IMDb > A Scanner Darkly (2006)
A Scanner Darkly
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A Scanner Darkly (2006) More at IMDbPro »

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A Scanner Darkly (2006) -- 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.
A Scanner Darkly (2006) -- 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.
A Scanner Darkly (2006) -- ZuGuide.com - Trailer (Flash)
A Scanner Darkly (2006) -- Trailerfan.com - Trailer (Flash)
A Scanner Darkly (2006) -- Sinematurk - Trailer (Flash)

Overview

User Rating:
7.2/10   37,433 votes
MOVIEmeter: ?
Up 3% in popularity this week. See why on IMDbPro.
Director:
Richard Linklater
Writers (WGA):
Philip K. Dick (novel)
Richard Linklater (screenplay)
Contact:
View company contact information for A Scanner Darkly on IMDbPro.
Release Date:
28 July 2006 (USA) more
Tagline:
What Does A Scanner See? more
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. full summary | full synopsis
Awards:
2 wins & 6 nominations more
NewsDesk:
(68 articles)
AFF09: Debbie's Conference Wrap-up
 (From Slackerwood. 27 October 2009, 12:00 PM, PDT)

Poster: Me and Orson Welles
 (From HeyUGuys. 15 October 2009, 4:04 AM, PDT)

User Comments:
Absolute best adaptation of book to screen. more (276 total)

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)

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
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Additional Details

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 more
Sound Mix:
Dolby Digital | SDDS | DTS
Filming Locations:
Austin, Texas, USA more

Fun Stuff

Trivia:
Both the lodge number and Arctor's house address are "709". This is a reference to the famed Austin satirical rock band "Uranium Savages", who use 709 as a "secret" number. All Uranium Savages fans are familiar with this and the director likely inserted the number as homage to the band. more
Goofs:
Revealing mistakes: After the car breaks down on the freeway, they cut to a scene where the car is facing backwards on a flatbed tow truck. If the car was picked up on the freeway, it would be facing forward unless the tow truck picked up the car from the rear which on the freeway would be highly unlikely. more
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.
more
Movie Connections:
Referenced in Be My Oswald (2006) more
Soundtrack:
Amazing Sounds of Orgy more

FAQ

What happened to Luckman?
Who is Philip K. Dick?
What happened to Bob Arctor's wife and children?
more
103 out of 131 people found the following comment useful.
Absolute best adaptation of book to screen., 7 January 2007
10/10
Author: XweAponX from United States

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.

Was the above comment useful to you?
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