Director: Denis Villeneuve
Screenplay: Hampton Fancher and Michael Green, from a story by Hampton Fancher, based on characters from the novel Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? by Philip K. Dick
Starring: Ryan Gosling, Harrison Ford, Ana de Armas, Sylvia Hoeks, Robin Wright, Mackenzie Davis, Carla Juri, Lennie James, Dave Bautista, Jared Leto
Running Time: 163 minutes
Genre: Science-fiction
This is the long-awaited sequel to Blade Runner (1982), one of the most influential science-fiction movies of all time. The film is set in 2049, where a series of environmental disasters have made the use of biologically engineered artificial humans known as "replicants" a necessity for humanity's survival. However some of the older model replicants have not integrated and they are hunted down and executed (or "retired") by police "Blade Runner" units. The film focuses on K. (Gosling), a Blade Runner, and I won't say anything else because it would be something of a spoiler.
This is possibly one of the most visually stunning films that I have ever seen. It is absolutely beautiful, moving from neon-drenched cityscapes to desolate, grey wasteland, to burnished orange deserts, all swathed in mist, dust, rain and snow. However, as with the original film, this is a demanding watch, because it is very slow, and long. It moves at it's own rhythm, and if you can go along with that and surrender yourself to it's spell then it really works. As with the original the characters tend to get washed out in the visuals. Ryan Gosling plays his lead role in a similar manner to his role in Drive (2011), Ana de Armas gives the film some much needed heart as Gosling's hologram girlfriend, and it is worth pointing out that, while Harrison Ford does reprise his role from the first film, he does not appear until very late in this film and has little more than an extended cameo. In fact, Harrison Ford's appearance is something of a spoiler, but he is featured very heavily on the poster and all the publicity for the film.
In many ways, I prefer this to the original, the storyline is intriguing, with an interesting central mystery, and it still tackles the Big Issues about the nature of humanity. While the length and pace might put off some viewers, I think that this film will find it's audience sooner or later, and there are images and scenes that I think will become iconic in the future.
See this film, and see it on the biggest screen possible. This is dark, beautiful and intelligent science-fiction.
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