
Philip K. Dick on Blade Runner - locopati
http://www.philipkdick.com/new_letters-laddcompany.html
======
Aron
I went into reading this letter thinking that it would be another 'they
destroyed my vision!' example. I'm pleasantly surprised as I have a fondness
for the movie. I'm not an expert though, I just do eyes! Just eyes!

~~~
ilamont
I was expecting a rant as well. And I am actually a little skeptical about
this letter, and not just because it lacks a signature. He never saw the final
cut, yet is willing to make a grand, sweeping pronouncement about how
important the movie will be.

The letter also says "My life and creative work are justified and completed by
BLADE RUNNER". I doubt many respected authors would make such a pronouncement
about a Hollywood adaptation and their own artistic legacy without seeing the
final product, but this is even more unusual considering the adaptation barely
followed the narrative in the original book.

~~~
qjz
To be fair, nobody can claim to have seen the final cut and the continuing
proliferation of versions supports the notion of it being a very important (if
perennially unfinished) film.

You're right that the book is very different from the film, but even here it's
much different than most adaptations, as key dialog is lifted almost verbatim
from the book. I think if this letter is legitimate, Dick was probably more
excited about the portrayal of the universe his stories took place in, rather
than the faithfulness of the script to a single one of his works.

~~~
mst
If you look at Phil Dick's published work, he isn't faithful to his own
scripts at all - the short stories and novellas weave and re-weave each
others' ideas, characters and settings, and the ending and message of a story
can be very different from version to version.

I could comfortably imagine him reworking the DADOES plot into something just
as far away from the original as Blade Runner - in fact, if anything, I find
Blade Runner less radically different from the source material than some of
his own reworkings.

Memory is saying the two versions of Second Variety are a good example, as are
the various forms of Ubik, but my books aren't currently on the same continent
as me so alas I have no citations.

------
binarymax
Wow. This is a great post.

Being a young teenager and reading electric sheep and then seeing blade
runner, Then to live and see things slowly unfolding toward this future he
describes -- such as the rapid decline of critical life such as honeybees and
frogs, BCI, AI, etc -- it really does blow my mind to see it all being a
possibility - albiet a very dark one.

Also Google just released the Nexus one. Coincidence? I think not!

------
patrickgzill
Funny follow-up ... Ridley Scott, the director of BR, is also a producer of
the TV show "Numbers".

There is a scene where two of the FBI agents are walking through the mall area
where parts of BR were filmed (where Deckard looks for, chases, and ultimately
kills the dancer replicant as she crashes through the glass) and they make
references to how "Ridley Scott saw this all coming" and "this area looks like
something out of Blade Runner" ...

------
nonrecursive
Over the last few months I've really gotten into Philip K. Dick. He wrote some
of the best sci-fi I've ever read. Whereas a lot of sci fi is about cool stuff
just to write about cool stuff, PKD used imaginative/futuristic settings,
characters, and objects to explore the human condition.

"Do Android Dream of Electric Sheep" is a great book. One of its central
questions is what makes humans, human. The book gives you plenty of ideas to
mull over, and at the same time it's an exciting, plot-driven read.

I watched blade runner a month ago, a couple weeks after finishing Do Android
Dream of Electric Sheep. The movie was nearly incomprehensible and the acting
was terrible. It was too terrible and bizarre to even really be a
disappointment.

All this is to say, I wonder how PKD would have felt after seeing the entire
movie.

~~~
VMG
"eXistenZ" is the only good PKD movie I know about, although it is not
directly based on one specific book.

