Waking Life
Waking Life is the latest film from Richard Linklater, the acclaimed independent director of Slacker and Dazed and Confused. When this Sundance favorite (which was also an Independent Spirit Award nominee for Best Feature, Director and Screenplay) hit the theaters, Fox Searchlight proclaimed in its print ads that the film "Puts the art back in arthouse." With that in mind I approached it somewhat nervously, wondering if this was code word for "pretentious as shit."
The film takes place in the mind of the story's protagonist (Wiley Wiggins) as he dreams. The dream, and the film itself, consists primarily of numerous interactions between the main character and the people he meets. He enters into deeply philosopical conversations with each, often focusing on the nature of what is "real" and exploring the blurry line between dreams and the "waking life." That's about it as far as the meandering plot goes.
The discussions, featuring dialogue written by Linklater, range from fascinating to painfully boring. Some will hold your interest, and others are about as exciting as sitting through a super-dry philosophy lecture. In fact, the actor who chats with Wiggins in one scene is actually Linklater's philosophy teacher from college.
The real attention-grabber in Waking Life, though, is the film's unique visual look. Linklater shot the film in digital video with real actors, and a team of animators then took the footage and literally "colored in" the images, giving the film a trippy appearance that perfectly complements the material. Your interest in animation will likely dictate whether this unusual look keeps your attention throughout the film or grows old after about 10 minutes. For me it was a saving grace, keeping many scenes interesting even after the dialogue had grown wordy and cumbersome.
Acting-wise, the film is pretty much a one-man show starring Wiggins, who you may recall from his turn as a 9th grader facing off with the bullying Ben Affleck in Dazed and Confused. He's fine here, although you'll probably have a few moments when you want to strangle him for his character's inquisitive ways, particularly when the dialogue ventures into pretentious territory.
Linklater also peppers the film with celebrity cameos (keeping in mind that what you see are animated "paintings" of the actual actors), including Ethan Hawke, Julie Delpy, Steven Soderbergh and Adam Goldberg. Some are effective, others leave a bit to be desired.
So, is Waking Life worth your time? Definitely, if you're an animation buff or a philosophy major. Probably, if you're a fan of independent films (although I don't recommend watching it on a Friday night, as I foolishly did). Otherwise, you'll likely want to take a pass on this unique film.
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This philosophical talkfest ain't no drinking flick.
Unless your date is extremely artsy or philosophical, this is a poor choice to get the romance flowing.
Buy this DVD from Amazon.com
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