Slashdot Mirror
Ridley Scott Returns to PKD
Krau Ming quotes from a report at Sneakpeek.ca "Ridley Scott's Scott Free Productions will produce a 4-hour TV adaptation of author Phlip K. Dick's The Man in the High Castle, based on a script by Howard Brenton. The original 1962 novel was a science fiction 'alternate history' that won a sci fi Hugo book award in 1963. Premise of the book, about daily life under totalitarian Fascist imperialism, occurs in 1962, fourteen years after the end of the Second World War in 1948. The victorious Axis Powers, Japan and Germany, conduct intrigues against each other in North America, specifically in the former US, which surrendered to them, after the Axis conquered Eurasia and destroyed the populaces of Africa." Adds Krau Ming: "Hopefully this will fall in the category of well-done PKD adaptations (though I'll leave it up to the slashdotters to determine which of the previous movies should be categorized as such)."
In fact, to reply to my own post... I just found this list of PKD works that have been translated into films.
Showbiz types generally hate hanging endings. I'll guess fans will be disappointed with it being "reimagined".
Not bothering to look this up but I think almost self-evidently the correct answer would be Shakespeare.
There are two kinds of people: 1) those who start arrays with one and 1) those who start them with zero.
Not that I have anything against PKD, he's one of may favorite authors. But lets be honest, he stories are raided and the screen adaptations are nothing like the prose. There are many other authors out there. Hollywood is lazy, or maybe Philip's family are very well connected. Shame the author himself didn't get the money, just his leach of a family.
In fact, to reply to my own post... I just found ;-)
There are two kinds of people: 1) those who start arrays with one and 1) those who start them with zero.
Only if you mean Stephen King when you say FKD:
http://bestsellers.about.com/od/stephenking/a/king_films.htm
Ok, maybe I should've specified MODERN author, and even then apparently Stephen King beats PKD.
True. According to this article, there are a few more authors who have beaten our Dick.
The article lists:
0. Bible/Homer/Shakespeare/Dickens
1. Stephen King
2. W. Somerset Maugham
3. Ernest Hemingway
and possibly, depending on the current count
4. John Grisham
Ian Fleming seems to be missing from that list, and I suspect others as well.
There are two kinds of people: 1) those who start arrays with one and 1) those who start them with zero.
Whoever modded the above post down, he's speaking the truth. PKD's family trust has milked his works for years... yet another argument against extended copyright. (Although thinking about it, his work would probably still fall under copyright under older versions of the laws).
Here's a summary of the movies from a Slashdotter. You're welcome.
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Blade Runner (1982) Based on "Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?" - Blade runner is a horrible piece of Sci-fi. Unbelievable premise. Poor lead actor. Lacks any symbolism or deeper meaning.
Screamers (1995) Based on "Second Variety" - Quite possibly the most thrilling piece of Sci-fi since Ridley Scott did Alien. Totally plausible plot. Dark, brooding imagery keeps the viewer on the edge of their seat the entire time.
Total Recall (1990) Based on "We Can Remember It For You Wholesale" - Now here's a real gem of Sci-fi. Examines the human condition, and what it means to be a person. It makes you think about deeper concepts, such as Plato's "Allegory of the Cave". Presents a fresh view of the future on terrestrial mars. Scientifically accurate representation of its atmosphere and exposure to the Martian climate.
Confessions d'un Bario (French, 1992) Based on "Confessions of a Crap Artist" - C'est terrible. Pourquoi? Je ne parle pas francais. Il est tres dificile, mon frere!
Impostor (2001) Based on "Impostor." - If you haven't seen this one, you need to see it now. It puts to shame "Moon" and "The Man From Earth". It's quite possibly Gary Sinise's best performance since Snake Eyes or Albino Alligator.
Minority Report (2002) Based on "The Minority Report." - An absolutely horrible sci-fi action flick. Silly weapons, unrealistic vehicles, boring plot. Totally predictable. The only good thing to come out of this movie is the phrase "minority report u.i." Tom Cruise's computer interface shows a realistic, futuristic, non-fatiguing way to interact with several data sets.
Paycheck (December 25, 2003) Based on "Paycheck." - Now this movie was a tour-de-force of style and substance. It meshes time travel, paradoxes, and the charming character of Ben Affleck. He is pretty much the Batman of the future; he has a tool for every single encounter that he comes against. Einstein or Hawking would give this movie two thumbs up (if they could). Go watch it now.
A Scanner Darkly (July 7, 2006) Based on "A Scanner Darkly" - Stupid plot. Basically stole the rotoscopped effect from a movie released later, "Waking Life". You should skip it; there's no substance to it.
Next (April 27, 2007) Based on "The Golden Man" - If you thought Paycheck was good, then you will "bust a nut" over this film. It has all of the slam-dunk elements in a blockbuster: Magicians, Terrorists, Time Travel, Government Super Soldient Experiments, Excessive Capitalization, and Gambling. Oh did I mention there was time Traveling?
So, to sum it up
[avoid] Blade Runner
[avoid] Minority Report
[avoid] A Scanner Darkly
[avoid] Confessions d'un Bario
and....
[go see] Screamers
[go see] Total Recall
[go see] Imposter
[go see] Paycheck
[go see] Next.
