Review of Blade Runner

If you manage to round up every Ridley Scott fan and present them all of his movies and ask them to single out his best work, they will narrow it down to two: Alien and Blade Runner. Then, even though they won't be told to do this, they will form two groups and will call themselves Team Alien and Team Blade Runner, and only then we will be able to identify Ridley's magnum opus. You will also notice a tall, scrawny guy standing under the Team Blade Runner banner. Yup, that's me. I think this film is his magnum opus, and one of the greatest achievements in movie-making. What hasn't it got? A solid cast, a beautiful score by Vangelis and superb directing.

OK, I'm gonna go graphic and colourful on this: The story weaves around the never-ending rainy city like a snake, which is handled by a deranged poet of sorts. It almost has a Disney Prince quality to it but the darkness and the moody atmosphere keeps it from going down that road. Vangelis's beautiful, striking score feels like as if the film is feeding you some surreal, goodness-knows-what pills and everytime his score, or part of it, comes up, the awesomeness of the film doubles. Since the film has excelled in passing itself off as neo-noir, it can be said as the true heir to the 40's neo-noirs. Blade Runner is technically a book in movie form. Every camera change is akin to turning a page in a book, and the anticipation one feels while reading a book can feel it in this film, a rare feeling I must say. Some of the scenes and the way they are shot are so gorgeous that you can't help but imprint that scene in your mind so you can review it over and over again. Take a look when Deckard hunts down and shoots Zhora; the setting, the mood, the kill, everything is so prophetic, in a sense, and the music plays like muses mourning her death and at the same time mocking the logic behind the moment. Another moment is when Batty hoists Deckard up on the roof and goes into his soliloquy mode; not only it is haunting and mesmerizing but is also a great testament on how powerfully emotional and grabbing screen moments can get. It is only the ending that has baffled many viewers and, frankly speaking, me, too. It has also raised a haunting, and much beloved, question of all time: Is Rick Deckard a Replicant? My two-cents are unfortunately not worth their price, so I won't even try.

The more I see this film the more I'm reminded of the fact that this film reminds me so much of Velvet Underground's debut album and Jim Morrison's poetic lyrics. This is something that can be declared off as silly but that's just me... I guess. Anyone else got that feeling? Or similar to it?

From the performances, all the actors were brilliant and their characters were very well written. The one, however, impressed me the most was Harrison Ford as the protagonist Rick Deckard. By that time he had established himself as a leading icon through his roles as Han Solo and Indiana Jones in two of the biggest movies ever made. Since I'm often reluctant to march to the same beat the whole damn world is stomping to, I will say that I found him more relatable and human in this film than the other two, and his performance amazing. Even though I like Solo and Indy, they came off as irritating adult-pricks running across in a world that can be categorized as irrational or non-sensical. Not this one, though. Rick Deckard was in a world that can be categorized as "Our world within 100 years" or in other words, realistic, through the attitudes and behaviours. Deckard had more character, more depth, more human factor in it, not some one-liner one-second comic relief guy. Harrison Ford's approach to his character may seem lazy at first but he makes it simple for us to enjoy yet complex enough to leave you scratching your head. This is one film he should be remembered for, not the other two, in my opinion. The reason why I'm praising his performance above all his others is because he bought a certain degree of realism to Deckard and perfectly mirrored the image of the world around him into his character. A great achievement I must say, totally great. From the supporting, Joe Turkel was also convincing in his role as Eldon Tyrell. I like actors who are able to express through hand movements or have great flow in them. Turkel displays it here. Rutger Hauer as Roy Batty was equally hypnotizing. I'm not usually a fan of tragic villains / heroes but Hauer bought a depth of understanding to him, making him a favourite for many viewers worldwide. The rest of the cast were good, too, but hardly to the above casts' level.

The one thing that prevents me from calling it perfect is (it is rather silly) because it is cyberpunk, and I'm not too keen on cyberpunk. I'm more of a steampunk fan. Yea, that's one -punk I can relate to. Cyberpunk doesn't really cut the mustard with me, it just skims over. Steampunk is more dignified, more adventure-esque and more thrilling to watch. Had this film been steampunk it would've been time better. Come to think of it, why can't they remake it as one? (If you want to throw tomatoes, please warn me first)

In conclusion, one of the greatest films ever made and a must watch. Blade Runner was one of 80's greatest moments!

9.0/10