Scanners (1981) [The Criterion Collection]

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Scanners (1981) [The Criterion Collection]

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A common aspect of most great films is that they take time to sink in. Into their audience and into culture. Upon seeing a good film an audience will often know whether they've liked it or not, but what they won't know is quite why. That is what takes time to sink in. As a film is thought about and even seen again once or twice does it become great. It is the basic test of time that all classics must pass in order to achieve that honored status. The term "instant-classic" has always been a marketing gimmick since if you can take in the whole of a film instantly it means that it didn't offer a lot and isn't as good as it could have been.

David Cronenberg's films are those films that you have to see more than once. Many people today don't get that that's where the fun of a good story is: it's not a quick fix of special effects, but rather something that grows on you. Even if you end up not liking the film, the thinking about it and possibly re-seeing it will tell you WHY. Today many people don't care to go that far and just settle on eye candy. Nothing is wrong with eye candy, but when your mother told you to eat your vegetables, she wasn't just talking about food.

"Scanners" is not just a great film that was ahead of its time when it came out, it is a great director's first conceptual masterpiece. Cronenberg showed much promise with his early works, but he was clearly on the learning curve. With "Scanners" he make use of bigger sets, more expansive special effects all while presenting a frightening aspect of ever developing computer technology in an interesting story. The kicker is that most of what the film presents is relevant in more ways than one to today's world. Maybe not quite word for word, but this film is quite prophetic and a science fiction classic.

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Scanners (1981) [The Criterion Collection]

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