Research the films that have been adapted from Philip K. Dick novels or short stories. Which have generally been acclaimed as the most successful? Why?
Film Adaptations of P. K. D.:
- Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep (novel) - Blade Runner
- We Can Remember it for You Wholesale (short story) - Total Recall (1990 + 2012)
- Confessions of a Crap Artist (novel) - Barjo
- Second Variety (short story) - Screamers
- The Minority Report (short story) - Minority Report
- Imposters (short story) - Imposters (film) and Out of This World (television)
- Paycheck (short story) - Paycheck
- A Scanner Darkly (novel) - A Scanner Darkly
- The Golden Man (short story) - Next
- Adjustment Team (short story) - The Adjustment Bureau
- Plus more coming out next year
It is commonly said that 'Blade Runner' is the most successful of P. K. D's adaptations. The fact that there have been multitudes of releases shows that there is always interest in this movie. Despite the fact that when it first came out, Blade Runner wasn't considered very popular, it's popularity has grown over the years and is now considered a cult classic by almost all film buffs. Though the differences between the film and novel are vast, they both bring something to the table and in the film, you can see Dick's imprint all over it (yes, every version).
Another popular adaptation that has been seen as successful is 'Minority Report'. The reason this has been seen as so successful is because a popular actor at the time, Tom Cruise, was the main character, and so a very popular movie. Also, as Steven Spielberg was the director, it was also popular for that. It compares to the original novel with having the basics of the story - characters, primary motives, climactic turnaround point, but a lot of the ulterior motives and details have been adapted to suit the film.
The third most successful film would be 'A Scanner Darkly'. It is very original as it used a rather rare form of presentation called rotoscopy: live action with animation done on top to give it an unrealistic looking feature. Keanu Reeves and Winona Ryder were the main actors in it. This is possibly one of the most relatable adaptation as most of the scenes are straight out of the book and put onto the screen. Only a few scenes were cut out and most of them are very well done.
Philip K. Dick has created some amazing works of writing and the adaptations are quite interesting. He is the go-to guy for science fiction movie enthusiasts and creators.
Some interesting comments - why do you think Blade Runner has been so successful - and is now considered a 'cult classic', as opposed to say Minority Report which hasn't really reached the same status?
ReplyDeleteAh, there are many reasons why movies can be better than others and this is the same with 'Blade Runner' and 'Minority Report'.
ReplyDeleteIn comparison: 'Blade Runner' was adapted from a novel, so there was more to draw from there while 'Minority Report' was from a short story, therefore less information and detail to draw from. As most movies are adaptations from novels and short stories, the amount of original data that is transferred from page to film affects the movies status.
Whether the original form is good or not also has an effect on the movie's success. From peoples opinions that I have asked and read about, 'Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep' (the novel of 'Blade Runner') is one of the most famous novels by Dick (along with 'The Man in the High Castle'), getting a 92% score on the popular Rotten Tomatoes website. 'The Minority Report' short story however, was not as popular as the latter in print form.
Also, as Carla said in her post on this same topic, the actors were coming out of different films at the time of filming. Harrison Ford ('Blade Runner') was coming from the highly popular 'Indiana Jones' series, meaning that his status in Hollywood was thriving, whereas Tom Cruise ('Minority Report') was coming from 'Vanilla Sky', a flop in nearly everyones opinions. These actors' status' at the time would have been a large reason for people wanting to see them. 'Blade Runner' would've been popular, while 'Minority Report' would have been less popular.
Also, in my own personal opinion, Tom Cruise is a horrible actor and Harrison Ford is the man :)
Very interesting comment - esp on the quailty of the original - and yes Carla's comments are also worth considering. I find TC unwatchable - except perhaps in Eyes Wide Shut under Kubrick's direction - where he seems to be playiong a parody of his onscreen and off screen persona.Tbh -i generally find HF pretty dire as well.
ReplyDeleteFair enough. It's also really dependant on what you like personally. Eyes Wide Shut is good, but I agree with you, Kubrick made it work.
ReplyDeleteI would say that your top 3 are completely accurate, regardless of whether they are any good or not. Couldn't agree more about Tom Cruise and Harrison Ford, however Blade Runner was made when Ford was a "A-list" star. The story itself holds up against his acting anyway, which I think makes it so popular. Minority Report was horrible, but it was a blockbuster and an audience will see it purely because of the hype. A Scanner Darkly is amazing, for me personally, especially considering I'm not a die-hard fan of sci-fi as it is. It was something so different to anything anyone had seen at the time, and probably since.
ReplyDeleteTotal Recall is also really underrated simply because of Arnold Schwarzenegger's involvement, but I think as a film, it is fantastic. it plays to my interests :D
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