Vangelis is the perfect choice for composing music for a film such as Blade Runner. The unnerving, futuristic synth score is not only characteristically 80s, but also recognizably sci-fi.
I love the almost Burton’s Gotham-esque futuristic production design, a mix of the dark and gritty and the technologically advanced and flashy. Ridley Scott brings the rain, the smoke and the grime alive just as well, as he does in Alien and combines that with a sci-fi look quite unlike anything we’ve seen before or since.
A testament to just how much talent has been poured over the visual effects comes from the facts that they look amazing even today. The flying cars, the flashing lights, and the vast city landscape - they all look incredible.
What sets Blade Runner apart from most other great (and less great) science fiction film is the slow pace, the contemplative tone and the philosophical dialogue, that delves deep into questions of humanity, primal emotions and the value of memories and experiences. Friends of booming explosions and exhilarating action will be bored, but those craving for deeper layers of storytelling will find loads to love.
Rutger Hauer might very well be one of the best science fiction baddies of all time. In many ways, he is just a version of the very typical 80s film baddie (think Hans Gruber or the Terminator) but in other ways, he is a fascinating, compelling and haunting character who deserves to be credited for the chilling performance alone.
The tension in the plot is underlying and comes from the fact that we cannot know for sure who is a replicant and who is not, even though there is a test to find that out. However, what if the test isn’t completely reliable? What if the replicants are advanced enough to pass?
There are many similarities in direction and style between Blade Runner and Scott’s previous blockbuster Alien. He allows his vision to fully play out in both instances, even if the claustrophobic and actively tense from Alien has been switched out for the slower, flashier and more layered tone in Blade Runner.
Even the action scenes, which appear sparingly, have a strangely dreamy and philosophical quality to them, which goes together with the rest of the film neatly.
Isn’t it inherently creepy, how in certain situations, the replicants’ eyes glow ominously? They are the creepiest androids ever.
All performances are restricted, but surprisingly nuanced. There is a subtlety in Harrison Ford’s performance not usually seen from him, while Sean Young and Daryl Hannah bring sexual tension to the mix. This might very well be Ford’s all-time greatest performance, even if it’s not his most iconic one.
The climactic chase between Deckard might not be the most exciting chase sequence put to film, but it feels like a natural continuation to the long build-up that precedes it and it’s marvellously acted and directed. It’s one of these sequences that will remain legendary purely thanks to its different elements working so well in tandem. The last sequence is almost a horror show, which stands in stark contrast with the rest of the film while feeling like a natural part of it.
THE BAD:
There’s a long build-up that mostly seems to move the plot nowhere and barely adds to the wider backstory of the characters involved in the story. That makes the middle part of the film slightly less compelling as the opening and the third act.
I would have wished for more replicant-scenes, actually, and slightly swifter plot development. However, these are minor faults, mind you.
THE UGLY:
It would have been frustrating to work with such inefficient computers back in 2019 as this film suggests, don’t you think?
VERDICT:
Ridley Scott’s philosophical science fiction film is a refreshing piece of contemplative cinema that has stood the test of time better than most of its peers.
Review by Theo KallströmVIP 6BlockedParentSpoilers2021-02-18T13:05:45Z
THE BETTER: ‘BLADE RUNNER’
WRITING: 90
ACTING: 100
LOOK: 100
SOUND: 100
FEEL: 90
NOVELTY: 100
ENJOYMENT: 95
RE-WATCHABILITY: 100
INTRIGUE: 85
EXPECTATIONS: 100
THE GOOD:
Vangelis is the perfect choice for composing music for a film such as Blade Runner. The unnerving, futuristic synth score is not only characteristically 80s, but also recognizably sci-fi.
I love the almost Burton’s Gotham-esque futuristic production design, a mix of the dark and gritty and the technologically advanced and flashy. Ridley Scott brings the rain, the smoke and the grime alive just as well, as he does in Alien and combines that with a sci-fi look quite unlike anything we’ve seen before or since.
A testament to just how much talent has been poured over the visual effects comes from the facts that they look amazing even today. The flying cars, the flashing lights, and the vast city landscape - they all look incredible.
What sets Blade Runner apart from most other great (and less great) science fiction film is the slow pace, the contemplative tone and the philosophical dialogue, that delves deep into questions of humanity, primal emotions and the value of memories and experiences. Friends of booming explosions and exhilarating action will be bored, but those craving for deeper layers of storytelling will find loads to love.
Rutger Hauer might very well be one of the best science fiction baddies of all time. In many ways, he is just a version of the very typical 80s film baddie (think Hans Gruber or the Terminator) but in other ways, he is a fascinating, compelling and haunting character who deserves to be credited for the chilling performance alone.
The tension in the plot is underlying and comes from the fact that we cannot know for sure who is a replicant and who is not, even though there is a test to find that out. However, what if the test isn’t completely reliable? What if the replicants are advanced enough to pass?
There are many similarities in direction and style between Blade Runner and Scott’s previous blockbuster Alien. He allows his vision to fully play out in both instances, even if the claustrophobic and actively tense from Alien has been switched out for the slower, flashier and more layered tone in Blade Runner.
Even the action scenes, which appear sparingly, have a strangely dreamy and philosophical quality to them, which goes together with the rest of the film neatly.
Isn’t it inherently creepy, how in certain situations, the replicants’ eyes glow ominously? They are the creepiest androids ever.
All performances are restricted, but surprisingly nuanced. There is a subtlety in Harrison Ford’s performance not usually seen from him, while Sean Young and Daryl Hannah bring sexual tension to the mix. This might very well be Ford’s all-time greatest performance, even if it’s not his most iconic one.
The climactic chase between Deckard might not be the most exciting chase sequence put to film, but it feels like a natural continuation to the long build-up that precedes it and it’s marvellously acted and directed. It’s one of these sequences that will remain legendary purely thanks to its different elements working so well in tandem. The last sequence is almost a horror show, which stands in stark contrast with the rest of the film while feeling like a natural part of it.
THE BAD:
There’s a long build-up that mostly seems to move the plot nowhere and barely adds to the wider backstory of the characters involved in the story. That makes the middle part of the film slightly less compelling as the opening and the third act.
I would have wished for more replicant-scenes, actually, and slightly swifter plot development. However, these are minor faults, mind you.
THE UGLY:
It would have been frustrating to work with such inefficient computers back in 2019 as this film suggests, don’t you think?
VERDICT:
Ridley Scott’s philosophical science fiction film is a refreshing piece of contemplative cinema that has stood the test of time better than most of its peers.
96% = = :white_check_mark::white_check_mark: = BETTER