Re: EJ & Philip K. Dick (Sean Young afficionados rule o.k.)

[Richard Brem <llr@magnet.at>]

-- [ From: Richard Brem * EMC.Ver #2.5.02 ] --

>> Charming little dialogue between Rachael and Deckard, both
>> artificial (from the movie "Blade Runner")
>
>Great informative mail. But I am not sure Deckard was a "skin job".

Dear Bertil,

well, there's no definite answer to that - that's how Ridley Scott [director
of "Blade Runner"] wanted it to be. My assertion, however, was based on an
interview with Scott reprinted in "Future Noir: The Making of Blade Runner" 
(ed. by Paul M. Sammon, Harper Prism  1996, ISBN 0-06-105314-7), in which he
made the following statement:

"... in preparing the storyline, it always seemed logical to me that in the
full turn of events, which pertained to a film of paranoia, that Deckard
should find out he was a replicant... So I always felt the amusing irony
about Harrison's [Ford] character would be that he was, in fact, a synthetic
human. A narrative detail which would always be hidden, except for those
audience members who paid attention and got it." (p. 390) 

For those interested: "Future Noir" contains a whole chapter devoted 
to the question "Deckard a Replicant?" (p. 359-364), which focuses on the
scene in Deckard's kitchen, where his eyes can be seen glowing (a sure sign
of his replicant status) and the "unicorn shot" resp. the origami tinfoil
unicorn left at his apartment (which indicate that Deckard's memory is an
artificial one) at the end of the Director's Cut. The chapter's closing line
is: "The only logical conclusion is an inescapable one: in the Director's
Cut, Rick Deckard IS a replicant." 

Btw, K.W. Jeter has also toyed with the idea of Deckard being a replicant in
"Blade Runner 2: The Edge of Human" (Bantam 1995) and has reached his own
conclusion, i.e. that he is not. 

Best regards,

Richard 
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"Making a film is like going to war. You've heard that one, right? 
One of the oldest expressions in the book. Yet making 'Blade Runner'
validated that cliche - every day, I felt as if I were engaged
in an unprecedented military action." - Ridley Scott