quite nicely.
Here is The Infamous Jedger Hoover…
I just came from the "world premiere" of Richard Linklater's newest flick, A Scanner Darkly, here at Brandeis University.
Since they were only letting in the first 200 people, my friends and I made sure that we were in line in advance, and were some of the first people into the theater, and luckily so... the entire place filled up in a matter of minutes, leaving a huge crowd disappointed outside. Before screening the movie, they introduced the producer of the movie, Erwin Stoff (producer of movies such as The Matrix, Constantine, and the upcoming I Am Legend), who would be available for questions after the screening. Finally, they dimmed the lights and began the movie.
The first thing that struck me about the movie wasn't anything at all to do with the movie... it's that before the movie actually started, they ran about 3 different warnings for people who were thinking of taping and pirating the film. The irony of a movie about government control and manipulation opening with the (attempted) exertion of government control made several people in the audience laugh.
As for the movie itself, it's going to be tough to sell to audiences as it seems to tell the same story through a few different methods. At a basic plot level, it is the story of a man (Keanu) who both works for the government as a specialized undercover cop by the generic name of "Fred," and is an addict named Bob Arctor who mingles daily with a group of friends and other addicts. As the movie unfolds, Bob delves deeper into the subconscious that his addiction creates.
The opening images of the movie are of Rory Cochrane (Lucas from Empire Records, or Ron Slater from Linklater's Dazed and Confused) undergoing a severe hallucination, where aphids just appear everywhere he can scratch. It is both funny and disturbing to see him freaking out as he imagines bugs crawling off of his dog, to which he responds by bringing the dog into the shower with him. Here Linklater gives us the ideal addict- a man who is so caught up in his addiction that he tries to collect the aphids in a jar to show his friend Barris (Robert Downy, Jr., obviously having fun playing the condescending sleaze of the group). After this scene, the first hour and 15 mins. or so of the movie is established entirely with dialogue, and very little in the way of exposition or explanation as to what is happening, or as to the world that these characters live in.
We are given that it is set in Orange County in the near future, and that there is a drug that has 20% of the population addicted. We are shown how as a scanner, Bob must wear a suit that not only disguises his voice but completely disidentifies him as a single person (in an amazing use of rotoscoping the suits are designed so that there is a stream of partial body parts being projected in a constantly-shifting jumble of appearance). And we are shown how when he goes home, what Bob does is sit around with his friends (the already mentioned Cochrane and Downy Jr., as well as Woody Harrelson playing stoned and energetic with gusto, and Winona Ryder, who deals to them all). Every conversation that Bob has, whether it is with his friends or the co-worker who he shares an office with, establishes a new element to the story. In short, Bob discovers that because of his addiction, his brain is deteriorating and fighting itself for control. For a while this unfolds, and Bob and company go about taking drugs, being watched ("scanned") by the police, and generally attempting to distinguish the real from the fake.
There is one scene that I will begrudgingly call the twist in the plot that changes the direction of the movie entirely. Without giving any spoilers away, I will say that what was an hour and fifteen or so minutes of drug-induced dialogue and reality-bending images that seemed to simply show Bob going about his life is suddenly revealed to have much more depth and connection to the plot than I would have guessed; all the talk about the drug and the massive addiction that has so many people in its grasp takes an ominous turn, and Linklater takes full advantage of the fear that such an addiction creates in people. In the end, I realized that what was advertised was a science-fiction type of movie that would deliver on cool effects, but was very pleasantly surprised to see a movie that details the effects of complete governmental authority exerted in subversive ways against people who not only realize they're being watched but more than often do the watching themselves.
To sum it up, Linklater has made a great film here.... it certainly wont appeal to everyone, and a number of people are going to walk out not quite sure what they just watched. But if nothing else, audiences can rest assured that A Scanner Darkly is a faithful and captivating adaptation of Phillip K. Dick's novel (in fact, the movie closes with a list of people close to Dick that succumbed to addiction, which adds a very personal touch to the film as a whole).
Also, this review came in from Harbinger…
I saw a preview screening tonight of Richard Linklater's new film, A Scanner
Darkly, based on the novel of same name by Philip K. Dick.
It was through my
university just outside of Boston and was billed as a world premiere; I'm not
sure if that's true or not, but given that I haven't heard any buzz about
other screenings, it might very well be. According to one of the producers
of the film, Erwin Stoff, who was on hand, the film we saw was about "95%
complete".
There was some definite spots where the dialogue and sound mixes
were a little clunky, odd Foley noises, etcetera. Also, mouth movements
weren't always synched with the audio, and there was some other minor
animation flubs. The print we saw was a DVD projected on to a large
projection screen, so some of the colors were a little muted and the picture
was not as sharp as it might have been. For the most part, however, it
seemed to be the film as it will be shown in theaters in a few months.
