Waking Life
2001 Directed by Richard Linklater
Synopsis
Waking Life is about a young man in a persistent lucid dream-like state. The film follows its protagonist as he initially observes and later participates in philosophical discussions that weave together issues like reality, free will, our relationships with others, and the meaning of life.
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I did what I normally do not and clicked on its letterbox'd page prior to watching, glancing at the top review- ''The most pretentious film ever made.'', it solemnly says, half a star. Interest is piqued. The IMDb brief synopsis says ''A man shuffles through a dream meeting various people and discussing the meanings and purposes of the universe.'', erection rising, well, what ever could this film be.
This is my 7th Linklater film, of which I have not been keeping count, as a director that has never particularly interested me for some unknown reason. Which changes today. Predicted white lie. This film just might suggest I rummage further. I wrote in my notes that the man is hit and… -
The most pretentious film ever made.
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Imagine that you found yourself at a speed dating event, where all your potential suitors were philosophy majors in college, and the topic of discussion was their favorite concept about the human condition. If you can picture yourself in such a situation, then you pretty much have the gist of Waking Life.
The film follows nameless character who finds himself in discussions with a variety of people that range from things such as communication and understanding between two individuals to topics such as free will and lucid dreaming. Eventually the protagonist realizes he is in a lucid dream-like state and he begins to participate in these conversations. If you enjoy listening to people pose philosophical theories, then you’re in for…
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Waking Life is an artsy and philosophical film about existentialism, dreams and consciousness, it's enitrely rotoscoped and feels more like an experience than watching a film, very cerebral and thoughtful without much plot.
It focuses on a series of conversations and lectures in which the main character in a perceptual state of dreaming, moves from person to person and passively listens to what they have to say.
We are actually following his stream of consciousness as he awakes from the illusion of life, it's very inspiring and intellectually refreshing. -
Rotoscope animation was certainly the perfect format in which to present Waking Life, the lifelike but nonetheless eerily surrealistic quality of its images complementing the multifarious ruminations on consciousness and existence lying at its heart. A consistently fascinating film, it moves through in-depth conversation after in-depth conversation, exploring philosophical outlooks aplenty amid the eye-seducing visuals Linklater and his team concoct. Great as it is, it's something of a shame that Waking Life isn't for its entirety as compelling as in its last twenty minutes or so, where the focus is less on the musings spouted by various characters and more on their impact upon the protagonist. Only in these final moments do we really get a sense of his growth,…
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Safer than a tab of acid but equally mind-blowing. Linklater's rotoscopic philosophical treatise involves around thirty characters who ponder over its central question: "Are we sleepwalking through our waking state or walking through our dream awake?" From a number of windy philosophers to motor-mouth raconteurs, they all offer existentialist discussions and dialogues on both the abstract and tangible elements of our existence. Their fundamental tenets of life were a confining series of talking heads who produces a constant source of humour, amazement, profundity and intellectual demand. In a nutshell, that's exactly what Waking Life does as a singular stylistic choice. This film is ninety-five minutes of people spouting their philosophical musings as Wiley Wiggins from Dazed and Confused diligently sits…
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Honestly I was a bit tired and drunk when I watched this, so I don't remember much of it. I watched it with friends, stopping it to discuss the film after each remark. I enjoyed it, but a more detailed appraisal will have to wait until I can rewatch it.
The animation is also great.
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I've seen the film plenty times before, but watching it after Before Sunrise really added to the experience. Seeing the scene of Celine and Jesse in bed, discussing dream states, after seeing their first conversation makes this scene kind of heartbreaking. Their ties are only created by the dream state, and waking state instantly severs them, leading the two back into reality, away from each other.
Also, it's very clear that even if Celine and Jesse got back together 6 months later like they said they would, there's no way this scene could take place after that. Their conversation in bed dwells on points they made in Sunrise, as if it was a direct continuation. It's almost as if the dreamer has created a mythic "second night" for them to get back together and continue talking. (Hmm, Linklater did give them another chance in Before Sunset...)
Oh, and the rest of the movie is pretty great too.
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This film always makes me feel like I don't know enough about philosophy, but I love the connection to Before Sunrise/Sunset/Midnight. The style of animation on top of live film is a cool effect but I have to look away a bit because I get a bit queasy.
Also this quote:
"On really romantic evenings of self, I go salsa dancing with my confusion." -
Waking Life is an artsy and philosophical film about existentialism, dreams and consciousness, it's enitrely rotoscoped and feels more like an experience than watching a film, very cerebral and thoughtful without much plot.
It focuses on a series of conversations and lectures in which the main character in a perceptual state of dreaming, moves from person to person and passively listens to what they have to say.
We are actually following his stream of consciousness as he awakes from the illusion of life, it's very inspiring and intellectually refreshing. -
Amo a Richard Linklater, pero esto es muy extraño.
Aunque Jesse y Celine :B
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I dreamed that I watched this film, and then dreamed that I checked it on Letterboxd.
At first I was trying to listen to each word, fearful that I would miss something important to the plot, but once I realized that it was better to let them wash over me I started enjoying this more. (It also would have been better if I'd seen this several years ago, when many of the theories were part of my normal college conversations).
Still, I loved having a flashback of all the philosophy classes I'd taken, and need to try that lucid dreaming thing a little more. I'll be flipping a lot of light switches until I get it figured out!
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This movie still hits me hard. I've probably watched it five or six times and it always has something new to give me. There are parts I was too high to understand when I was nineteen and watching this in my Allston apartment. In fact, there was one night where we put it on in my room in the middle of a party. Drunk strangers would open my door thinking it was the bathroom only to find a roomful of stoned people enraptured by the animation and the characters' dorm-room philosophies. Some would close the door and turn into the hall, their bladders full and their curiosity limited. Others said, 'Woah,' closed the door behind them, and were passed the…
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I admire the ambition and the intention, but this is the cinematic equivalent of eavesdropping on a bunch of philosophical discussions you aren't really invested in. It was good to see Jesse and Celine again, though.
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I did what I normally do not and clicked on its letterbox'd page prior to watching, glancing at the top review- ''The most pretentious film ever made.'', it solemnly says, half a star. Interest is piqued. The IMDb brief synopsis says ''A man shuffles through a dream meeting various people and discussing the meanings and purposes of the universe.'', erection rising, well, what ever could this film be.
This is my 7th Linklater film, of which I have not been keeping count, as a director that has never particularly interested me for some unknown reason. Which changes today. Predicted white lie. This film just might suggest I rummage further. I wrote in my notes that the man is hit and…