| Cast overview, first billed only: | |||
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Trevor Jack Brooks | ... | |
| Lorelei Linklater | ... | ||
| Wiley Wiggins | ... | ||
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Glover Gill | ... | |
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Lara Hicks | ... | |
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Ames Asbell | ... | |
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Leigh Mahoney | ... | |
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Sara Nelson | ... | |
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Jeanine Attaway | ... | |
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Erik Grostic | ... | |
| Bill Wise | ... |
Boat Car Guy
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Robert C. Solomon | ... |
Philosophy Professor
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| Kim Krizan | ... |
Herself
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Eamonn Healy | ... |
Shape-Shifting Man
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J.C. Shakespeare | ... |
Burning Man
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Dreams. What are they? An escape from reality or reality itself? Waking Life follows the dream(s) of one man and his attempt to find and discern the absolute difference between waking life and the dreamworld. While trying to figure out a way to wake up, he runs into many people on his way; some of which offer one sentence asides on life, others delving deeply into existential questions and life's mysteries. We become the main character. It becomes our dream and our questions being asked and answered. Can we control our dreams? What are they telling us about life? About death? About ourselves and where we come from and where we are going? The film does not answer all these for us. Instead, it inspires us to ask the questions and find the answers ourselves. Written by Jeff Mellinger <jmell@uclink4.berkeley.edu>
Waking Life is among a handful of films (Woyzeck, Magnolia, The Passion of Anna) that really frustrate me, because as much as I love them I can't necessarily recommend them to everyone. There are certain films for which one needs to be on a certain wavelength to enjoy, no matter how cultured or intelligent. This film is best for those who have sat around thinking about the big questions in life for long periods of time, dying for someone to talk to about them. I guess Waking Life isn't about those questions so much as it's about the people who are asking them, the wonderers, the thinkers, and especially the dreamers. For those who can appreciate it, it's a cleansing experience, one of a purity and beauty that has no equal in the films I've been fortunate enough to see.