A Scanner Darkly (2006)

Director:

Richard Linklater

Writers (WGA):

Philip K. Dick (novel)
Richard Linklater (screenplay)

Release Date:

28 July 2006 (USA)

Genre:

Animation | Crime | Drama | Mystery | Sci-Fi | Thriller

Tagline:

What Does A Scanner See?

Plot:

An undercover cop in a not-too-distant future becomes involved with a dangerous new drug and begins to lose his own identity as a result.

Plot Keywords:

Drugs | Substance | Substance D | Undercover | Undercover Cop

Awards:

2 wins & 6 nominations

Cast

Rory Cochrane	...	Charles Freck
Robert Downey Jr.	...	James Barris
Mitch Baker	...	Brown Bear Lodge Host
Keanu Reeves	...	Bob Arctor
Sean Allen	...	Additional Fred Scramble Suit Voice (voice)
Cliff Haby	...	Voice from Headquarters (voice)
Steven Chester Prince	...	Cop
Winona Ryder	...	Donna Hawthorne
Natasha Valdez	...	Waitress
Mark Turner	...	Additional Hank Scramble Suit Voice (voice)
Woody Harrelson	...	Ernie Luckman
Chamblee Ferguson	...	Medical Deputy #2
Angela Rawna	...	Medical Deputy #1
Eliza Stevens	...	Arctor's Daughter #1
Sarah Menchaca	...	Arctor's Daughter #2
Melody Chase	...	Arctor's Wife
Leif Anders	...	Freck Suicide Narrator (voice)
Turk Pipkin	...	Creature
Alex Jones	...	Street Prophet
Lisa Marie Newmyer	...	Connie
Wilbur Penn	...	Medical Officer #1
Ken Webster	...	Medical Officer #2
Hugo Perez	...	New Path Staff Member #1
Rommel Sulit	...	New Path Staff Member #2
Dameon Clarke	...	Mike
Christopher Ryan	...	New Path Resident #1
Leila Plummer	...	New Path Resident #2
Jason Douglas	...	New Path Farm Manager
Marco Perella	...	Donald
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Jack Cruz	...	Police Officer (uncredited)

Directed by
Richard Linklater

Writing credits (WGA)
Philip K. Dick		(novel "A Scanner Darkly")
Richard Linklater		(screenplay)

Produced by
George Clooney	....	executive producer
Ben Cosgrove	....	executive producer
Erin Ferguson	....	co-producer
Jennifer Fox	....	executive producer
Sara Johnson	....	associate producer (as Sara Greene)
Tommy Pallotta	....	producer
John Sloss	....	executive producer
Jonah Smith	....	producer
Steven Soderbergh	....	executive producer
Erwin Stoff	....	producer
Anne Walker-McBay	....	producer
Palmer West	....	producer

Original Music by
Graham Reynolds

Cinematography by
Shane F. Kelly		(director of photography)

Film Editing by
Sandra Adair

Casting by
Denise Chamian

Production Design by
Bruce Curtis

Set Decoration by
Joaquin A. Morin

Costume Design by
Kari Perkins

Makeup Department
Katina Gilkey	....	hair stylist
Darylin Nagy	....	hair department head
Darylin Nagy	....	makeup department head

Production Management
Susan Kirr	....	unit production manager
Ravi D. Mehta	....	executive in charge of production (uncredited)

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Vincent Palmo Jr.	....	first assistant director
Andrew Payer	....	second second assistant director
Katie Tull	....	second assistant director (as Kathleen Tull)

Art Department
Rodney Becker	....	lead
Brad Blei	....	set dresser (as Bradley Blei)
Raymond Consing	....	storyboard artist
Fred Daniel	....	art department coordinator
Melanie Ferguson	....	on-set dresser
Erick Garibay	....	assistant property master
Ian Sebastian Kasnoff	....	construction coordinator
Kara Sutherlin	....	lead scenic
Pierre Vial	....	set dresser
Stefan Wilcox	....	property master
Bart Bryant	....	carpenter (uncredited)
Jarrette Moats	....	property assistant (uncredited)

Sound Department
Ethan Andrus	....	production sound mixer
Gregg Barbanell	....	foley artist
Wayne Bell	....	additional sound effects editor
Paul Berolzheimer	....	additional sound effects editor
Ajae Clearway	....	adr editor
Ajae Clearway	....	dialogue editor
Tom Hammond	....	sound designer
Tom Hammond	....	sound re-recording mixer
Tom Hammond	....	supervising sound editor
Justin Hennard	....	sound designer
Justin Hennard	....	sound effects editor
Skip Lievsay	....	sound re-recording mixer
Thomas J. O'Connell	....	adr mixer (as Tom O'Connell)
Jeremy Peirson	....	sound re-recording mixer (as Jeremy Pierson)
Jason Piatt	....	foley mixer
Tom Sturgis	....	boom operator (as Tom 'Sturge' Sturgis)
Michael Swanner	....	utility sound
Peter Germansen	....	sound engineer: ICON (uncredited)
Bob Kellough	....	additional sound effects recordist (uncredited)

