The 452nd film I have seen in theaters…
They’ve seriously overestimated the impact of Asian culture on 2019 Los Angeles.
In the year 2019, artificial humans known as a Replicants have been developed to serve mankind. These creations, with lifespans only numbering 4 years, are the soldiers, prostitutes, slaves of this society. A crew of these “Skinjobs” escape their masters and return to Earth to attempt to elongate their lives. A “Blade Runner” is a special sort of cop, tasked with hunting down rogue Replicants. One is brought out of retirement to track down this crew. His name is Deckard, and he is about to have a life-changing experience on this job.
Harrison Ford is Deckard, one of his first real meaty roles after Star Wars and Indy. His “noir” detective is excellent. Barely mentioned on screen, and alluded to only in dreams and origami clues, the mystery of whether he is a human or replicant is fantastic. I am hoping the sequel gives us an answer on it.
Ford is good, but Rutger Hauer is better. This is an actor that turned in many memorable performances over the years, but this remains his pinnacle. His Roy Batty was sublime. He steals the whole movie.
Ah, the Femme Fatale. Sean Young, who frazzled out far too quickly in Hollywood, plays Rachael, the Replicant that Deckard falls in love with. Great casting.
Pris the former hooker Replicant is played by Daryl Hannah. One of her earliest roles, the acrobatically psychotic Pris is a stand out.
Speaking of Daryl, here is his brother Larry. William Sanderson steals his scenes as Sebastian, the geneticist who worked on the Replicants and is himself dying of premature aging. A small role, but powerful.
The late Brion James is Leon the Replicant. This was a great character actor that went far too soon. He passed in 1999.
Joe Turkel is Tyrell, the mastermind behind the replicants. This was a strange role which Turkel played well. Many will remember him as the bartender in The Shining.
Joanna Cassidy is Zhora, the snake screwing sex show replicant. (you can’t make this up). I actually met her a number of years ago. Nice woman. Did not meet the snake.
M. Emmet Walsh, another classic character actor, plays Captain Bryant- a police chief straight out of a 1940’s movie. He is still around, having had an awesome career. The sniper in “The Jerk” and the diving coach in “Back to school” being two of my favorite performances by Mr. Walsh.
Rounding out the main cast is Edward James Olmos as Gaff, the origami obsessed cop who causes many to suspect that Deckard is a replicant. I also met him at a convention. Awesome actor, pleasant man.
Not much I can say about this. It is my first time seeing it in the theater, or at all really. This “Final Cut” is Ridley Scott’s final edit of the film, the only one he fully controlled, and it is my first time seeing it. The acting was awesome. The visuals hold up 35 years later. The music by the great Vangelis is still a perfect match for the story.
Watching it in this special screening (before Blade Runner 2049 comes out). I must state that I am living in 2017, and the setting of 2019 is NOTHING like the way we turned out, but that’s OK. I like to think of this as an alternate universe. One with lots of noodle shops, an LA that is more Asian than Latino, robot sex slaves on outer space colonies. In other words, a true Utopia. 😉
10/10 – a classic
The Skinny from the Fatty 