October 6, 2017, marked the release of a follow-up to the 1982 science fiction cult classic movie, Blade Runner 2049. Denis Villeneuve took the reins as director and managed to defy all odds with not only a great sequel but a nationwide astounding stand-alone feature film as well. This was after the aforementioned movie had been released in 1982 and had a whopping seven cuts along with thirty-five years of time.
Last year on opening day, I remember going to see this in IMAX and being completely blown away by how astonishing it looked. I was so enticed that I skipped an 11 am class, and my expectations were met. I was fully captivated from the moment I saw the text crawl all the way to the credits. I can confidently say that I was impacted deeply by this movie, something I haven’t felt in ages. I loved it so much that I binged it a couple of times after and it always remains as impactful as I had expected.
Blade Runner 2049 happens to be three hours long and is set in the science fiction realm. The film received a favorable review from the viewers because it was unique in its style, the cinematography, the actors’ performances, and the directing were amazing too. It did poorly at the box office though, which can be attributed to the vague marketing efforts, the lengthy run time, and the fact that the original film wasn’t really a box office hit either – it only achieved cult status after normal theater screening had finished. There was reportedly a rough cut of the film that reached four hours of time during editing. According to Denis, this cut would be more palatable if cut in half as two separate movies, and while at some point this is what was planned, Villeneuve ultimately decided that there needs to be one single cut that represents Blade Runner 2049.
In preparation for the release of Blade Runner 2049, three prequel movies were uploaded online to help viewers familiarize themselves with the fictional setting and to bridge the thirty-year gap between the original movie and the sequel.
These short films are in chronological order: Black Out 2022 the story of the so called “Blackout” directed by Shinichiro Watanabe, who also did Cowboy Bebop and Samurai Champloo, 2036: Nexus Dawn: featuring Niander Wallace played by Jared Leto and his Nexus model replicants, and finally, 2048 Nowhere to Run: where we are introduced to the character Sapper played by Dave Bautista and given a little backstory.
In Blade Runner 2049, starts with an homage to the original by showing a cataclysmic dystopia first, an opening wall of text, mainly exposition, is used. Then, very briefly, there is a cut to an eye-opening, and then we get thrust into the bleak world. The original Blade Runner had a similar opening structure with a wall of text followed by the dystopic city and finishing with a closeup of the eye.
Also, regarding the respective openings of the two films, Officer K’s introduction in Blade Runner 2049 was intended as Rick Deckard’s introduction in the original 1982 film, but had to be altered to accommodate the futuristic noodle bar scene. Villeneuve was clever in K’s confrontation with Sapper and the later reveal at the tree. He was able to use the unused character position and make it work quite well.
Both Blade Runner films utilized eyes as an important symbol. It is used to show humanity in the characters or cast doubt on some character’s organic nature. This is true for both the original and the sequel right at the beginning of both films, eyes serve as metaphorical figureheads for the rest of the movie.
In the finale of the original movie’s first installment, the antagonist Roy Batty delivers the renowned “Tears in Rain” monologue during which he looks at something and imagines humans a little in a shallow way presenting replicants. In a manner, humanizing the inhuman.
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