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Source: Catholic News Service
Bleak, cautionary tale of futuristic investigator (Keanu Reeves) who goes undercover to investigate drug users (Robert Downey Jr., Woody Harrelson, Winona Ryder and Rory Cochrane), only to discover that he's also spying on himself. Performances are a plus in writer-director Richard Linklater's faithful version of Philip K. Dick's hallucinatory 1977 science-fiction novel, but the results are surprisingly talky and dull. The milieu is almost unremittingly sordid and unpleasant -- some humorous dialogue notwithstanding -- and the use of animated rotoscoping over the live action only adds to the already confusing narrative. Pervasive substance abuse, much profanity, rough and crude language, partial nudity, premarital sexual encounters, disturbing imagery, and a suicide attempt. The USCCB Office for Film & Broadcasting classification is L -- limited adult audience, films whose problematic content many adults would find troubling. The Motion Picture Association of America rating is R -- restricted. Under 17 requires accompanying parent or adult guardian.
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