And what a film it was!
Linklater and Keanu Reeves are reportedly both
Philip K. Dick fanatics, but even so, I was surprised at how faithful the
story was to the novel. All of the other film adaptations of Dick works
(Blade Runner, Total Recall, Minority Report), while good films in their own
right, have never captured the tone of the man's writing, sacrificing much of
what made his work unique in favor of action sequences.
A Scanner Darkly
bucks that trend entirely, preserving the plot and even most of the dialogue
practically verbatim from the original text, perfectly creating the air of
paranoia and psychological breakdown that suffuses every page of the novel.
The rotoscope animation also helped greatly in this regard, with the
constantly moving visual landscape complementing and supporting the slow
dissolution of Bob Arctor's (Reeves) world. The film also conveys the
message and themes of Dick's novel very effectively, from the destructive
effects of drugs to the consequences of living in a world where government
surveillance is a constant. It was amazing to see this story on screen and
realize that Dick wrote the novel over thirty years ago; the man's prescience
was remarkable.
Any discussion of the film, however, would not be complete
without mentioning the ensemble cast arrayed in support of Reeves'
protagonist. Robert Downey, Jr., Woody Harrelson, Rory Cochrane and Winona
Ryder turn in bravura performances as Arctor's drugged-out housemates and
friends. Harrelson and Downey in particular steal virtually every scene in
which they appear.
As far as faults, there weren't a great many. As I mentioned, some of the
animation and sound was a little wonky in places. Also, the pacing seemed
off at a few points; I found my attention drifting once or twice during the
middle section of the film, but it was nothing that couldn't be corrected
with some minor and judicious edits.
Some friends of mine that were with me
and are unfamiliar with Dick's work were a little confused by the plotline,
but seemed to get a handle on it after some brief discussion. Overall,
however a thoroughly enjoyable film in its own right and a magnificent
adaptation that it sure to please fans of the novel.
A SCANNER DARKLY should arrive in theaters sometime this Summer, I believe.
-
+ Expand All
-
can't wait to see this.
-
that Abbie Hoffman (the social/political activist convicted on drug charges) made famous? I guess it sort of makes sense then that Brandeis, of all places, was picked for the premier.
-
It's gonna be kickass!
-
I'm super serial.
-
it's too bad warner bros. is opening this movie opposite the pirates of the caribbean sequel and no one will go see it. and then they'll wonder why no one went to see it and be too stupid to realize that it's their own damn fault
-
The producer was present at the screening, and he explained that the weekend POTC 2 opens, Scanner opens on 4 screens, and then they're doing a platform release over the following weeks. So POTC 2 won't really eat into Scanner's profits. Anyway, it doesn't need to make much money; the budget was something like $8 million.
-
Very McGyver-esque. And it had Paul Giamatti in a major supporting role. How could anyone dislike it?
-
But like most other Science Ficton films it degenerated in the end to a guy dodging machine guns and becoming a super-hero. If they made Stranger in a Strange Land, they'd have Valentine Michael Smith carrying a bazooka.
-
The Gary Fleder flick that was originall supposed to be a short film in some anthology but got expanded into ... something. Not sure what. Not a watchable movie, though.
-
It was part of the "Alien Love Triangle" or "Alien Love Trilogy" according to different sources. Of the other two parts, one never got filmed and one got filmed, but shelved when Impostor was "expanded". More detail here : http://tinyurl.com/md6na.
-
They're like pig droppings, only more manbearish.
-
I'm glad to hear that the film follows the book closely...but I'm still pissed that he's using these bullshit visuals...it's unnessesary and distracting - and will alienate many people who would have otherwise given this film a chance..."in fact, the movie closes with a list of people close to Dick that succumbed to addiction, which adds a very personal touch to the film as a whole"...this was how the book ended, with Dick's name on that list...it's really the whole point of the book.
-
He could just grok the bad guys wrongness and make them disappear.
-
Hur! Hur! I'm interested by this as it sounds quite good. PK Dick although ground breaking always seemed dated (marijauna cigarettes etc). It will be nice to see it updated and with whacky visuals. As long as Keanu doesn't say, "Whoah Dude!"
-
I bet that'll be something...heehee... Anyway, movie sounds and looks good! I'm there for this one... what the hell's the release date again?
-
I am Legend is going to blow. Thanks, Will Smith!
-
Er, Blade Runner? What? I mean...what? Blade Runner has ONE action sequence of any real length, plus two or three brief ones, in two hours. It's hardly a John Woo film.
-
Woo wuined the movie with crappy bullet-dodging slow-mo shots. It sounds like something miniscule to get hung up on, but dang man! The rifle is fired from ~25 yards, affleck takes several step to move into and out of the path of the bullet. There was terrible editing, like seeing real time firing of the gun and real-time REACTION to the gun being fired, and THEN s slo-mo save-the-girl shot. So in conclusion: Cool idea movie, mediocre action movie ruined even more by complete nonsense and poor editing.
