Review of Brian J. Robb's Counterfeit Worlds
This is the review that I wrote for Amazon.com for the book Counterfeit Worlds by Brian J. Robb.
The book can be purchased online at Amazon.com: Counterfeit Worlds: Philip K. Dick on Film
First off, I haven't read too many books on films based upon the works of PKD. I bought this book because I'm a fan of Dick's works, and the films that are closely linked to it (A Scanner Darkly primarily, but before that film came out, Blade Runner - the rest, to me, are like Vanilla Sky, and the Matrix; movies 'using' Dick's ideas).
Secondly, I found this to be a very good overview of not only the films that were based on PKD's works (Blade Runner, Total Recall, Screamers, Confessions d'un Barjo, Impostor, Minority Report, Paycheck, and A Scanner Darkly), but also his life (~32 pages), radio and TV adaptations, and upcoming/unmade projects (film and otherwise).
You should read this book if;
a) You're interested in reading about PKD's life,
b) You're interested in reading about how some of his films ended up being made (those listed above),
c) You're interested in reading about the influence that PKD's works had on the realm of film in general.
You shouldn't read this book if you want to find out more about the radio/tv programs based upon his works, since you won't get too much from this book on these (not that you necessarily should).
If you're just interested in finding out more about Blade Runner, you'd probably be safe purchasing this book for that reason alone.
There's lots of pictures, the type is rather normal (small-ish, in a good way), and there's some new content in this book - not just the author's perspectives, but also new interviews, albeit only snippets from these - so you'll certainly get your money's worth.
4 stars because I didn't 'love it' - I thought it was very good, and I may end up looking at particular parts over again (and it got me to dust off my copy of Impostor for another viewing), but there's no real reason to re-read the book, in my opinion.
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