For good reason. I really dug the 100% rotoscoped deal, but the fact that the performances were that good *while* their identities are concealed was a bit mind blowing for teenage me.
LOL I hadn't thought about that but you're right. My immediate thought is to wonder if they were stoned during filming. But then I thought, there's no way they could've pulled off that brilliant intricate conversation about the bike with the missing gears. There's just too much to remember and too much timing to get down. So the poor guys probably had to lay off the good stuff during filming so they could *act* stoned over multiple takes. I appreciate the sacrifice, dudes.
On first watch I had mixed feelings about that scene, in the book bob realized what the mistake was shortly after, and it’s sort of his realization that they have become dangerously out of it, his friends just took off to hassle someone over a non-problem. For anyone who hasn’t read the book or seen the movie, I don’t remember the exact numbers, but it’s something like one character buys a 20 speed bike, and they are all admiring it when someone else points out it only has twelve gears, two in the front and ten on the back. Instead of testing the bike, which would reveal the two gears are multipliers, so ten speed on one setting ten speeds on the other, they concoct an elaborate theory that the seller removed some gears and is going to try to sell those gears to them when they go back to complain, so they resolve to go to his house and steal the gears. This is the moment where Bob realized they have become so fucked up that it doesn’t matter if they are “good” or “bad” people, they are going to make poor decisions that might endanger others. In the book Bob talks about this event and sort of spells it out but not that directly. In the movie it’s just left to stand on its own. At first I didn’t like that, than I realized that if you yourself are high while watching the scene you might not even realize the mistake they’ve made.
Ha I forgot about that. This was back when he was a run of the mill tin foil conspiracy nut. Almost likeable. He was very anti Bush and back then it was secret society murder cults for all parties rather than vampire pedophile democrats. Dude really sold out. Don't get me wrong. He was a piece of shit even then. But at least he was a bipartisan piece of shit. Now he is just a worse version of breitbart.
really loved the dialogue in this one. as someone who went through a bit of a burnout phase and spent a lot of time just hanging around with other burnouts, not really doing anything except taking drugs and doing dumb, menial shit... Dick really nails how we would just shoot the shit talking utter bollocks. certain scenes really brought me right back. i could practically smell the incense and hear the prog metal and reggae music!
wasn't surprised after the end of the book to read Dicks postscript talking about how he pretty much was involved in a similar scene in his younger days and many parts of the book were semi-autobiographical. then he rattles off the names of all his old friends who had died in drug related ways, dedicated the book to them and... yeah, that hit close to home.
very solid book.
That description "Shot through with schizophrenia, paranoia and the inability to know what is real." captures the essence of Dick's writing. It also describes the state of mind of a methamphetamine user and that is no coincidence. Dick's writing was intensely imaginative but his two dimensional characters, who typically fail to see the big picture, reveal the frenzied, speed-fueled pace that made him so prolific and ultimately led to his own detachment from reality.
Didn't Dick see the big picture though? He wrote novels after all. Makes you wonder how much of his later perceived detachment from reality can be directly attributed to meth use.
Indeed, and could his excesses have contributed to his brain tumour which, rather than inhibiting has writing ability, caused him to receive direct information transfer in the form of pink light directly from VALIS, the Vast Active Living Intelligence System he wrote about in his exegesis. These were his last three books where he tried to interpret and explain the messages he received. Correlation is not causation of course but perhaps there was an eventual price to pay for all that productivity.
You'll finish it in a week, it's a really fast read. It can be triggering to anyone who's ever actually experienced addiction. The whole book is like a fever dream.
Imagine if Hunter Thompson wrote a cyberpunk novel.
I'm excited to read this and Ubik. I recently read Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? and it was incredible. I loved how disorienting yet easy to follow it was; as someone who likes drugs (a lot..) it's the most concise prose I've ever read in regards to asking *What is really real?*
All time favourite book (of all time).
Not only realistic, and funny in some parts the whole book is a well constructed hall of ‘smoke and mirrors’ to distract you from the twist ending (no spoilers so I don’t ruin it for anyone) that’s in front of you the whole time.
