Philip K. Dick was "wacko," "compulsive" and "weird" and that's according to the people who liked him.
During the 1950s and 1960s, the late science fiction writer penned dozens of novels and short stories that appeared on dime-store shelves and in pulp magazines.
The documentary "The Gospel According to Philip K. Dick" chronicles his later years when he suffered from debilitating depression and drug addiction.
The documentary should be titled "The Madness of Philip K. Dick."
Although the movie was made by fans hoping to increase awareness of the author (whom they affectionately call PKD), "Gospel" ignores those decades when he was at his most creative.
Mainstream audiences know Dick through some of the movies inspired by his work, such as "Blade Runner," "Total Recall" and the upcoming Tom Cruise thriller "Minority Report."
A contemporary of Ray Bradbury, Dick took a philosophical approach to his world of spacecrafts, androids and technology to question reality, humanity and logic.
Dick died in 1982 shortly before the release of "Blade Runner," and for nearly 10 years before, he battled drug addiction, depression and the seemingly mad ramblings of his mind.
Filmmakers Mark Steensland and Andy Massagi use no film footage or photographs of Dick. So the audience doesn't get to see what the author really looked like, but they do, believe it or not, get an animated Philip K. Dick.
This cartoon speaks courtesy of old audiotape interviews about subjects such as suicide, mind-swapping and his life's work. It's a novel effect, especially in a documentary about a man who was obsessed with the idea of identity.
Fellow sci-fi scribes Robert Anton Wilson and Ray Nelson join those discussing the later years of Dick's life, which he claimed included a mysterious safecracking at his home, a suicide attempt, run-ins with gangsters and finally a visit from God.
Dick's friends clearly love a good conspiracy, and the break-in provides them with ample room for speculation.
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