Blade Runner 2

I have been cautiously optimistic when the news broke a few months ago about Ridley Scott directing another Blade Runner movie, only cautiously because I tend to be skeptical when sequels/prequels of great movies are made especially when they were not planned from the beginning like the Star Wars or the Matrix movies.  But there have been a few good sequels like Star Trek 2, Lethal Weapon 2, Superman 2, The Dark Knight,  The Road Warrior and The Silence of the Lambs (Yes!, look it up.).  There are more I could list but not lots and lots.

Blade Runner is my favorite movie of all time and I don’t want a pointless sequel to be made just to cash on the insurgency of Philip K. Dick in the public zeitgeist.  But I like all of Ridley Scott‘s science fiction movies and if he wasn’t directing, I would be hesitant.  Also this quote from the Wall Street Journal blog post “Ridley Scott Says He’ll Direct ‘Blade Runner’ Sequel”:  “Scott says the new “Blade Runner” project is moving ahead “not with the past cast, of course.” No Deckard? “No, not really,” he says.”

I’m encouraged that it’s going to be a sequel and not a prequel.  Who can replace Harrison Ford (and there’s no way to make him look that young again!)?  I’m impressed that Scott is making another movie in the universe and maybe something that is thematically similar.  Or even moving on to another related theme that he extracted from the first movie?  I’m not really sure but those are hopeful thoughts.

My feeling has moved from cautiously optimistic to looking forward to the movie.
The original article is posted here:

http://blogs.wsj.com/speakeasy/2011/11/04/ridley-scott-says-he%E2%80%99ll-direct-%E2%80%98blade-runner%E2%80%99-sequel/

 

Send Me Stuff: Part Two

I had another thought when I was typing the last blog entry about sending in content to be posted on the site.  I hope I’m not being too bold here (and I do have a BA in English).  But I was curious if there were any authors out there with published or soon to be published works that would be willing to send me a copy to review on the site.  I would love to add reviews to the site because I think that review content is essential for a fan site. 

If there are any interested writers, please email philipkdickfans[at]gmail[dot]com and let me know the title, page count, and publication date (future or past) so that I don’t become over committed and I can help with generating review content at the time the work is published.

Send Me Stuff: Part One

Send Me Your Stories, Articles, Reflections, Reviews, Analysis, etc. I have been working on setting up a blog article feed on writing that mentions Philip K. Dick. It’s been slow work so far. The reason for the call out is that I never intended this blog to be the sole thoughts of me aboutPKD. I would like others to participate even if it is a single post that would be great.

If you would like to email philipkdickfans[at]gmail[dot]com any otherPKDrelated story, I will post it here (assuming it’s appropriate to post) and I will be sure to give you proper attribution.  I will be the final authority on if the writing is appropriate to post but since my favorite writer is Philip K. Dick, I’m very liberal about what would be appropriate.

 

A Review Of Sorts Of The Mariner Books PKD Editions

PKD's The SimulacraWhen I saw the covers for the new Mariner Books set of Philip K Dick editions I was slightly offended. How dare anyone consider buying a PKD book without the “classic” vintage covers that I have first editions of all of them and that form the bedrock of my PKD collection consisting of every published piece of PKD writing? Why does someone think that the covers need changed or updated? Why break something that didn’t need fixing? I can see that the covers are more minimalist than the older set but I like the circuitry feel of almost all of them and the bold color selection. Recently I also saw the set of new editions and new covers for Raymond Carver’s fiction and I don’t like the new designs. Something just isn’t right and I can’t put my finger on it.

I can remember waiting Waiting WAITING for the book that I wanted to read to come back into print. Counter Clock World was the one I remember wanting to read the most and it was one of the last ones put back into print. By the time it was published, I had lost my desire to read it immediately and I still haven’t read it yet. Someday, I will. I don’t want to read all of Philip K. Dick’s books because then what new material would I have to look forward to (I’m excluding the Exegesis here.). AS far as I know all of his finished work has been published and that there are no hidden manuscripts that will appear.

I have created a page of Philip K. Dick’s Works In Print that will be a work in progress for the near future due to time constraints.

More About The New Site

Philip K. Dick With CatI have made some additions and changes to the new site, specifically adding the news and Twitter feed both should be displaying only Philip K. Dick content. So if anyone sees an error, please email philipkdickfans[at]gmail[dot]com and report it.

The site was launched before it was completely done and perfect very intentionally. I recently read Seth Godin’s Poke the Box and was inspired to go against my tendency to do more work on a project before “shipping” so that the site could be enjoyed for what it has now even unfinished. I believe that this is one distinct advantage the web has over other forms of print (i.e. paper) and software programs. The user gets to use what’s ready, critique it and influence future growth. The book is an excellent (and short!) read for anyone who has interest in marketing or delivering products.

Hopefully, soon I will be able to blog about Philip K. Dick and not just about the web site!

I have been very busy lately with work on this site and all the other things going on in my personal life so I would like to apologize if I haven’t responded to communication sent to me or the site’s email. It might take a few days but I will read and reply to all.

I’m still working on ideas and plans for the site so if there are any suggestion for improvements, please email philipkdickfans[at]gmail[dot]com. In addition if anyone would like to volunteer to help with things like blog entries, graphic design, etc., please email the address above also.

I hope everyone is enjoying the site and likes what they see!

Welcome To The New Philip K. Dick Fan Site!

Philip K. Dick Head ShotThe new site has been a long time in coming mostly due to the web site architecture changes that have been made and the additional news and feed features that have been added along with the usual blog format. Thank you for your patience during the wait.

I decided to launch it with the features I had ready and build on it as we go. New features, designs, topics, etc. can be added at any time. I have a vast electronic archive of Philip K. Dick material that may be posted. Obviously some won’t be published due to copyright restrictions.

I’m still working on ideas and plans for the site so if there are any suggestion for improvements, please email philipkdickfans[at]gmail[dot]com. In addition if anyone would like to volunteer to help with things like blog entries, graphic design, etc., please email the address above also.

I hope everyone likes what they see!