Also you've got to read all the short stories. They are better than the novels
in my opinion.

~~~
proemeth
From imdb: The truman show 8.0 Minority report 7.7 Blade runner 8.3 Total
recall 7.4

~~~
VMG
And scanner darkly (7.7) - still eXistenZ is the one that really stands out
for me. But I admit that there are other "good" movies out there that use PKD
as a basis.

~~~
krakensden
Scanner Darkly comes closest to capturing the spirit of PKD's written work.

------
proemeth
What i found most insightful is the "monotous death" he says SF is at risk of
settling into. All the brilliant SF's reputation is overshadowed by the pulp
works with tasteless covers, and people tend to think of SF as children's
books, not serious (if you compare it to "classic" litterature). We need more
works like Bradbury's, that are in themselves brilliant litterature (look at
the prose in Fahrenheit 451!) as well as SF.

~~~
tsally
I've found the success of a work Science Fiction _as a work of literature_ is
closely correlated to how far removed it is from present day society.
Fahrenheit 451 and Brave New World are both fairly close to society today, as
far as Science Fiction goes. Richard Powers has had great success writing
about things like virtual reality (Plowing the Dark) and artificial
intelligence (Galatea 2.2), but his works are even closer to present day than
Bradbury or Huxley. The Foundation Series, while not quite on Powers's level,
are still incredible books that _might_ just belong in the class of real
literature. I don't think it will ever get there though because its world
isn't coupled closely enough with the one we know.

~~~
MrRage
Vonnegut's _Slaughterhouse-Five_ is a sci-fi story that's also considered real
literature. It's mostly set in the 20th century.

I don't like terms like "real literature". I would say the Foundation series
despite its weaknesses is worth reading for anyone who wants to be well
rounded in his/her book choices.

~~~
tricky
I just finished David Forrest Wallace's Infinite Jest and was surprised that
is was sci-fi. DFW was such a literary golden boy, i think people don't
mention that IJ was a sci-fi book to avoid belittling him. total crap, if you
ask me.

~~~
MrRage
There are sci-fi elements in IJ for sure. I just think IJ is too broad in
scope to label it sci-fi though.

------
jcdreads
I recall observing in the early 90's, with some amazement, that the actual
Times Square had started to look like its depiction in Blade Runner, with
over-the-top lighted billboards in every direction and sterile, glass-fronted
places of non-sex commerce. It's easy to forget that Times Square verged on
being a crappy porn district when Blade Runner came out.

~~~
pvg
Times Square is not depicted in Blade Runner. The city in the film is Los
Angeles.

~~~
philwelch
It's an easy mistake, since in the movies, New York City is usually depicted
at night and Los Angeles is usually depicted at daytime. Blade Runner (and I
guess The Fifth Element) reverse that.

------
pvg
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PK_Dick#Mental_health>

He also never saw the released movie (which was not the commercial success he
predicted), let alone the multiple later cuts.

~~~
tjic
Commercial success?

How about CULTURAL success?

Blade Runner changed the direction of science fiction movies. Heck, it changed
the direction of WRITTEN science fiction (and, yes, I'm saying that the movie,
not the original book, changed the direction of written SF).

I could go on and on, but I don't want to sound like a fanboy...but Blade
Runner was - by its effects - one of the most important cultural artifacts of
the second half of the 20th century.

~~~
pvg
_Commercial success?_

The gushing letter he wrote predicted it's going to be a commercial success. I
like the movie too (well, not the terrible theatrical release) but that
doesn't mean that letter isn't somewhat nuts.

 _Heck, it changed the direction of WRITTEN science fiction_

Except it didn't. Science fiction was already going there anyway. William
Gibson on Blade Runner -

" BLADERUNNER came out while I was still writing Neuromancer. I was about a
third of the way into the manuscript. When I saw (the first twenty minutes of)
BLADERUNNER, I figured my unfinished first novel was sunk, done for. Everyone
would assume I'd copped my visual texture from this astonishingly fine-looking
film. "

 _I don't want to sound like a fanboy_

Well, you're not doing a very good job of avoiding it. While you're sputtering
at me and using all caps you somehow didn't notice I wasn't even talking about
the movie. Simply pointing out it's a crazy letter written by a mentally ill
person who hadn't even seen it. This fact is quite independent of the quality
or cultural impact of the movie.