Special Effects by
Steve Krieger	....	special effects coordinator
Randy E. Moore	....	special effects coordinator (uncredited)

Visual Effects by
Richard Gordoa	....	visual effects supervisor
Josh Novak	....	lead compositor: main title sequence
Jerry Poynton	....	digital post-production manager (as Jerome Poynton)
Ruedi Schick	....	digital film recording supervisor
Randy Cole	....	3D modeler and compositor (uncredited)
Bob Sabiston	....	animation software (uncredited)

Camera and Electrical Department
Tod Campbell	....	loader
Matt Cowan	....	best boy grip
Matt Lankes	....	still photographer
Mikey Reyes	....	grip
Robert B. Reynolds	....	chief lighting technician
Peter Simonite	....	first assistant camera
Josh Taylor	....	assistant chief lighting technician
Atom Vyvial	....	key grip (as Aaron Atom Vyvial)
Ralph Watson	....	camera operator
Patrick B. Coate	....	camera production assistant (uncredited)
Wes Dixon	....	electrical intern (uncredited)
Donald R. Howe Jr.	....	additional second assistant camera (uncredited)
Peter Simonite	....	camera operator (uncredited)
Ezra Venetos	....	grip (uncredited)

Animation Department
Paul Adam	....	animator
Paul Ahern	....	animator
Sterling Allen	....	lead animator
Kevin Ang	....	animator
Jason Archer	....	head of animation
Joseph R. Barker	....	animator
Benjamin Bays	....	animator (as Ben Bays)
Paul Beck	....	head of animation
Blue Bliss	....	assistant lead animator
John Bruch	....	animator
John Buckley	....	animator
Evan Cagle	....	lead animator
Mike Cervantes	....	additional animator
Jason Chalker	....	animator
Chris Chappell	....	additional animator
Randy Cole	....	additional animator
Melita Curphy	....	animator
Nick Derington	....	lead animator
Matt Drake	....	animator
Jennifer Drummond	....	additional animator
Peat Duggins	....	animator
Pat Duke	....	animator
Ben Dunn	....	animator
Rahab El Ewely	....	animator (as Rahab El Ewaly)
Holly Fisher	....	additional animator
Michael P. Garza	....	animator
Greg Geisler	....	animator
Justin Goldwater	....	animator
Zach Hall	....	animator
Ryan Hennessee	....	animator
Dean Hsieh	....	animator
Sherard Jackson	....	animator
Kennon James	....	animator
Christopher S. Jennings	....	lead animator (as C.S. Jennings)
Nathan Jensen	....	animator
Mike Layne	....	additional animator
Vivian Le	....	animator (as Vivian P. Le)
Monique Ligons	....	additional animator
Amalia Litsa	....	animator
David Marquez	....	animator
Jonathan Marshall	....	additional animator
Lance Myers	....	lead animator
Katy O'Connor	....	additional animator
Harris O'Malley	....	additional animator
Ryan A. Parker	....	assistant lead animator (as Ryan Parker)
John Paul	....	animator
Kevin Peake	....	animator
Glenn Perkins	....	animator
Thomas P. Reidy III	....	animator
Joseph Riley	....	animator
Bob Sabiston	....	head of animation
Susan Sabiston	....	animator
Aaron Sacco	....	animator
F. Joseph Santori	....	animator
Leah Sharpe	....	animator
Dan Shuta	....	animator
Craig Matthew Staggs	....	animator
Jason Stout	....	animator
J. Michael Stovall	....	animator
Patrick Thornton	....	additional animator
Alicia Traveria	....	animator
Mary Varn	....	additional animator
Michael Veroni	....	animator
Lorin Wood	....	animator
Mike Wood	....	animator
Kathryn Yingling	....	additional animator

Casting Department
Scout Masterson	....	casting associate: Los Angeles
Beth Sepko	....	local casting
Sheila Steele	....	casting associate: Austin

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Melanie Armstrong Fletcher	....	costume supervisor

Editorial Department
Christopher Roldan	....	first assistant editor
David Gil Jr.	....	post-production assistant (uncredited)
Ryan Gronquist	....	post-production assistant (uncredited)
Charles Harrison	....	editorial intern (uncredited)
Allegra Kolber	....	apprentice editor (uncredited)
Kate Ridgway	....	editorial intern (uncredited)
Yusef Svacina	....	post-production assistant (uncredited)
Jessica Tong	....	editorial intern (uncredited)

