Scanner Darkly, A

But despite the intriguing setup, this is a Richard Linklater film, so be prepared for long periods of pure dialogue, some of it quirky, some of it funny, and more than a little of it aimless and tiresome. When the film is on track, it works; when it devolves into meaningless chatter, it simply drifts.

Two other distractions: First, the shape-shifting business is absorbing for a while, but for reasons I never understood Arctor keeps changing appearance every second, and these changes very quickly become annoying to the eye. Second, the movie's tone changes rather abruptly, too, from scene to scene, sometimes light and amusing, other times heavy and serious. It's hard to know how Linklater meant for audiences to take the film--as an earnest satire, as a warning against drugs, as a caution against government spying? I dunno. It certainly isn't an action thriller.

Still, the acting and the animation almost make up for the script's deficiencies. Also, since it's based on a Philip K. Dick novel, expect the film to be pretty tricky, so watch it carefully. If you get lost along the way, don't worry; the characters are mostly lost themselves. Oh, and this is not your Disney cartoon; it's rated R for profanity, sex, and nudity.

Video:
As I've said, animation usually shows up well on disc even in standard definition when it's transferred well. In high definition this movie is absolutely superb. Transferred to disc at a 1.78:1 ratio, the reproduction yields a flawless image. The color depth is excellent, the 1080 resolution produces excellent definition, the black levels are deeper than they have any right to be, and the clarity is as good as it gets. This film was basically created in a computer, so there is zero grain. OK, so high definition doesn't improve upon the standard-definition picture of "Scanner" to any dramatic degree, but one would have to be blind not to notice the differences for the better.

Audio:
The Dolby Digital Plus 5.1 soundtrack goes for long stretches without doing very much, and then it suddenly bursts forth with strong dynamics and an abundance of rear-channel activity. Linklater loves dialogue, so bear with it. Hoever, when the soundtrack calls for extraordinary sonic effects, it comes through. The DD+ is cleaner and clearer than regular Dolby Digital, thanks to its lower compression rate, and it pays off with a well-controlled bass and a taut midrange response. Again, one does not hear a lot of difference between DD and DD+, but the differences are there, nonetheless.

Extras:
The disc includes three primary bonus items, all of them in standard-definition 480 resolution. The first item is an uncommonly perceptive audio commentary with star Keanu Reeves, writer-director Richard Linklater, producer Tom Pallotta, author and Philip K. Dick historian Jonathan Lethem, and Philip K. Dick's daughter, Isa Dick Hackett. Together, they provide a illuminating summary of the man and his work. The other two items are documentaries: "One Summer in Austin: The Story of Filming A Scanner Darkly," twenty-six minutes, and "The Weight of the Line: Animation Tales," twenty minutes. Their titles are self-explanatory, and they contain further remarks from the group who do the audio commentary, plus some of the movie's stars. Needless to say, all three bonus items say as much or more about Dick as they do about the movie.

The extras wrap up with twenty-six scene selections, but no chapter insert; a widescreen theatrical trailer; English as the only spoken language; English, French, and Spanish subtitles; and English captions for the hearing impaired. As always, WB also include on the HD-DVD a zoom-and-pan feature, bookmarks, and an Elite Red HD case.

Parting Shots:
"A Scanner Darkly" is an appropriately unusual film, one that intentionally distorts reality, leads the viewer up a few blind alleys, offers plenty of pseudo-philosophical conversation, concludes with a couple of surprises, and moves at a snail's pace--the very thing we have come to expect from auteur Richard Linklater and, to a degree, from author Philip K. Dick. I can't say that high definition video or audio makes "Scanner" any better a movie, but I can say it makes the animation and sound effects more fascinating than ever.

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