-
just really bad. Ben Affeck just went for the big paycheck for Paycheck...can't blame him, but he knew it would suck.
-
Thats all. Paycheck was a massive terd.
-
Seriously, read it. It's almost identical.
-
It is the first novel by Dick I have ever read. I had heard his name bandied about in connection to a lot of cool movies, of course, but I never bothered to read him before. Frankly, I am astounded. THis is quite simply the best novel about drug addiction I have ever read. Although many of the refrences are dated and very grounded in the 70's, it is still a very prescient and dead on in anticipating the how ludicrous the "war on drugs" turned out to be. I don't know much about the guy, but Dick must have really had deep experience in the drug culture (something I myself have a passing familiarity with) because he really gets under the skin of an addict and the society from which addicts spring from. Best of all, he remians detached and objective without getting preachy. It's also very funny in a very dark kind of way. This is not Science Fiction, it's a stylized documentary of many people's lives right now. This is truly amazing work. I look forward to reading more of his writings.
-
Verhoeven temped Total Recall with Conan and wanted Goldsmith to do the same thing, so that's why the first 30 seconds of the Total Recall main title sounds so much like Conan. That said, the rest of the score is pure Jerry. Oh, and Imposter was the film that spawned the briefly popular AICN catchphrase "He's got a BOMB IN HIS RIBCAGE!"
-
Yeah, I've got a few versions of the film in various formats already, but I'd LOVE to have a major box-set with docs and behind-the-scenes stuff and 5 cuts of the film with all the deleted scenes, etc. Are you listening WB? (and put it on HD and keep it under $50, please...)
-
www.fractalmatter.com
-
I've had long running debate with friends that Winona has *huge* boobies but hides them really well. I don't know how it got started, and I'm not sure what my point is... Anyone else out there like to comment on the bigness or not of the rack-on-that?
-
Dick did indeed have experience in drug culture. He did increasing amounts of amphetamines throughout most of his career and his home became a druggie flophouse for several years -- the model for Bob's house in the book. All the characters in Scanner are based on real people. If you pick up a copy of his official biography Divine Invasions, you'll find a story almost as interesting as one of his novels. As for future PKD books to read, be careful. In the last few years many of his novels have gone back into print as deluxe paperbacks. The good stuff is amazing, but there's lots of chaff among the wheat. Best bets: "The Three Stigmata of Palmer Eldritch," "Flow My Tears, the Policeman Said," "Ubik," "The Man in the High Castle" -- and his later trilogy, inspired by some 1973 religious visions (really!): "The Divine Invasion," "The Transmigration of Timothy Archer," and the incredible "Valis." I envy you getting to tackle these for the first time!
-
I too liked Screamers and continue to rate it one of the (if not THE) best Phil Dick adaptations out there. Never got the box office success but then neither did Bladerunner and look what happened to THAT film! For those who are interested in reading the original stories that Hollywood never quite seems to get, check it- http://tinyurl.com/orngg
-
...I reckon she's got jumbo mellons she's been hiding from us for years, the minx.
Readers Talkback
User Login
Top Talkbacks
- Whitney Houston 1963 - 2012 -- 383 total posts 380 posts
- New JUDGE DREDD post production footage pops up -- 111 total posts 111 posts
- WTF HOLLYWOOD: SOLARBABIES -- 75 total posts 73 posts
- HANNA's Saoirse Ronan to boss around seven little people -- 71 total posts 68 posts
- Does ‘SNL’ Rhyme With ‘Deschanel’?? Learn Which SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE Vet Hosts After Sexy Zooey!! -- 77 total posts 55 posts
- If the Behind the Scenes Pics of the Day drops her pen, pick it up, but don’t look at her legs or else it will be on your record. -- 54 total posts 48 posts
- There's a STAR TREK video game that is going to lead into JJ's STAR TREK 2 apparently... -- 165 total posts 41 posts
- Herc’s Seen Tonight’s Return Of THE WALKING DEAD!! Discuss Also DOWNTON ABBEY, FEAR FACTOR, PAN AM, ONCE, SIMPSONS, DYNAMITE, LUCK, SHAMELESS, BAIT CAR, THE GRAMMYS And More!! Sunday Is Sweeps Day 11!! -- 41 total posts 41 posts
- To Commemorate The 3D Release Of STAR WARS EPISODE I: THE PHANTOM MENACE, George Lucas Wants You To Know...Greedo Shoots First!! -- 500 total posts 35 posts
- Avid Comic Reader Hercules Does Battle With Tedium During Kevin Smith’s COMIC BOOK MEN! -- 28 total posts 28 posts