Escapes

If the name Hampton Fancher rings a bell, you probably have strong opinions on the best version of Blade Runner. The screenwriter of that sci-fi classic, Fancher sports one of the damndest backstories in Hollywood, including acting appearances on Bonanza, literal ditch digging, and occasional bouts of flamenco dancing. The documentary Escapes tells the thoroughly odd, strangely endearing saga of a genial bullshitter who somehow keeps stumbling, if not always upwards, at least sideways through show business. Think Robert Evans with a smidge of self-consciousness, and prepare for a wild ride. For all of the famous names and salacious celebrity dirt, the best reason to see Escapes, really, is the recounting of Fancher’s in-between times, with the most outrageous details of his life relayed via a series of flamenco-scored text blocks that quickly come to seem like a particularly ridiculous game of Mad Libs. (Sample term: Schizophrenic lingerie model.)

by Andrew Wright