You're welcome
but isn't PKD the author who has the most works that have been translated to the silver screen?
"The Prince and the Pauper" was filmed by the Edison studios in 1909 - at Mark Twain's home in Conneticut!
There have been at least 120 credited and uncredited adaptations of Twain's stories.
292 tales from Dickens.
232 adaptations of Sherlock Holmes.
223 productions based on the novels and stories of Robert Lewis Stevenson.
201 adaptations from O.Henry, 137 from Jules Verne.
83 from H.G. Wells, 77 from Rudyard Kipling.
As improbable as it sounds, there is new version of The Three Musketeers in production. The first was in 1898.
For myself, I loved Blade Runner. It was a little ahead of its time and is much more cerebral than a typical "SciFi" movie, but it certainly is at the top of nearly any list of best movies I can cite. The groundbreaking effects and ideas expressed in the movie have been copied by many subsequent films enough that some things look cliche because you've seen those other movies that came after Blade Runner. IMHO it was also one of Harrison Ford's better roles, but I suppose that you can form your own opinion about that actor and his work. Harrison Ford has been one of Hollywood's most "bankable" actors as he is in films that have a combined gross take in the billions of dollars. Perhaps that is why he is hated but the roughly billion or so people who have seen at least one of his movies might beg to differ on that point. This film is certainly more "hard SF" than "SciFi", which perhaps is the problem with the above reviewer.
As for Total Recall, I thought it was a fun diversion, but as for realism I thought it was absolutely stupid and highly inaccurate. "Scientifically accurate depiction of exposure to the Martian atmosphere".... hardly. It looked cool on film I suppose but it really didn't work very well. FYI, you can survive on Mars with mostly a pressure suit and an oxygen mask. Parts of the surface of Mars have the same atmospheric pressure as the top of Everest. Really, it isn't nearly as bad as depicted in the movie. The lead actor is the now governor of California, Arnold Schwarzenegger. If you know his work, it sums it up pretty well. Perhaps one of the more cerebral roles for the governator, but there is still a pretty high body count by the time the movie is done. He also has more dialog in this movie than Terminator, but almost any movie would qualify in that regard and doesn't say much and is perhaps one of its flaws too. It is a movie to watch with your brain put into neutral merely to enjoy the film as an action thriller, not for any scientific accuracy if you really know anything about this stuff.
Minority Report stars Tom Cruise as the lead. If you've seen "Mission Impossible" (1 or 2, it doesn't matter), it is essentially the same movie in a slightly different setting. Tom Cruise portrays the cocky punk that he has been in most of his movies and this isn't even really his best role either. There is more that is redeeming than just the data search user interface with the computers that he is using (running Hollywood OS, of course). The stuff that Phillip K. Dick wrote in is certainly thought provoking including the whole concept of arresting people who merely show the potential of committing a crime. If the Wikipedia entry is to be believed, it was originally supposed to be a sequel of Total Recall, to be also starring the Governator as the lead actor instead of Tom Cruise. Thank goodness that script was lost and that plan abandoned. While not a horrible film, this film doesn't really inspire me either so I wouldn't say to avoid this film but also don't go out of your way to watch it either. If it comes up as something on TV or you have a friend who has it on DVD and you have a couple hours to kill with nothing better to do, there are worse ways to spend those two hours of your life.
But lets be honest, he stories are raided and the screen adaptations are nothing like the prose.
There is nothing wrong with movies based on a book that have been modified heavily. The medium is completely different. You can't convey the same ideas in a movie as you can with text.
Hollywood is lazy, or maybe Philip's family are very well connected.
It's the first. Blade Runner was a success, therefore producers are more willing to make a PKD book into a movie. Hollywood is very unwilling to try untested writers/directors/etc.
Wiki has a list of Bradbury 6 adaptations to other media. There's a whole Movies and Films based on works by Philip K. Dick site. I count 7 theatrical releases based on RB, vs. 9 for PKD and 2 more in production. This doesn't count miniseries...miniserieses? or other TV adaptations.
Check out RS's debut film The Duellists if you haven't. Beautiful film. Listening to the director's commentary he doesn't sound utterly reprehensible, either. Might be holding himself in check, of course; whatever, he is a talent.
As for Total Recall, I thought it was a fun diversion, but as for realism I thought it was absolutely stupid and highly inaccurate. "Scientifically accurate depiction of exposure to the Martian atmosphere".... hardly. It looked cool on film I suppose but it really didn't work very well. FYI, you can survive on Mars with mostly a pressure suit and an oxygen mask. Parts of the surface of Mars have the same atmospheric pressure as the top of Everest. Really, it isn't nearly as bad as depicted in the movie.
Your complaints about the movie's scientific accuracy would be more compelling if you were more accurate than the movie was. Air pressure on Mars is less than 10 millibars. Air pressure at the top of Mt. Everest is about 300 millibars. Not remotely "the same atmospheric pressure".
It may come as a surprise to you, but most people don't watch action movies for their scientific accuracy ...
It's also worth pointing out that Total Recall stops being based on the PKD story fifteen minutes into the movie or so. (The rest is still based on a mix of Dick's themes, though. I like it.)