Review of Waking Life (2001) by Tim K — 05 Oct 2015

Best film of its era, to be certain. Even better when ranked amongst its "kind" of film: nonlinear, rotoscoped/animated, no convention to anything except that each person presents a new color in the personality spectrum, etc. When I put this film up against others' scores, like the all-too-overrated "I Heart Huckabees", it stands out as a postmodern art piece. Whether it's the neoclassical styling in the music or the generation X flunky talk, the tone is present and carries the viewer the entire way thru (if they're able to hold on that entire time, they will have brushed topics like Quanta and free will, violence in the system/violence in the individual, "freedom" (and the extent of which one goes to attain their perception of it), and even other film.

Linklater does what maybe only Linklater can do: present impossible topics to film in an entertaining and emotional way so as to better communicate--key to survival for our species, at least--what is truly means to be human. Oh, and alive, because this film follows a dead guy.