OK, I know I’m supposed to be busy working on my presentation for the big event, but someone’s posted this great (somewhat old) British documentary on Blade Runner to YouTube and I wanted to pass along the link… I was personally happy to learn that no one involved in the project cared for the Harrison Ford narration, and that Philip K. Dick had an opportunity to see some of the footage before his death. (I was under the impression that he had not.) Anyway, if you like the film, it’s definitely worth watching — if only to hear Rutger Hauer talking with disdain about Ford’s character “fuck(ing) a dishwasher.” (He, of course, is referring to the replicant that Ford’s character, Rick Deckard, falls in love with.) And, if you’re interested, they’re having a pretty good discussion over at Metafilter as to whether or not Deckard was himself a “skin job”. (I need to add the director’s cut to my Netflix list now.)
Connect
4 Comments
Wait, is “skin job” from Blade Runner? I’m such a tool. I heard that reference on last week’s Battlestar Galacatica and didn’t make the connection. They refered to one of the human-looking cylons as a “skin job.”
Yeah, I believe they called the really high-end repicants “skin jobs.”
What’s the hell’s a tortoise?
Seriously, I liked the movie when it came out, but can hardly bear to watch it now, mainly due to having actually read the book.
From what correspondence I’ve seen, Dick was shown some storyboards and mock-ups, and loved them, but when he was actually shown a full preview he hated it and wished he’d never agreed to the project, and then he promptly died (which some fans consider to have been brought on by this regret). I’m almost happy he went when he did, as his kids have subsequently sold rights for other stories which have turned out even worse, and thankfully he didn’t have to see them.
If you haven’t, you really should read “Do androids dream of electric sheep”. It’s a comical farce, and it’s also much more sad and disturbing on every level than “Blade Runner,” and the plot is so different that it’s amazing they even tried to pawn it off as an adaptation. As one example, the Deckard of the book’s overriding motivation for doing nearly everything is to get money so he can afford some sort of a live pet (the movie just alludes to the fact that a robot snake is cheaper than a real one).
Now I’m mad, just thinking about it. Thanks, Mark.
(and frenchfries, as a small coincidence to your comment, Edward James Olmos is in both Blade Runner and Battlestar Galactica)
From what I hear, the going rate for a “skin job” is about seven bucks (plus tip) in the Arthur’s parking lot on Michigan Avenue.