The Gospel According to Philip K. Dick (2001)

I want to make my review a riff on another review, written by Kurt Winter of New Jersey. He starts off by saying, "If I weren't already a PKD fan ... this docuflick would do absolutely nothing for me." And that is the very heart of the problem here. If I did not know who Phil Dick was, I would not have learned it from this film. When was he born? When did he die? Where did he grow up? These things are never stated.Winter writes, "While it was certainly informative, it could have been edited better, and could have been more broad." I completely agree, especially with the editing. Sometimes the different voices blend together to tell a story, sometimes they seem poorly connected. And the segue from one spot to the next is weak.More charismatic people to interview, or at least an eloquent narrator, would have helped a great deal. Just showing clips from people who knew Dick does not really tell the story. These people should be used to support the story, not be the backbone. The younger guys with websites seem completely out of place and even if their words are true, they come off as amateur.But, hey, if you are a Dick fan and want to hear his friends -- including Robert Anton Wilson and the author of "They Live" -- this is worth checking out.

I found this documentary great... I don't know what you guys are all moaning about. The cartoon portion of Dick with his actual voice from archive tapes is great. These were just fans, let me see some of you do a better job! I give it a 10 out of 10 because what made Phil K Dick was his mind... and these guys focus on the transcending event of Phil's LIFE! I remember a few years after I watched this i considered finding God. And it was this testimony that led me to reading the Gospel and asking God to be real to me. Nothing happened so I just kept asking for the Holy Spirit, which Phil K Dick received the moment that girl walked up to his door with the Jesus necklace. I kept asking and reading the gospel in secret.. alone, no church, just my room. Three weeks later I was overtaken by a love freight train. I felt like I was either stuck in a permanent dream or dead and in heaven, then the visions of Jesus came, of heaven, of hell and Satan, angels in my room... ITS all real folks... IF SOMEONE wants GOD revealed, just ASK that out loud and ask GOD in Jesus name for the HOLY Spirit, the Living Water... and read the new testament as you remain pure for a time not partaking in the world. Thanks Phil K Dick for helping me see the LIGHT! Thanks filmmakers for making this movie! Thank you God for Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit for those who do not JUDGE the word and give it a chance remaining objective! ANYONE has questions on my visions, how to find God, etc... lemme know: djvalis AT gmail dot com

If I weren't already a PKD fan, and have read more than a dozen of his novels, this docuflick would do absolutely nothing for me. There is only about six or seven different interviewees, with scant biographical information. Cut scenes between interviews are overly long, and an annoying techno soundtrack makes archival audio from PKD inaudible.While it was certainly informative, it could have been edited better, and could have been more broad.This is something that diehard PKD fans will enjoy, but don't expect the kind of documentary quality that "Roger and Me" and "Sense of Life" convey. For all its flaws, still worth a look.

PKD is a good subject for a documentary, but this piece is hampered by a lack of visual stimulus, a slow-starting narrative, and especially an overload of silly graphics.The content starts getting intriguing and compelling about half-way through, but it takes some time to get there, a shame, since it seems that there is plenty of material to start off this direction at a much earlier point. In addition to this, there is a sequence of CGI that is repeated again and again, that is painful to watch, but is unrelenting. Although removing it would make this a very short documentary, it is cruel to leave in.All that said, if you're a fan, you might as well watch it, there is plenty of interest, especially if you thought Jason Koornick was a spazz in grade school.