A Scanner Darkly (2006)

Genre: Thriller/Crime/Mystery/Drama/Animation/Science-fiction

Starring (voice): Rory Cochrane, Robert Downey Jr., Keanu Reaves, Winona Ryder, Woody Harrelson

Substance D, a powerful hallucinatory drug has taken over the streets of USA and has resulted in a lot of people regularly consuming it. The drug has adverse affects on the mind with the possibility of permanent brain damage. In order to get to the root of the problem, the government has hired a team of detectives who are to intermingle with the drug lords and help gain information. In order to protect their identity, the detectives wear scramble suits at work, suits that constantly change the appearance of the wearer, so as to not be able to identify them. Bob Arctor (Reaves) is one such detective who was assigned to obtain more information about Donna (Ryder) a known drug peddler but instead gets addicted to Substance D himself. Bob shares his apartment with his friends, James Barris (Downey Jr.) and Ernie Luckman (Harrelson) who, like him, are all addicted to Substance D. Most of the movie revolves around Bob and his friends and their antics whilst high on Substance D. It also includes much of Bob Arctor and his attempts at gaining more information from Donna and his gradual deterioration of his health. Most of the movie is filled with jargon, especially with respect to Downey Jr.'s character, and the average viewer may get lost before the end of the first half. The movie requires a lot of attention and patience which is well rewarded by a good climax and nice ending. Yes, the movie is very dialogue heavy and you might be left wondering many a times with 'what is going on' but if you watch it carefully, the intelligent minds would understand. The movie's animation technique is very different and typically cartoon-ish. All the character's appearance is modeled around their actual real-life faces which gives it a good edge of realism. It is a movie that can be interesting but at the same time extremely boring, depends upon how you watch it.

Thumbs up: Great ending, good animation technique

Thumbs down: Extremely wordy, confusing dialogues

Rating: 6.5/10