The MoFo Top 100 of the 2000s Countdown

"It was a soothing flow of intelligence, of questioning, of curiosity and imagination. There was a paralysis and hopelessness that seemed to descend upon us. The images of the towers collapsing belonged in a nightmare, but no, they were real. Waking Life was a jolt, or nudge, a reminder that we could usefully ask big questions and propose possible answers. It affirmed our need to think for ourselves and not give in to dead-end despair."

"The overall effect of Waking Life is that of finally escaping a cocktail party full of ecstasy-laden philosophy students."

"An incredibly inspiring film that makes me want to go out and do something great with my life, it might sound silly, but it is one hundred percent true. Needless to say this will be at the top end of my animation list, and I really hope that some other people like me watch it and love it."

"The pace was terrible. The voices were ho hum. The animation took away from the information, which itself was boring and dated. A note to Linklater, you are very good at toying with human itneraction and delivering fresh perspectives on alienated members of society. Do that, and leave the philosophy to DeCartes."

"It is the work of a born filmmaker, and you can sense Gonzalez Inarritu's passion as he plunges into melodrama, coincidence, sensation and violence. His characters are not the bland, amoral totems of so much modern Hollywood violence, but people with feelings and motives."

"The structure lacks purpose, the film struggles to justify its two-and-a-half-hour running time and the faint-hearted might find it a little gory."

"Stylistically, the film tends towards gritty camerawork that alternates between frantic edits and smooth movements. The music covers a variety of genres appropriate to the story - there's a lot of hip-hop beats at work here, especially in the dogfight story, but also there's some nice atmospheric work (especially the last song in the film - I mean, damn). The acting is great and every story's lead gets at least one scene that's simply amazing to witness. As far as imitators of the violent multi-narrative formula laid down by Pulp Fiction go, it's definitely one of the best."

• National Society of Film Critics Experimental Film Award
• New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Animated Film
• Venice Film Festival Award for Best Film

• BAFTA Award for Best Film not in the English Language
• AFI Fest for Best Feature Film
• ALMA Award for Outstanding Foreign Film
• and a TON of Ariel Awards

• the movie took 3 weeks to shoot, another 3 weeks to edit using Final Cut Pro, and 15 months to animate?
• the film was based on real reports of LSD trips?
• this was the first digitally rotoscoped animated feature film?
• the basic plot of the film is based on a physiological phenomenon known as "lucid dreaming" which means you dream while knowing that you are dreaming?

• during the dogfights scenes, dogs are actually playing? Careful editing makes it look a lot more vicious.
• the film was shot in some of the more dangerous parts of Mexico City? It was not uncommon for the production crew to be robbed by street gangs.
• the man who plays the bus driver in the scene where Gael García Bernal's character decides not to get on the bus is Bernal's father, José Ángel García?