~~~
tsally
_Simply pointing out it's a crazy letter written by a mentally ill person who
hadn't even seen it._

I'm curious why you feel a person's mental health has anything to do with the
correctness of his/her writing. It's an obviously incorrect idea, but I'm
wondering why you hold it.

~~~
pvg
I'm curious why you consider the nutty idea that mental health is completely
orthogonal to one's ability to write 'correctly' obvious. If your ability to
perceive reality is impaired (say, you're delusional or clinically paranoid or
otherwise irrational) you're likely to have a very difficult time accurately
representing and interpreting reality in writing.

~~~
tsally
_I'm curious why you consider the nutty idea that mental health is completely
orthogonal to one's ability to write 'correctly' obvious. If your ability to
perceive reality is impaired (say, you're delusional or clinically paranoid or
otherwise irrational) you're likely to have a very difficult time accurately
representing and interpreting reality in writing._

If a mentally ill person writes down 1+1=2, the fact that they are mentally
ill does not make them any less correct. Being mentally ill may or may not
affect the probability that a person will write something correct, but that
has nothing to do with the actual correctness of what is ultimately produced.
Attempting to disprove what was in the letter by pointing to the author's
mental illness is just you being intellectually lazy. You might as well have
used his physical height or eye color. These attributes are equally valuable
in disproving the correctness of ideas.

~~~
pvg
_You might as well have used his physical height or eye color. These
attributes are equally valuable in disproving the correctness of ideas._

No they are not. I'm sorry but your argument is simply stupid and wrong. This
is written language, not maths, ideas and thoughts have more dimensions than
'correctness'. If someone mentally ill, there is a higher chance what they
write is not reflective of reality. And I wasn't attempting to 'disprove'
anything in the letter using his mental illness. The letter is obviously
overblown and inaccurate on its face. The guy hadn't even seen the movie! Why
was he writing such weird letters? Well, I don't know it for a fact but it
seems reasonable to conclude it's because he was mentally ill, not because his
eyes were brown. The mental health of the author is a useful piece of
information when evaluating a piece of writing. Saying that it isn't is
bonkers.

~~~
tsally
_I'm sorry but your argument is simply stupid and wrong._

Well spoken. You're eloquence is overwhelming.

 _If someone mentally ill, there is a higher chance what they write is not
reflective of reality._

I acknowledged that possibility in my previous reply. I don't necessarily
agree with it, but I wont discuss that here.

 _I wasn't attempting to 'disprove' anything in the letter using his mental
illness._

Whether you intended to or not, you used his mental illness as a piece of
evidence. Your intent doesn't really factor in to the meaning your words
convey.

 _The letter is obviously overblown and inaccurate on its face. The guy hadn't
even seen the movie!_

This is a valid piece of evidence and the correct way to argue that a piece of
writing is incorrect.

 _The mental health of the author is a useful piece of information when
evaluating [the correctness] a piece of writing. Saying that it isn't is
bonkers._

Saying that is very, very wrong. Once upon a time we claimed the author's
gender and skin color were "useful" pieces of information when evaluating the
correctness of the writing of women and black people. This was used as an
excuse to not publish the work of these disadvantaged groups. Why do you think
we have double blind submissions to scientific journals? The correct and
_only_ way to evaluate the correctness of a piece of writing in on the words
alone.

My stance is not a controversial one, it is an accepted fact. When correctness
is the primary concern, only the writing is examined. Information about the
author can be used as a filter (example: submitting an OpEd to the NYTimes),
but never as a factor in determining correctness. I've done my best to
convince you, but if I have failed at this point we're both just wasting time.

------
jacquesm
Elsewhere on the site:

<http://www.philipkdick.com/films_bladerunner.html>

Bladerunner is a favorite movie of mine, I must have watched it 10 times or
more over the years. From the soundtrack (Vangelis) to the pre-CG visuals it's
really impressive, it also realistically captures the mood of a possible near-
future.