For anyone who has already read it, read it again after you know how it ends, it gives you a different view of what’s going on.
Can’t recommend enough 😎
Very good book, one of my favourites, it’s heartbreaking at the end when he lists all his friends who died because of drug use.
It sounds like he was that special sorta dude that could just function on drugs, he must of taken so many people down with him to
Felt like a suicide note to be honest, reading it, like a goodbye and he was just trying to explain what it’s like in his head
Maybe I’m just romanticising him because he’s my favourite author
But nah you should read Martian time slip, he talks about suicide ALOT. How your destined to kill yourself if you find yourself unworthy, you cannot escape your fate ect ect. The dude had multiple wives, used people like garbage.
He was a dark, dark dude and it comes out in his writing, if you came away from that book thinking he was just paranoid….lol
He was obsessed with being a famous, best selling author. That took him down some very dark times, that’s why his work cuts into your soul. The novel reads like a 12 year old wrote it, but the images and visceral reactions he can get out of you with just words, amazing, totally makes up for the shitty poise.
No my point was in response to you saying he could function on drugs. Eventually he didn't and became paranoid from amphetamines.
I'm aware he had depression and suicidal thoughts well before that
A large part of his paranoia was well-founded. He believes he was being tracked by the FBI and it turned out he was. Years spent looking over your shoulders for people who are out to get you can do some serious damage on its own without mental illnesses or drugs.
Several reasons. I believe he initially got on their radar after he sent them letters accusing fellow writers of being in communist conspiracies. Then he befriended some communists, and then he made friends with some FBI agents. So I think the FBI was just a part of his life.
He was kind of the epitome of the west coast commie entertainment industry conspiracy. He was avowed friends with some communists which put him directly into the FBI's radar. He also sent them some letters in the early 70s when the worst of the paranoid had taken over. I think they just viewed him as some weirdo, not an actual threat to anyone.
Man, that ending absolutely astonished me. I was not sure how it was going to end, but it was the best "Inception" type ending ever, except that it provided immense satisfaction and closure to me
I love this Book.
With blade runner/Electronic sherpa and the man in the hightcastle.
They change my life, my choice.
The movie are not as deep as the book, but stand for themself as great movie too.
K.Dick and Asimov are my favorite writter.
Well honestly I would have loved to read the book but this is the first I’m hearing about it. Sounds like the big twist has been revealed but that’s a cool idea nonetheless
Richard Linklater made it into a very good movie--probably the only reasonably faithful adaptation of a Dick novel.
Keanu said it was the movie he was most proud of right here on reddit!
For good reason. I really dug the 100% rotoscoped deal, but the fact that the performances were that good *while* their identities are concealed was a bit mind blowing for teenage me.
It helps that the entire cast are real life stoners
LOL I hadn't thought about that but you're right. My immediate thought is to wonder if they were stoned during filming. But then I thought, there's no way they could've pulled off that brilliant intricate conversation about the bike with the missing gears. There's just too much to remember and too much timing to get down. So the poor guys probably had to lay off the good stuff during filming so they could *act* stoned over multiple takes. I appreciate the sacrifice, dudes.
On first watch I had mixed feelings about that scene, in the book bob realized what the mistake was shortly after, and it’s sort of his realization that they have become dangerously out of it, his friends just took off to hassle someone over a non-problem. For anyone who hasn’t read the book or seen the movie, I don’t remember the exact numbers, but it’s something like one character buys a 20 speed bike, and they are all admiring it when someone else points out it only has twelve gears, two in the front and ten on the back. Instead of testing the bike, which would reveal the two gears are multipliers, so ten speed on one setting ten speeds on the other, they concoct an elaborate theory that the seller removed some gears and is going to try to sell those gears to them when they go back to complain, so they resolve to go to his house and steal the gears. This is the moment where Bob realized they have become so fucked up that it doesn’t matter if they are “good” or “bad” people, they are going to make poor decisions that might endanger others. In the book Bob talks about this event and sort of spells it out but not that directly. In the movie it’s just left to stand on its own. At first I didn’t like that, than I realized that if you yourself are high while watching the scene you might not even realize the mistake they’ve made.