Music Department
Bruce Colson	....	musician: violin
Jonathan Dexter	....	musician: cello
Jason Elinoff	....	musician: viola
The Golden Arm Trio	....	featured performer: score
Erik Grostic	....	musician: upright bass
Buzz Moran	....	score mixer
Buzz Moran	....	score recordist
Nic Ratner	....	music supervisor
Graham Reynolds	....	musician: various instruments
Graham Reynolds	....	score mixer
Graham Reynolds	....	score recordist

Transportation Department
Ronnie D. Chambers	....	transportation coordinator (as Ronald D. Chambers)
Russell E. Scott	....	picture cars
Jesus F. Tellez	....	transportation captain

Other crew
Molly Ainsley	....	additional staff assistant
Peter Atherton	....	location manager
Janey Bergam	....	assistant: Keanu Reeves
Shannon Blackburn	....	production secretary
Dominic Cancilla	....	production coordinator
Eric Cepeda	....	additional staff assistant
Casey Chapman	....	additional staff assistant (as Lauren Casey Chapman)
Erik Davis	....	consultant
Gil Dean	....	animal wrangler
Lisa Del Dotto	....	assistant craft service
Wes Dixon	....	additional staff assistant
Colin Edlund	....	craft service
Sonia Farrell	....	assistant: Woody Harrelson
Michael P. Garza	....	title designer: end titles
David Gil Jr.	....	additional staff assistant (as David Gil)
Leigh Green	....	additional staff assistant
Erin Hagerty	....	assistant: Mr. Smith and Mr. West
Heather Hanna	....	additional staff assistant
Charles Harrison	....	additional staff assistant
Marshall Hopkins	....	additional staff assistant
Katherine Isham	....	additional staff assistant
Marike Jainchill	....	staff assistant (as Marike Z. Jainchill)
Tatiana Jitkoff	....	additional staff assistant
Jesse Johnston	....	executive: Thousand Words
Allegra Kolber	....	staff assistant (as Allegra McCoy)
Sarah Lankenau	....	staff assistant
Jonathan Lethem	....	consultant
Stephanie Lewis	....	executive: Thousand Words
Stephen Light	....	assistant production office coordinator
Melody Lloyd	....	set medic
Taylor Lovell	....	additional staff assistant
Kirsten McMurray	....	staff assistant
Morgan Miles	....	production accountant
Jarrette Moats	....	additional staff assistant
Kimberly Murphy	....	staff assistant (as Kim Murphy)
Jubal Palmer	....	assistant: Winona Ryder
Jennifer Ramirez	....	additional staff assistant
Mike Reyes	....	additional staff assistant
Jimmy Rich	....	assistant: Robert Downey Jr.
Kate Ridgway	....	additional staff assistant
Brandon Roberts	....	additional staff assistant
Ryan Ross	....	additional staff assistant
Brooke Satrazemis	....	script supervisor
Steven Schaefer	....	additional staff assistant
Scott Snyder	....	additional staff assistant
Yusef Svacina	....	additional staff assistant
Jessica Tong	....	additional staff assistant
Sef Tsauousis	....	staff assistant
Fernanda Valentina	....	additional staff assistant
Dustin Weaver	....	assistant location manager
Tara Weaver	....	support staff: Woody Harrelson
Jenni Wieland	....	assistant production accountant
Tracey Zemitis	....	unit publicist
David Appelbaum	....	office intern (uncredited)
Loreto Caro-Valdes	....	intern: production office (uncredited)
Tai-San Choo	....	office intern (uncredited)
Jeff Guerrero	....	additional set production assistant (uncredited)
Sandy Lizaola-Hernandez	....	physical production coordinator (uncredited)
Jamie Preyer	....	location intern (uncredited)
Vernon Smith	....	office intern (uncredited)

Thanks
Bobby Bates	....	thanks
Louis Mackey	....	dedicatee: in eternal memory

Production Companies

• Warner Independent Pictures (WIP) (presents)
• Thousand Words (in association with)
• Section Eight
• Detour Filmproduction
• 3 Arts Entertainment