After all these years I _still_ haven't gotten around to reading the book, but
that's just got bumped up quite a bit on the todo list.

It's funny how the photography enhancement scene from Bladerunner is
replicated in many movies later in time but never quite with the same feeling
of it being possible.

Is this part of the test ?

------
scotty79
Funny. "Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep" is one of the cases for me when
book is way better than movie. I literally feel asleep on Blade Runner. Twice.
Then again maybe I was too young then to even watch this.

I think I should try and watch Blade Runner again.

~~~
nanexcool
Please do try! I have original VHS versions of both the theatrical release
(hard to find!) and subsequent director's cut which became the mainstream. Now
you can find them all on DVD. I recommend watching the director's cut, then
the original theatrical release. Changes aside from the voice over are really
subtle, but important! If you want to go for completeness, watch the final cut
as well.

Maybe I'm just a hardcore fan, but I did that with my girlfriend while
explaining all the differences and she really liked it.

~~~
bootload
_"... I have original VHS versions of both the theatrical release (hard to
find!) and subsequent director's cut which became the mainstream. Now you can
find them all on DVD. I recommend watching the director's cut, then the
original theatrical release. ..."_

The directors cut is underwhelming. I only just noticed the latest release
with not 2 but 5 versions on DVD. I had the chance to see the original version
when it came out. It really did change the way SF was portrayed on film. Gone
was the shiny white, clean environments of say BG or ST. Guess I'll have to
ask Syd Mead which is his favourite release when he's in town ~
[https://www.alumni.rmit.edu.au/NetCommunity/SSLPage.aspx?pid...](https://www.alumni.rmit.edu.au/NetCommunity/SSLPage.aspx?pid=1093)

------
Jim72
How rare for an author whose works inspired a movie to approve of the final
product! Here's to futurism!

------
jackfoxy
How prescient!

Coincidently "Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?" was the last fiction I
read (a couple of years ago).

------
mkramlich
I wish Phil would have come out and said whether he liked it or not, sheesh!
;)

------
johnohara
You really have some nice toys here.

------
RevRal
All I can say is.... is: Yes.

------
jasonkester
Wow. I know that Hollywood folk have this stereotype of overrating their own
importance in the world, but wow. This is really over the top.

I have no idea who this person is, but I assume he had something to do with
the film. If that's the case, I just can't imagine how he could say those
things with a straight face. Does he really take himself that seriously?

It was a movie.

~~~
ThomPete
Either you are too young to know about him or you are not into sci-fi.

Both are not your fault. But perhaps you should do some research about who he
was before you choose to have an opinion about him.

~~~
jasonkester
I'm 38 and am indeed quite into sci-fi. I saw Blade Runner in the theater in
1982. None of that has any bearing on whether that guy is up himself.

I prefer to read things I see here without any context or preconceptions. I'll
often get to the bottom of an article or all the way back to the comments here
before I discover it was written by somebody I'm familiar with. I thinks
that's helpful because it keeps your mind free of bias while you're soaking up
what's written on the page.

I'd suggest reading the letter again without any preconceptions and see if it
seems a bit self-important.

~~~
elblanco
> I'm 38 and am indeed quite into sci-fi.

Apparently not as much as you think if you don't know who PKD is.

~~~
jasonkester
Ah, but Powells' sci-fi section is 4 ailes, 30 feet long by ten feet high,
both sides. One author can only take up so much space.

Speaking of which, Powells itself is a full city block, 3 stories high, with a
Technical Books annex filling another half block. I'm reading as fast as I
can, but you'll have to cut me a bit of slack for not getting around to this
particular author yet.

Any suggestions for a title I should start with?

~~~
StrawberryFrog
_Ah, but Powells' sci-fi section is 4 ailes, 30 feet long by ten feet high,
both sides. One author can only take up so much space._

Go for quality, not quantity. Remember, 90% of everything is crap ... and I
hope that you get that reference.

~~~
sammyo
So perhaps he should start with "Venus Plus X" by Sturgeon...