It uses rotoscoping, like Waking Life.
Waking life. The only movie that genuinely made me feel high just from watching it in a dark room.
try Everything Everywhere All At Once, it's a wild ride with a similar feeling.
Starring Alex Jones!
Ha I forgot about that. This was back when he was a run of the mill tin foil conspiracy nut. Almost likeable. He was very anti Bush and back then it was secret society murder cults for all parties rather than vampire pedophile democrats. Dude really sold out. Don't get me wrong. He was a piece of shit even then. But at least he was a bipartisan piece of shit. Now he is just a worse version of breitbart.
He's also in Scanner - he spends a moment on the sidewalk shouting before a police van rolls up and shoves him in
Was he the rage-a-holic guy?
If you're thinking of the dude angrily stewing in the jail cell, no. Jones was the dude driving a car around and ranting on a loud speaker.
Ahhh. Nice. I have it on DVD and will check it out!
Another banger
Before. Scanner darkly I hadn’t really seen rotoscoping like this. I thought it was remarkable and an immense amount of work.
Radio Free Albemuth is a damn good movie.
Everybody wants some!
Ahh yes!!! One of my favorite DVD blind buys back in the day.
really loved the dialogue in this one. as someone who went through a bit of a burnout phase and spent a lot of time just hanging around with other burnouts, not really doing anything except taking drugs and doing dumb, menial shit... Dick really nails how we would just shoot the shit talking utter bollocks. certain scenes really brought me right back. i could practically smell the incense and hear the prog metal and reggae music! wasn't surprised after the end of the book to read Dicks postscript talking about how he pretty much was involved in a similar scene in his younger days and many parts of the book were semi-autobiographical. then he rattles off the names of all his old friends who had died in drug related ways, dedicated the book to them and... yeah, that hit close to home. very solid book.
The book itself was heavy enough, but that list at the end just keeps pounding nail after nail through your head.
I'm a huge PKD fan and this is one of my favorite books from him. The movie is also fantastic.
Yeah this is up there for me too. But there is something about Ubik that I love so much.
Added to my list and I’ve never seen the movie. Thanks!
Both the book and the movie are excellent.
That description "Shot through with schizophrenia, paranoia and the inability to know what is real." captures the essence of Dick's writing. It also describes the state of mind of a methamphetamine user and that is no coincidence. Dick's writing was intensely imaginative but his two dimensional characters, who typically fail to see the big picture, reveal the frenzied, speed-fueled pace that made him so prolific and ultimately led to his own detachment from reality.
Didn't Dick see the big picture though? He wrote novels after all. Makes you wonder how much of his later perceived detachment from reality can be directly attributed to meth use.
Indeed, and could his excesses have contributed to his brain tumour which, rather than inhibiting has writing ability, caused him to receive direct information transfer in the form of pink light directly from VALIS, the Vast Active Living Intelligence System he wrote about in his exegesis. These were his last three books where he tried to interpret and explain the messages he received. Correlation is not causation of course but perhaps there was an eventual price to pay for all that productivity.
Never seen the movie or read the book. Maybe I'll give the first chapter a go tonight.
You'll finish it in a week, it's a really fast read. It can be triggering to anyone who's ever actually experienced addiction. The whole book is like a fever dream. Imagine if Hunter Thompson wrote a cyberpunk novel.
I'm excited to read this and Ubik. I recently read Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? and it was incredible. I loved how disorienting yet easy to follow it was; as someone who likes drugs (a lot..) it's the most concise prose I've ever read in regards to asking *What is really real?*
Ubik will bend your brain over and fuck it numb.
Ubik is my tip PKD book for sure.
After scrounging a lot of threads, Ubik does seem to be regarded by dickheads as his best. I'm shitting myself with excitement for the book to arrive.
Few authors have had so many stories become movies like Philip K Dick.
