Fri Feb 08, 2008 4:20 pm
My first reaction to "Blade Runner!"
It took me 26 years and more than 2/3 of my life, but I finally got around
to seeing "Blade Runner" on last month! It came out when I was 11 years old and between 5th and 6th grade. At the time, I was starting to get heavily into movies. But I resided in Madison, Indiana, a town of 12,000, about 50 miles from Louisville, 70 miles from Cincinnati and 100 miles from Indianapolis, where I now reside.
In Madison, we had a two screen theater that often didn't get mega-releases and we had a drive-in that I think was a little beyond the city limits. Both were owned by the same family. In those days, when you wanted to see a very popular movie, you often had to go to a big city, which we did a few times a year. In particular, we saw a lot of movies at the Showcase Cinemas in Louisville.
I remember seeing the ads for "Blade Runner" and being intrigued by them, and the title itself, but largely forgetting about it. I don't think it ever
showed in Madison and furthermore, at that time, home video was a luxury item and movies usually just showed on one scree at a theater. Sometimes the same movie would be at #1 for months and drown out the competition.
Anyway, in the '90s, I largely lost touch with movies, getting more
entrenched in sports and music. But I've re-discovered movies in the last few years, especially since getting a DVD player, and read some great reviews of "Blade Runner."
I bought the director's cut used and like it very much. I've since bought the two-disc version of "The Final Cut" and like it about the same. The concept is fantastic and executed very well for 1982. There's not as much action as I expected, but that's okay. The story is very important and well developed. All of the performances are great, as are the technical aspects. And the music fits the atmosphere very well. I like it way better than the theme from "Chariots of Fire" and am now interested in hearing more from Vangelis.
I read a review complaining that the movie's characters have no appeal.
Well, they don't have much, but I think that's supposed to be the point. I
interpret the movie as a warning of the danger of playing with biology. The movie seems prophetic now, with cloning and stem cell research now being much bigger issues. I think what the movie portrays is a society in which life has been cheapened.
And the darkness of most scenes underscores the grim tone of the movie. Yet, the movie doesn't strike me as being completely pessimistic. I think Roy letting Deckard live and then releasing that bird - into what I think is the only semi-daylight shot in the movie - sends a glimmer of hope; perhaps telling us that the future is what we make it but that we better be careful about it. It reminds me of this quote from the liner notes of The Alan Parsons Project's album "I Robot" -
"I Robot...The story of the rise of the machine and the decline of man, which paradoxically coincided with his discovery of the wheel...and a warning that his brief dominance of this planet will probably end, because man tried to create robot in his own image."
I haven't seen any other versions of the movie yet, but I doubt that the
voice overs would have added much to the movie from my perspective. Maybe for some others. The plot is pretty advanced. It's probably best that the "uplifting" finale was removed. It probably seemed forced. I don't understand the significance of the unicorn and I think the clues that Deckard might be a replicant are pretty subtle. But the ending seems to leave the door wide open for a sequel, which hopefully will take place. And I hope to manage to see the first one in a theater one of these days.
Next up for me, I plan to watch "The Final Cut" with all three of the commentaries.
I'm glad these lists exist because this is precisely the kind of movie that
I think is worthy of deep discussion.
Okay, this is a start. I look forward to reactions from any of you.
to seeing "Blade Runner" on last month! It came out when I was 11 years old and between 5th and 6th grade. At the time, I was starting to get heavily into movies. But I resided in Madison, Indiana, a town of 12,000, about 50 miles from Louisville, 70 miles from Cincinnati and 100 miles from Indianapolis, where I now reside.
In Madison, we had a two screen theater that often didn't get mega-releases and we had a drive-in that I think was a little beyond the city limits. Both were owned by the same family. In those days, when you wanted to see a very popular movie, you often had to go to a big city, which we did a few times a year. In particular, we saw a lot of movies at the Showcase Cinemas in Louisville.
I remember seeing the ads for "Blade Runner" and being intrigued by them, and the title itself, but largely forgetting about it. I don't think it ever
showed in Madison and furthermore, at that time, home video was a luxury item and movies usually just showed on one scree at a theater. Sometimes the same movie would be at #1 for months and drown out the competition.
Anyway, in the '90s, I largely lost touch with movies, getting more
entrenched in sports and music. But I've re-discovered movies in the last few years, especially since getting a DVD player, and read some great reviews of "Blade Runner."
I bought the director's cut used and like it very much. I've since bought the two-disc version of "The Final Cut" and like it about the same. The concept is fantastic and executed very well for 1982. There's not as much action as I expected, but that's okay. The story is very important and well developed. All of the performances are great, as are the technical aspects. And the music fits the atmosphere very well. I like it way better than the theme from "Chariots of Fire" and am now interested in hearing more from Vangelis.
I read a review complaining that the movie's characters have no appeal.
Well, they don't have much, but I think that's supposed to be the point. I
interpret the movie as a warning of the danger of playing with biology. The movie seems prophetic now, with cloning and stem cell research now being much bigger issues. I think what the movie portrays is a society in which life has been cheapened.
And the darkness of most scenes underscores the grim tone of the movie. Yet, the movie doesn't strike me as being completely pessimistic. I think Roy letting Deckard live and then releasing that bird - into what I think is the only semi-daylight shot in the movie - sends a glimmer of hope; perhaps telling us that the future is what we make it but that we better be careful about it. It reminds me of this quote from the liner notes of The Alan Parsons Project's album "I Robot" -
"I Robot...The story of the rise of the machine and the decline of man, which paradoxically coincided with his discovery of the wheel...and a warning that his brief dominance of this planet will probably end, because man tried to create robot in his own image."
I haven't seen any other versions of the movie yet, but I doubt that the
voice overs would have added much to the movie from my perspective. Maybe for some others. The plot is pretty advanced. It's probably best that the "uplifting" finale was removed. It probably seemed forced. I don't understand the significance of the unicorn and I think the clues that Deckard might be a replicant are pretty subtle. But the ending seems to leave the door wide open for a sequel, which hopefully will take place. And I hope to manage to see the first one in a theater one of these days.
Next up for me, I plan to watch "The Final Cut" with all three of the commentaries.
I'm glad these lists exist because this is precisely the kind of movie that
I think is worthy of deep discussion.
Okay, this is a start. I look forward to reactions from any of you.
