I thought so too back when I first saw it, but after watching it again the other night I found it had a stronger plot than I remembered. The main story is pushed to the background, but it's definitely there.
But yeah, you did say "basically the same experience," and that's true. I was just surprised to discover there was a little thriller plot progressing beneath all the drug chatter.
How is the book? Worth reading? I read and enjoyed Androids and a few of his short stories, and I generally like sci-fi.
'We Can Remember It For You Wholesale' is even more out-there than a Schwarzeneggar/Verhoeven gorefest about losing your mind to three-titted hooker fantasies could hope to be. Like, if you haven't read it, spoilers, it ends with alien mice conquering Earth because of a broken pact with a 12-year-old. I think?
the book is absolutely delicious and i can't recommend it enough.
it's very autobiographical- dick was, at the time he wrote it, a speed freak in the bay area (which i reckon is why lines like "we're all way too close to this" etc ring so true as depictions of drug culture) and the lighter sci-fi elements (as compared to androids, three stigmata, etc) are actually nuanced enough to add a great deal of depth to the story.