Did any character in "A Scanner Darkly" resemble Philip K. Dick himself?
The ends of the book and movie versions of "A Scanner Darkly" list people author Philip K. Dick knew who suffered illnesses due to long-term drug use, and Dick himself is on the list.
Indeed, as wiki explains, Dick had a long history of amphetamine use and even shared a house with other addicts -- experience that no doubt helped him write about the cranked-up addict roommates in "A Scanner Darkly" with such realistic description and dialogue.
With that in mind, I've always wondered -- did any of the main characters in "A Scanner Darkly" resemble Philip K. Dick himself? In other words, did he write himself into his story?
(The movie had five main characters: Keanu Reeves as relatively straight-edge Bob Arctor/Fred/Bruce. Robert Downey, Jr. as fast-talking schemer James Barris. Woody Harrelson as lunky stoner Ernie Luckman. Rory Cochrane as burned-out geek Charles Freck. Winona Ryder as shady cokehead Donna Hawthorne/Audrey/Hank.)
Best Answer
While in an interview, Dick says that "everything in A Scanner Darkly I actually saw," in the author's note for the book, in which he makes the dedication you mention, he says:
I myself, I am not a character in this novel; I am the novel.
Pictures about "Did any character in "A Scanner Darkly" resemble Philip K. Dick himself?"
What does the end of A Scanner Darkly mean?
The eternal bummer of A Scanner DarklyThe war on drugs is lost, and the postwar industrial boom is in full effect. This ending came straight from the book, right down to the drug-producing flower being tucked into a shoe. The uncomfortable truth is that it came from a place of truth.WHY DOES A Scanner Darkly look like that?
Director Richard Linklater decided to use a technique called interpolated rotoscoping, that he'd previously used in his film Waking Life, to give himself a head start. Interpolative rotoscoping means filming the story with live actors and then animating their images so they look sort of painted.Who is Bob Arctor in Scanner Darkly?
Bob Arctor is one of these undercover agents, assigned to immerse himself in the drug's underworld and infiltrate up the supply chain. Arctor has a vision of being in his house with a wife and two children in Anaheim, California; today he has two drug-addicted, layabout housemates: Luckman and Barris.Is A Scanner Darkly based on a true story?
A Scanner Darkly is a fictionalized account of real events, based on Dick's experiences in the 1970s drug culture. Dick said in an interview, "Everything in A Scanner Darkly I actually saw."The Right Way to Adapt a Philip K. Dick Story | NowThis Nerd
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