Philip K. Dick's 1977 novel, A Scanner Darkly, soft-pedals the sci-fi, but brings on plenty of paranoia. Undercover narc cop Bob Arctor, aka "Fred", is assigned to heavy surveillance of suspected drug trafficker, Bob Arctor. Along with the mental deterioration brought on by regular hits of the drug Substance D (aka "Slow Death"), the contradictions drop Bob/Fred into a deep identity crisis. Nominally set in 1994, but it feels totally 70s, right down to the music references. There are funny and sad scenes of stoner headcases trying to reason their way through dead-end scenarios, double-crosses and unexpected twists. Stoner noir. I re-read this because there is a movie version in development, which unlike most PKD adaptations, holds promise of not being a total travesty.
Posted by M.Ace at 03:02 PM, June 10, 2004.Here's more news on the film version, from the PKD Trust (photos too):
http://www.philipkdick.com/films_scanner-061204.html
Sounds even more promising (link picked up via Ollapodrida).
hey, glad you stopped by and snagged that link, i was just stopping over here and about to post a comment to ya about it-- i'm very excited about the film. i know i shouldn't count my eggs before they're hatched, considering it's got both Winona and Keanu, which could signal impending doom but i'm still optimistic...
Posted by weirdpixie at 04:00 PM, June 14, 2004.Thanks for the tip, any which way. Very good link. Yeah, Winona raised my eyebrow a notch, but I can see her working well as that character. Keanu should be just fine as Arctor. I think Downey will be an excellent Barris. More importantly, no Spielberg or Cruise or their like. And they're making it in Austin, just like a classic Dead Milkmen album.