Blade Runner is just one of those movies that everyone, whether they’re inclined towards it or not, should see. Ridley Scott’s 1982 futuristic film noir based loosely on Philip K. Dick’s Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? is one of the greatest works of cerebral science-fiction ever made -even if it took twenty-five years until the Final Cut to make that apparent. Visually magnificent, captivating, and unrelentingly provocative, it’s certainly a movie that never needed a sequel.
But it grew a cult following and eventually near universal acclaim, and so now, we have Blade Runner 2049. It’s directed by Quebecois filmmaker Denis Villeneuve -who’s built quite a pedigree for himself the past couple years with movies like Sicario and Arrival. And his attitude seems to be “this movie doesn’t need to exist, but it might as well be done right!”
Thirty years after the original, newly perfected synthetic replicants live among humans. One of these, K (Ryan Gosling), works for the LAPD as a Blade Runner, now hunting down old rogue Tyrell-model replicants. However, when he discovers the remains of one buried on a farm, a mystery presents itself which puts him at risk from the Wallace Corporation, and eventually leads to him finding the missing Rick Deckard (Harrison Ford).
Villeneuve clearly loves Blade Runner. This is evident in how he and cinematographer Roger Deakins capture the look and feel of the original to a tee. It’s got the same unique atmosphere, the same collision of beauty and grittiness in its vision of the future, and the same stylish artistry to the whole production. Deakins’ work is absolutely magnificent and the world is well-realized. Though Vangelis’ glorious motif only surfaces once, the music is good. And the visual effects of this movie are astounding! The technology is well-rendered, and I don’t know if I’ve ever seen better compositing than in some of these scenes. Even where there are flaws in some of the effects, it comes off as intentional, it’s really quite clever.
The story keeps you intrigued too. However it’s complexity can bog it down a bit. The original had a relatively simple plot through which to convey its existentialist themes, and here it’s almost reversed. This is notable in how the movie is a little too long. I also missed a lot of the noir aspect. It’s still there, but the film leans more heavily to the sci-fi/action angle. I love the decision to make K a replicant though, leading to a more fascinating protagonist than Deckard was originally. Also, unlike Deckard, the case he’s working on has a more personal affect, allowing the audience to better engage with his deductions. I admire how this film doesn’t rely much on the events of the original, rather it feels like merely another story in this universe. Roy Batty and his Nexus-6 gang are never even mentioned, which actually reinforces the poignancy of his fate.
As far as the cast of this movie, I’m incredibly impressed by how international it is. From Ana de Armas who’s Cuban, to the Swiss Carla Juri; Israeli Hiam Abbass, and Dutch Sylvia Hoeks as Luv, one of the main antagonists, it’s a great cultural mosaic of talented actors. Of course it’s Canadian Ryan Gosling who’s front and centre, and he’s terrific as K. Playing a character like this, it would have been easy to fall into A.I. clichés, but Gosling plays K’s emotional detachment believably, as well as his development as the mysteries unfold. Harrison Ford is still great as Deckard, though his role is substantially smaller than the advertising would have you believe. He’s a supporting character, this is really K’s story. Robin Wright plays his superior, and in smaller roles are Mackenzie Davis, Barkhad Abdi, and Dave Bautista; and Edward James Olmos even reprises his role from the first movie for a cameo. The only disappointing performance was from Jared Leto as Niander Wallace. His dialogue is more than a little hammy, and you get the sense he’s trying too hard to seem deep. Also, as the villain, he just can’t compare to Rutger Hauer’s revelatory Batty. As great as this film is, there’s nothing on par with his iconic “tears in the rain” monologue.
Before you see this movie, check out Black Out 2022, a prequel short made by Shinichirō Watanabe of the terrific anime Cowboy Bebop -one of the many artists inspired by Blade Runner. Villeneuve was also one of those artists, and with Blade Runner 2049, he’s managed to do the impossible: follow-up a classic decades later with a worthy successor.
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