Blade Runner [Director's Cut]

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Summary: A revelation of the next century!
Review: What can I say about BLADE RUNNER? It is simple: IT IS A LYRICAL AND SOMEWHAT POETIC REVELATION OF THE NEXT CENTURY. BEAUTIFUL. I HAVE SEEN THE FUTURE ALREADY, AND THE YEAR IS 2019!

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Summary: No voice-overs makes Blade Runner turn Slient
Review: The DC of Blade Runner lacks the seedy 1940's PI tone that was set with Ford's voice overs. While the extra scenes developed the charcters more, the whole tone of the movie was silenced. Ford's voice-overs made the the movie for me, and without them, the moive is long, and just another sci-fi film.

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Summary: The best SF movie ever made
Review: This movie is my all-time favorite and I think the ending in director's cut version is much more interesting and thought provoking. The visuals are superb, this movie was made before computer era and special effects in it rival the most expensive, computer-generated effects in today's movies. It has an atmosphere that many tried to copy but very few succeeded. I've seen it many times and each time I see it I discover new things. During my last viewing I started contemplating it's religious points. It is a tragic story of androids created by humans with a limited life span and made for human (God?) purpose. Yes, they are violent, but that's how they were created. They are not to blame; it's their creators who should be. If you just watched this movie once you have to see it again. You'll discover many hidden aspects that are not apparent during first viewing. It is a classic.

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Summary: Two sides of the narration controversy
Review: I have mixed feelings about the narration. It adds to the movie in some places and detracts in others. The "little people" comment by Walsh was much more sinister without the dissertation/interpretation of the narrator. Still, it sorta feels right to have it there, to complete the noirish aspects of it. Maybe it's better this way, to have the movie sans narration before us, hanging together better cinematically, while still having the narration playing silently in our memories.

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Summary: Great Movie, Not So Great DVD
Review: Great movie, not so great DVD. Although technology is relatively new, you would think that more would be given. I was disappointed with the lack of supplementary material, interviews,etc. and also alternative versions. The screen menu leaves much to be desired. But it's such a great movie you can easily not care about the shortcomings. We'll have to wait for later releases. END

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Summary: P. K. Dick done right...
Review: Blade Runner is the screen adaptation of Philip K. Dick 'Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep' and although it differs slightly it remains true to his harrowing vision of our bleak future. It tackles some difficult moral and ethical questions that we will be forced to deal with soon. Nothing is for certain. END

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Summary: A great movie that lost its "classic" feel
Review: When I first saw Blade Runner in the theater, I was blown away. Here, Ridley Scott had combined a Sci Fi Thriller, with a classic "Humphry Bogart" feel. I've heard many say they didn't care for narration...but could you imagine a "Bogie like" thriller without one? Harrison Ford has often been called the "Humphry Bogart of the next generation" and this film proved it. The visuals are still stunning, and the new ending is more thought provoking than the original, but without the Narration Overlay...its lost that special something that made it stand out from the rest of the Sci Fi thrillers that are out there. END

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Summary: Bladerunner DVD cuts out best part of movie
Review: I was surprised to find that the Bladerunner DVD cuts out the best part of the movie - at the very end when Harrison Ford drives off in his car with Sean Young and utters a classic line which appropriately ends the movie. You have to buy the VHS tape to get that part. What a disappointment! END

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Summary: Great movie, but director's cut is only for major fans.
Review: When I first saw this film (in its original form), I simply loved it. The visuals were beautiful, the story was thought provoking, and the movie's film noir tone (enhanced by the detective's narration) gave it a unique feeling and identity among all the sci-fi movies out there at the time.

The director's cut removes the narration and adds or removes a few scenes. The scene changes add intriguing depth to the picture, and make the ending a little less warm and fuzzy (and more realistic).

Unfortunately, without the narration many first time viewers don't completely understand the plot, and the film moves too slowly to hold their interest. The new version becomes more of an art piece, which is fine for those of us who already love it, but prevents new people from getting into it. This is a shame, since those people might appreciate and even learn from what the movie has to say.

These days I don't even bother recommending the movie to friends, because I know the current version will only disappoint (and confuse) them. Even those who are 'smart' enough to 'get it' don't always like it because the pace is too slow. It's still a good movie, but I wish they would make the original version available as well as the director's cut, so people could see and appreciate both. END

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Summary: A Narration-Less Director Version Isn't Necessarily Better
Review: Bladerunner, a highwater mark in science fiction film making, is updated by the director in this Director's Cut version with the elimination of the narration, the inclusion of the unicorn scene and deletion of the final scenes of the original version's ending. Brilliant as well as controversial from its opening premiere, "Blade Runner" by director Ridley Scott who had only just come off of directing "Alien" folded the science fiction elements into a 50's detective film noir. A minority of critics and audience members truly believed in the shadowy elements of darkness and the emphasis on detective work. With the elimination of the narration (even though Harrison Ford apparently hated it himself and attempted to produce an awful narration), for me and a few others, the narration is a key component of what made this movie so unique in its combination of film elements. Thus while this movie has become a cult classic, the Director's Cut without the na! rration apparently for a few of us diminishes somewhat what is truly one of the best science fiction movies made. Also, the upbeat ending of the original American version, shouldn't be panned as overly mainstream or completely optimistic. It's reference to the vague length of life of a replicant keeps the storyline intriguing because it only adds to the uncertainty of one's relationship with one another and uncertainty about the future. However, all this is much better described in Paul M. Sammon's excellent reference guide entitled, "Future Noir The Making of Blade Runner" (1996). END