Our friends over at IGN FilmForce have snagged an awesome Christmas in July present for you — an exclusive look at the first 24 minutes of Richard Linklater‘s hyper-visual sci-fi drug pic, "A Scanner Darkly." You can thank them later.
Adapted from sci-fi writer Philip K. Dick‘s novel, "A Scanner Darkly" is set in a near-future Orange County, where undercover cop Bob Arctor (Keanu Reeves) is assigned to infiltrate a group of narcotics-abusing friends, and must use the mind-altering Substance D drug himself — but as Arctor becomes ever more dependant on the drug, he finds himself losing his grip on reality. "Scanner" also stars Winona Ryder, Woody Harrelson, Rory Cochrane, and a scene-stealing Robert Downey Jr.
Whoa! Keanu is, like, animated…but not!
In "Scanner," director Linklater uses the same eye-popping interpolated rotoscoping technique seen in his "Waking Life"; the animation-over-acting effect results in a dreamlike hyper-reality for the viewer, at once familiar and disorienting — much like the drug-fueled perceptions of "Scanner"’s characters.
Click over to IGN FilmForce’s exclusive 24-minute clip to see for yourself! The pic is rated R for "drug and sexual content, language and a brief violent image," so be prepared to pass an age-gate to view the video.
"A Scanner Darkly" is in limited release and expanding to more theaters through July.
