Tuesday, February 8, 2011

Weekly review #1: A Scanner Darkly

Has it really been since Thursday that I posted last? Geez, not sure how that happened.
Anyway, as promised, here is my first weekly review.
I figured, since everything came to me sooner than I expected, it would be unfair to delay the requested stuff, so I bumped Macross Plus off the list, at least for the time being. So on to it! Spoilers and things of that nature are status quo, so cut link!



I have to be honest, I'm not quite sure where to begin with this movie. I have been sitting here, LONG past the due date, trying to think of something to say, and that's the problem. There is a TON to say about this movie. I could write a doctorate thesis about the scramble suits and their use as a plot device alone, and it's been very hard to avoid doing just that. This movie is incredible.
That's not to say it's completely bereft of flaw; it has it's fair share. The pacing is lethargic at times, and the plot takes undue rest-stops every so often. Once or twice it dips into pretentious territory. But these are all minor flaws, all things considered.
The directing is fantastic, the art direction being a very unique high point. The decision to rotoscope the whole movie was an odd one and one I myself probably wouldn't have made, but it absolutely works to the movie's benefit once it finds it's groove, which doesn't take long at all. The acting, while most of it is pointless baggage, is always fun to watch, especially with the cast being what it is. Robert Downey Junior isn't so much acting as puppeteering, giving off a delightfully exaggerated performance that fits the tone perfectly, while Keanu Reeves, fresh from the Matrix movies, once again is put in a position where I'm not sure if he's a bad actor, or simply turning in exactly what the role demands of him. Perhaps it's both, I don't know. But it works, so I'm gonna call it a success.
The plot and the story, despite some meandering moments, is actually very focused and deliberate, and it manages to maintain a serious degree of suspense even through the seemingly pointless moments. If you guessed the scramble suits hid a dramatic reveal late in the movie, you'd be correct, but you'd never guess in a million years who is under that second suit, and what it means. It's not quite The Sixth Sense, but danged if it isn't up there.
This is a highly recommendable movie, I think. One I can offer to friends free from any kind of disclaimer about quality. I'm not gonna give it any kind of number or star rating, but I liked it a lot!

6 comments:

  1. Scramble suits? Well, I'll give it a watch if I get a chance.

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  2. Good review. Just for future reviews; include some pictures and don't make it like a wall of text :P

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  3. This is the review I was waiting for, thanks bro, I like Philip K. Dick books, and I enjoy watching their movie adaptations. I'm glad this is a good movie to watch.

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  4. I was going to post pictures, but I was in a bit of a hurry. I might anyway, a little later.

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  5. I've been meaning to watch this solely for the animation. Good to know the plot doesn't suck.

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