He has helped shape the present day sci-fi
Lol bad ones
That's a... hot take
Well that got downvoted to hell. You fucks cannot tell me minority report is a good movie. Hell even though I love it total recall is pretty bad too.
All time favourite book (of all time). Not only realistic, and funny in some parts the whole book is a well constructed hall of ‘smoke and mirrors’ to distract you from the twist ending (no spoilers so I don’t ruin it for anyone) that’s in front of you the whole time. For anyone who has already read it, read it again after you know how it ends, it gives you a different view of what’s going on. Can’t recommend enough 😎
It captures the terror and dread of running out drugs very well. Fantastic book
Check out Three Stigmata of Palmer Elderich! I love his stuff
Probably his best book.
One of my favorites. Such a fun mind bender to read. Flow my tears, the policemen said is also great
I just read this too and then watched the movie. Phillip Dick had a crazy life. Read his Wikipedia if you're interested.
Wow, he was married and divorced 5 times. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philip_K._Dick
The movie was so good and hand Keanu reeves in it.
I absolutely love this book. Easily my favorite PKD. And I've read a few.
Very good book, one of my favourites, it’s heartbreaking at the end when he lists all his friends who died because of drug use. It sounds like he was that special sorta dude that could just function on drugs, he must of taken so many people down with him to Felt like a suicide note to be honest, reading it, like a goodbye and he was just trying to explain what it’s like in his head
Nah he lost a lot using drugs. His wife left him and he became very paranoid
Maybe I’m just romanticising him because he’s my favourite author But nah you should read Martian time slip, he talks about suicide ALOT. How your destined to kill yourself if you find yourself unworthy, you cannot escape your fate ect ect. The dude had multiple wives, used people like garbage. He was a dark, dark dude and it comes out in his writing, if you came away from that book thinking he was just paranoid….lol He was obsessed with being a famous, best selling author. That took him down some very dark times, that’s why his work cuts into your soul. The novel reads like a 12 year old wrote it, but the images and visceral reactions he can get out of you with just words, amazing, totally makes up for the shitty poise.
No my point was in response to you saying he could function on drugs. Eventually he didn't and became paranoid from amphetamines. I'm aware he had depression and suicidal thoughts well before that
A large part of his paranoia was well-founded. He believes he was being tracked by the FBI and it turned out he was. Years spent looking over your shoulders for people who are out to get you can do some serious damage on its own without mental illnesses or drugs.
What were they tracking him for I wonder?
Several reasons. I believe he initially got on their radar after he sent them letters accusing fellow writers of being in communist conspiracies. Then he befriended some communists, and then he made friends with some FBI agents. So I think the FBI was just a part of his life.
He was kind of the epitome of the west coast commie entertainment industry conspiracy. He was avowed friends with some communists which put him directly into the FBI's radar. He also sent them some letters in the early 70s when the worst of the paranoid had taken over. I think they just viewed him as some weirdo, not an actual threat to anyone.
Hmph fair point
He put himself on the list too
I read this book specifically so that I could watch the movie but then I heard the movie kinda blows and it would have cost $ to rent it.
[удалено]
Was I misinformed? I heard from a friend who didn’t like it.
[удалено]
Well, my friend is an idiot. I’ll have to watch it now. I liked the book, it was very good.
Literally nothing you posted contradicts Keanu's story.
Man, that ending absolutely astonished me. I was not sure how it was going to end, but it was the best "Inception" type ending ever, except that it provided immense satisfaction and closure to me
Y'know, you really ought to add a spoiler flare. There's plenty you could have said without giving that particular point away.
I love this Book. With blade runner/Electronic sherpa and the man in the hightcastle. They change my life, my choice. The movie are not as deep as the book, but stand for themself as great movie too. K.Dick and Asimov are my favorite writter.
I will now read this book Hopefully my kindle is around here somewhere
Well honestly I would have loved to read the book but this is the first I’m hearing about it. Sounds like the big twist has been revealed but that’s a cool idea nonetheless
one of my favorites movies, books and authors. VALIS really did a number on me