Waking Life
The question “are we sleepwalking through reality or wakewalking through our dreams?” might seem like a weak premise for a film, but Waking Life approaches it with such originality and flair you can’t help but be drawn into the surreal world that Dazed and Confused director Richard Linklater has created. The film follows the travels of Wiley Wiggins, an average kind of guy who embarks on a journey of discovery to find out if the world he is living in really is a dream. During his strange journey he encounters a variety of characters - some famous, some not while others are downright strange - who each give their own views on life, dreams and reality.
Considering Linklater’s other films include mainstream comdies such as Dazed and Confused and School of Rock it is quite unexpected to discover that Waking Life covers issues as wide-ranging as extentialism, lucid dreaming, morality and other very intelllectual and philosophical topics. Those who are deeply into philosophy may find the film’s knack of jumping suddenly from one subject to another with each scene frustrating, but it prevents the weight of the subject matter boring or confusing the rest of us. In fact, the way that each person Wiggins meets gives their own pearls of wisdom allows for a very accessible introduction to some of life’s most fundamental questions.
A point especially of note is the film’s visual style. Not quite a live-action nor an animated film, it is ‘rotoscoped’: a mixture of the two that is at first a little jarring but is perfect for the not-quite-real, literally dreamlike vibe. The whole film was shot as a normal live-action film, then each frame was digitally painted to give the appearance of cel animation. In this film, it allows for the realism of movement of live-action camera techniques but allows for strange colours and visual effects associated with animation.
The soundtrack, performed by the Tasco Tango Orchestra, is suitably quirky and experimental, although there are large sections of the film that contain background noise instead of a musical score. The modern, off-kilter melodies are perfectly suited to each scene they appear in, and add to the unique atmosphere to a very thought-provoking and compelling film.
In Summary
Definitely not a dumb Hollywood action-fest, Waking Life is surreal, funny, and guaranteed to leave you deep in thought. Not all viewers will understand everything that is brought up during the course of Wiggins’ wanderings but chances are you won’t look at the concept of reality in the same way again.
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