Distributors

• Warner Independent Pictures (WIP) (2006) (USA) (theatrical)
• Fox-Warner (2006) (Switzerland) (theatrical)
• Warner Bros. (2006) (France) (theatrical)
• Warner Bros. (2006) (Japan) (theatrical)
• Warner Bros. (2006) (Philippines) (theatrical)
• Argentina Video Home (2007) (Argentina) (DVD)
• Argentina Video Home (2007) (Argentina) (VHS)
• Warner Bros. (2006) (Argentina) (all media)
• Warner Home Video (2007) (Canada) (DVD)
• Warner Home Video (2007) (Switzerland) (DVD)
• Warner Home Video (2007) (Germany) (DVD)
• Warner Home Video (2006) (USA) (DVD)

Other Companies

• Austin Studios  special thanks
• Chapman/Leonard Studio Equipment  cranes and dollies
• City of Austin, Texas, The  special thanks (as City of Austin)
• Electric Shepherd Productions  special thanks
• Falco Ink.  publicity
• Fujifilm  motion picture products
• Kodak  motion picture products
• Lakeshore Records  soundtrack
• Locations Catering  catering (as Locations Catering)
• Picture Mill, The  main titles
• Roger Beasley Mazda  courtesy of (Mazda Miata)
• Scarlet Letters  end titles
• Soundcrafter  sound post-production
• Swiss Effects  digital film recording
• Texas Film Commission  special thanks

MPAA:

Rated R for drug and sexual content, language and a brief violent image.

Runtime:

100 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital | DTS | SDDS

Certification:

Ireland:16 | UK:15 | Australia:M | Finland:K-15 | Italy:T | Singapore:M18 (cut) | New Zealand:R13 | Argentina:16 | USA:R (certificate #42344) | South Korea:15 | Malaysia:18PL (DVD) | Brazil:16 | Japan:R-15 | Germany:16 | Canada:14A (Canadian Home Video rating) | Sweden:15 | Norway:15 (TV rating)

Filming Locations:

Austin, Texas, USA

Company:

Warner Independent Pictures (WIP)

Trivia:

Philip K. Dick's daughters gave director Richard Linklater their father's personal copy of the novel "A Scanner Darkly" when he completed this movie.

Goofs:

Continuity: When Bob leaves Donna's apartment after she rejected him because of "snoring too much coke", Donna runs after him barefoot. In the parking lot however she suddenly wears sandals.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Freck: [on the phone] I looked them up. They're aphids. They're in my hair, on my skin, in my lungs. And the pain, Barris, it's unreasonable. They're all over the place. Oh, they've completely gotten Millie too.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Filmography: Keanu Reeves" (2005)

Soundtrack:

Fog

Absolute best adaptation of book to screen.

1 Corinthians 13:12

"For now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known".

In 1977 I was digging through a pile of books that had their front covers pulled off and thrown in the garbage. In this pile I found a book by Phillip K Dick.

That book happened to be A Scanner Darkly.

This made me pick up the book and take it home and read it. And what I read was one of the most depressing stories I have ever read in my life: I can honestly say that at the time I read it, I really did not have any idea what Dick was trying to say. But for some reason, I was attracted to the story and I read the whole book in about 2 days. 30 Years Later, I believe I understand now. Which validates the bible verse on which this whole work is based: What we do not understand will eventually be revealed to us.

Part of this film has to do with how we perceive reality, another part touches on what we do to lessen our daily pain. I really was not surprised by how the story ended. The book is not an exciting (and boring) tale of space opera, but it is one of the best works of speculative fiction ever written. And as such, it had become one of the most important books I have ever read.

And so I was surprised to find that this book was being filmed. I was interested in it when I saw that it was following the styles of such films as Sin City, Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow, and Linklatter's "Waking Life" - However, I did not know how deep the animation well was.

As I watched this story unfold, I saw that this film used more of Phillip K Dick's actual dialog than any other film based on his works. As I kept watching, I understood that the story that was filmed was almost exactly the same story I read 30 years ago. No gunfights, explosions, or chase scenes were inserted. There is only one large liberty Linklatter took with the story: It is at the end of the film, I do not think Phillip K Dick fans would mind this small liberty taken. I can't say what it is, due to it being a spoiler.

If anyone is scratching their head after seeing this film, they ought to avoid films with substance and go back to the Phillip K Dick books that have been destroyed: Bladerunner, Total Recall, and Impostor, which bear little or no resemblance to the original books and short stories they were taken from.

I always judge movies on their Honesty. This one is an Honest movie. The story it tells is a hard one to swallow: Do you believe in what you see, or do you see what you believe? Where does reality divert from hallucination? Although this film deals with drug use and abuse, it also challenges our perception of what is going on around us.

The animation is something else: It is a marvel. I was surprised to see how it was done, each frame animated by hand. If any other story was being told, this would not have worked.

Coming back to this comment after a couple of years, there is really nothing else I can add to this comment. This film is visually well done, which allows the viewer to absorb the story that is being told.