What’s ‘Next’ For Dick’s Work?
The late speculative fiction novelist Phillip K Dick’s work outlives its creator as his novels and short stories continue to prove successful for Hollywood studios. Currently, Nicolas Cage stars in the new release Next, which opened April 27 and finished third at the box office its opening weekend.
Interestingly enough, all nine films pulled directly from Dick’s writing were filmed after the sci fi guru’s death in 1982. The first and most notable film, Harrison Ford classic Blade Runner, was based loosely on Dick’s “Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep.” Other films, such as 2006’s A Scanner Darkly, stayed true to Dick’s original story, even including direct quotes from the book in voiceovers and dialogue.
Dick’s novel “Ubik” provided the theoretical framework for states of suspended animation between life and death for the Spanish film Abre Los Ojos, which eventually was remade in Hollywood starring Tom Cruise in Vanilla Sky.
Dick’s speculative fiction received mixed reviews during his lifetime, but its relevance in today’s society is undeniable as his novels and short stories remain popular and have been the basis for five major motion pictures in as many years.
Next (2007)A Scanner Darkly (2006) Paycheck (2003) Minority Report (2002) Impostor (2002) Screamer (1995) Confession d’un Barjo (1992) Total Recall (1990) Blade Runner (1982) Reference: Phillip K Dick - IMDB.com Reference: Official Webpage Reference: PKD - Wikipedia This entry was contributed by Josh Goller.
April 30th, 2007 at 4:12 pm
Some had more success than others, but I really loved Minority Report. It’s so brilliant.
April 30th, 2007 at 5:22 pm
Too bad the success couldn’t have happened during his lifetime — it all seemed to come after his death. At least he had success with his writing, and I think that is very rewarding.
May 25th, 2007 at 8:46 pm
Very interesting article. I’d heard of Phillip K Dick’s name in passing, but didn’t realise exactly how many films his works had spawned. They do say that no one appreciates a great artist until they’re gone.