Waking Life – Movie Review
by Bob Crawford

Waking Life - a movie review

“Row, row, row your boat. Gently down the stream… Merrily, merrily, merrily, merrily, life is but a dream.”

Life can certainly seem dream-like at times. But at other times your dreams can feel eerily life-like.  You know that one is real and the other is an illusion, but which is the illusion and which is the reality? Is reality the same for everyone? Does your reality affect your illusions? Or do your illusions affect your reality? Where exactly is the line between reality and illusion?

Is there a line at all?

That line between reality and illusion is not just blurred, but totally blended, in Waking Life, an award-winning film from 2001, written and directed by Richard Linklater.

I thought this was a great movie, and the first thing that will strike you is the visual impact it provides as a backdrop for some of the most interesting and thought provoking dialogue in movie history.

Waking Life is an animated film, but it was created in a unique way. It was shot on video with live actors, and then artists overlaid the video frames with animation. This technique, called rotoscoping, gives the film a fluid, yet sometimes quirky, animated feeling.

The animation lends an added dimension of surrealism to the movie, which seems to fit, because the film examines dream states, man’s purpose in the universe, and the meaning of life in a way that will cause you to question your core concepts of reality itself.

The film’s main character, a young man who remains nameless, is having a very, very surreal day. To his surprise and puzzlement, he keeps waking up from his dream, only to discover that he is still dreaming. This dream within a dream leads him to question his ideas of reality and truth.

Reality or illusion?

During the course his day, this young man has a series of odd encounters, (some of which are definitely dreamlike – like the scene with the man driving the boat on the street,) with seemingly random characters. Some of these encounters are brief, some are longer, but each encounter the main character has is really a conversation about some philosophical concept or idea. Most of the segments in the film relate to man’s search for meaning and his quest to try to understand reality. Do things that happen in our dreams affect our reality? Can we control our dreams? Is our life really real? Or is it all just a dream?

Waking Life raises many questions about life and reality, and the film offers many points of view for you to consider. Some of which you will agree with and some you won’t.

On one level the film appears to be examining the line between the dream state and our waking reality, how they affect one another, and how they intertwine and may be inseparable. Are dreams, especially lucid dreams in which a person is aware that they are dreaming, a part of reality? Or is all of reality nothing more than a dream?

On a deeper level, Waking Life is about how to live life from an ‘awakened’ state of being. In Buddhism, a person who has attained enlightenment is said to be ‘awakened’ – they see through the illusion that is our reality, and experience life from a different perspective than the rest of us, who are still stuck in the illusion that we created for ourselves. To ‘wake up’ is to see through all the ideas and concepts that block us from seeing reality as it truly is.

With its distinctive animation and a thought provoking story line, Waking Life is a unique look at some of the eternal questions that have plagued us for as long as we know. To its credit, Waking Life doesn’t try to give answers to any of the questions raised in the film, but instead, presents those questions in a way that begs further thought and discussion.

Waking Life is one of those ‘thinking’ movies that can open your mind to new possibilities of being, and for that, it definitely deserves a spot in your film library.

by Bob Crawford

Waking Life
2001
20th Century Fox
Rated: R (Restricted)

Available at Amazon.com

Let’s start out by saying that The Shift is a fun movie to watch. I truly enjoyed it. Part interview, part drama, The Shift is Dr. Wayne Dyer’s enlightening look at the changes we all go through as we move from the morning of our lives to the afternoon of our lives. Time marches on, and as it does, so do we, growing and changing along the way.

In his classic, warm and friendly style, Dr. Dyer manages to educate and entertain at the same time, sharing his thoughts about one of the biggest changes that occur as you approach the afternoon of your life. Your priorities change. What was once important may be less so now, and what was unimportant before may now mean the world to you.

This transition in your life is summed up by the film’s original title, “From Ambition to Meaning”, referring to the key change that happens as your priorities shift from living a life of ambition and drive, to a life that now derives satisfaction from living on purpose and finding a deeper meaning in all that you do.

In the film, Dr. Dyer plays himself, a famous author and teacher being interviewed for a documentary, and he spends a good part of the film sharing his ideas and concepts about this shift that occurs in all of our lives. Interwoven with the interview scenes are several smaller stories that mesh with and beautifully illustrate the teachings Wayne is sharing.

One of the stories involves a woman who, having devoted her life to her family, suddenly realizes what has been missing from her life. Another story centers on a businessman who must confront his need for achievement and who discovers that life isn’t all about numbers and dollars. A third story focuses on a young filmmaker driven by his yearning for success, and his struggle to find his place in the world.

The Shift, according to Dr. Wayne Dyer, is a natural part of your life and it happens as you seek to find that inner balance that is so important.

And no, the shift has nothing to do with your physical age. It can happen at any time, and when it does you begin questioning the pursuit of achievement for achievement’s sake and start looking closer at your motivations and the meanings that you give to the different aspects of your life.

This change in your perspective can open new doors of opportunity for you. Where before you may have been focused on outward signs of success, now you choose to focus on your inner needs, on living a life of purpose, on choosing happiness.

It is when you begin looking for meaning in your life and questioning the beliefs and excuses that you have been using that you truly become centered and in touch with your self. That is the point at which peace and happiness enter into your life.

This shift from ambition to meaning signals a new phase in your life. A new chapter in your story. What was once a big deal may seem inconsequential or needless now. And the opposite is true as well, many of those things that you previously thought of as meaningless may take on bigger roles in your life.

As you watch The Shift you will see examples of this transformation and the power that it has to free you of your struggle.

It is hard to find anything wrong with this movie. Even if you are new to Dr. Dyer and his teachings you will find yourself being pulled into the story and nodding your head in agreement as Dr. Dyer relates the commonalities of this shift that we all go through.

The only criticism I have of The Shift is the sudden name change that happened after the movie was released. It was originally released as Ambition to Meaning: Finding Your Life’s Purpose, but was changed to The Shift shortly after it hit the shelves. From my perspective either title fits the film perfectly so I can understand the dilemma. I only wish the producers had avoided the confusion by sticking with one title.

The Shift is beautifully filmed in California’s spectacular Monterey Peninsula, a wonderful backdrop for this inspiring work.

Unlike many recent spiritual films, which are often made up of one talking head after another, The Shift is an actual movie – with real actors and a real plot that conveys the movie’s message in a unique way.

Everything about The Shift is top-notch, from the writing and directing to the excellent performances by Wayne Dyer, Michael DeLuise, and Portia de Rossi.

Keep your ears open because there are little tidbits of wisdom being dropped left and right in this film, and not always by the main characters! There are lots of little details in The Shift that combine to create a wonderful movie. Watch for a cameo appearance by Louise Hay too!

The Shift is a wonderful film that deserves a place in your video library. The combination of Wayne Dyer’s wisdom and insight, plus a compelling and thought provoking story line proves to be a winning combination that you will find inspiring and maybe just a little bit illuminating.

For it is at those moments in your life when you shift from ambition to meaning that your life takes a new direction, that you stop resisting your own inner callings, that you begin looking at the meaning of your life.

This is a must-see film that you will watch over and over again. I highly recommend it and hope that you will not only enjoy it yourself, but that you will watch it with your loved ones or share it with those people you care about. You can get your copy direct from Dr. Dyer’s website by clicking the link below:

www.DyerMovie.com

The Bottom Line:

The Shift is an exceptional film and I highly recommend it to anyone interested in discovering a deeper meaning or purpose to their life.

Peace,

p.s. Be sure to get The Shift – Expanded Version DVDwith the bonus interview and features. It’s well worth the couple of extra bucks! That way you won’t regret not getting it in the first place!