A Scanner Darkly is a movie that I have wanted to see for a long time but somehow did not manage to do so until recently. And it turned out to be so good that I regret haven’t watched it earlier.
The movie depicts the world and life seen from the view points of a group of drug addicts. To convey the distorted views from these druggies with impaired perceptions and brain functions, the movie deployed not only the traditional story line and dialogues, but also a cartoonish, non-photorealistic rendering achieved by rotoscoping.
The combined effect is so realistically surreal (oxymoron?) and disoriented that for the first time I kind of be able to feel what it is like to be a druggie. Rotoscoping not only preserves the original acting, but also facilitates hallucinatory or science-fiction effects such as bugs crawling all over one’s body and the “scramble suit” that disguises an undercover’s identity by constant shifting through the difference appearances of millions of people.
And yes, like all good movies, this one has a great story as well.
I believe this is one of these movies that are so unique that it is going to hang in my head for a long time.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TXpGaOqb2Z8&hl=en&fs=1]
that I simply could not track down the original ownership (even until today).