Blade Runner - Limited Edition Collector's Set

Rating:
Summary: For a fan, a must have
Review: I liked the theatrical release immensely, and enjoy the director's cut equally. The letterbox format recreates the visual experience in theatres, and the lack of Ford's narrative puts the focus on the rich scenery created by Scott. I still see something new with each viewing. Best is the unicorn segment, highly symbolic and open to wide interpretations. Blade Runner fans ought to have both versions.

Rating:
Summary: The Original Version is 5 Stars
Review: In reference to "Blade Runner" I found this remark in one of the customer reviews:

"The only part I liked was when Blondy was killing the guy"

My god, is this getting very common or what? I first thought the person didn't like the film because he/she was bored with the story because it didn't have a bunch of mindless action adventure scenes in it. But, then I came across that sentence that I have been seeing time and time again in other articles dealing with older films.

It used to be, just 20 year ago, that mainly only men were killing evil men. There were very few evil women and except for the victims of horror films women very seldom died in movies. Sometimes I think "Blade Runner" got away with the good guy gunning down women because they were regarded as machines, computers or replicants. Because, one thing you very rarely see is a good guy gunning down an evil female.

So, here we have someone stating that the only good part of this film is a woman gunning down a man. Now why is it so wrong to have it the other way around? Ever since the 1980's all of sudden women were killing the bad men but at the same time women organizations were complaining about the horror films showing women being murdered.

Well, the movie might make more since and wouldn't be as boring to these people if they could see the original version with one exception. Who ever wrote that sentence! Deckard kills two women and is regarded as the good guy. In the original version Deckard and Blondie (Rachael) are heading off together and Deckard states that he didn't know how much time they would have together because Rachael had unlimited time. I do not know what is so horrible about that ending but who really does?


Rating:
Summary: An all-time science fiction classic!
Review: Sometime in the 21th first century of Los Angeles, it's a city of technology and wonders galore! A detective named "Rick Deckard" ( Harrison Ford) is a "blade runner" whom hunts down for these sneaky genetically enhanced cybernetic criminals called "replicants" and they all want to be like us, Deckard's only goal is to wipe them out.

This movie is truly one of the all time greatest movies ever made! it's also the second best Sci-fi movie of all time next to "Star Wars" and "2001: A Space Odyssey", this movie is a thought provoking odyssey through the future with ideas on humanity against machinery. It's all star cast ( Sean Young, Rutger Hauer, Edward James Olmos, M. Emmet Walsh and Daryl Hannah), the special effects, the settings, the music score by Vangelis, storyline and ideas make this a visual and flawless masterpiece that all movie lovers must see to believe.

The DVD doesn't offer much as it's preety much bareboned with only production notes as it's extras but hopefully sometime around this year or next year, Warner will release a 2-Disc special edition that will contain both "Director's Cut" and "Original versions" with extras, nevertheless this movie is a must own for fans of sci-fi, adventure and those who seek for something to stimulate the imagination and the mind.

Also recommended: "Total Recall", "The Fifth Element", " The Matrix Trilogy", " Dark City", " The Running Man", "Gattaca", " 12 Monkeys", " Akira", "Ghost in The Shell", " Big Trouble in Little China", " X-Men", " Heavy Metal", " 2001: A Space Odyssey", " The original Star Wars Trilogy", " Robocop", " Metropolis" ( Both versions, the 1927 and 2001 anime), " Ghost in The Shell 2", " Mad Max Trilogy", " I, Robot", " The Terminator", "Terminator 2", " Hardware".


Rating:
Summary: panel of 60 scientist voted it as the greatest sci-fi movie.
Review: Back in 82'this movie met harsh criticism and low marks from ciritics all over the country. And no wonder, with a narrative and optomistic ending in direct contrast to the film noir style. This edition of Blade runner was released in 92', starting, what is so popular for DVD's, the entising directors cut standard that follows popular movies. I still can't believe the level of superiority in special effects and the beautiful rendering of imaginatory work in this film, even to todays standards! Even more suprised that in the oscar race it was only nominated for best art direction-set decoration and best effects, visual effects. ET beat out this movie for the visual effects and Gandhi for best art direction. Although containing, still, many continuity problems and sketchy script mistakes (not a single manuscript was used in entirety, 3 were borrowed from). The continuity problems such as when bryant initially tells deckard there are four skin jobs on the loose, but minutes later says six escaped, and one was killed by the electronic gate, which sould leave five. Some cool trivia here: you can spot the millennium falcon as deckard and gaff approach the police headquarters in a spinner. It's disguised as a building, and can be seen in the lower left corner of the frame. Also, pay close attention to the character of Decker, determine whether or not, for yourself, if he is a replecant. Ridley scott was quoted to have said in 2000 that harrison's character was indead a replicant. Yet Harrison Ford later, said that the character, Decker, was always meant to be a human. Somewhat used in the film to identify replicants are irredescent reflection in the eyes. Decker, although blurred, once had this irredescence. Was it a mistake( falling in line with the many other discrepancies that plague this films masterpeice title), or a hint?

Rating:
Summary: Sci Fi meets Film Noir
Review: Warner Bros had a downer on this film just prior to its release. Test audiences were inconclusive in their verdicts and Warner Execs insisted that Ridley Scott edit the film, considering it far too downbeat for mainstream audiences.
The result was the voice over narrative which apparently Harrison Ford tried to make as unconvincing as possible so that the Execs at Warners would drop it - he failed. Scenes were deleted, and the upbeat flying sequence at the end of the film was added.
The film opened to ok returns in the US but did huge business in Europe. In the UK release, it filled cinemas nightly for weeks with many people choosing to make return visits.
The early 1990s saw the release of the Directors Cut which was minus the narrative and the upbeat end sequence. It saw some scenes such as the Unicorn sequence restored. Although a limited
release, fans turned out in droves, particularly in London's West End.
I must confess that I enjoy both versions as different approaches to the same film. I have recently ordered 'The International Version' which apparently is an augmented version of the first release so I will pass comment on that when it arrives.

Set in the future, it sees Los Angeles as a rainy, polluted, and totally cosmopolitan metropolis. Mankind has colonised other worlds and uses synthetic humans known as replicants, with superhuman abilities to carry out the dirtier work that doing this involves. Being superhuman comes at a price, as the lifespan for a replicant is only 4 years. The plot revolves around a former cop (Harrison Ford) who specialises in hunting down replicants. Known as a Bladerunner, his task is to eliminate any replicants setting foot on Earth where the punishment for doing so is death or 'retirement'to quote the jargon of the time.
Ford's character has quit the job but is blackmailed into hunting down a particulary dangerous group of replicants who have made it to Earth. Their leader is played by Rutger Hauer, who together with his companions are on a dangerous quest to find an end to their limited lifespan.

Visually the film is stunning with its depiction of a gaudy and seedy futuristic metropolis. Flying cars, huge neon signs, and advertising blimps dominate the skyline. Life is cheap and violent in this future, and the point is not lost on the viewer that this is a highly likely evolution of our society.
The replicants hunt for more life reflects that of humanity's generally, and Ridley Scott's depiction of a replicant meeting his cold and heartless maker, mirrors ongoing theological questions that ultimately we all have to varying degrees.
The drama plays out in the style of a classic detective/ Film Noir story, against a superbly realised Sci Fi background.

A sequence that could have been cut is the sickly symbolic scene with the dove (which apparently was Rutger Hauer's own suggestion). It detracts from the film and is cloying.
What prevents me from giving the dvd 5 stars though is the lack of 5.1 sound on any discs that I have viewed so far.... This film is not so great in Pro logic sound, someone please give it a full digital soundtrack so as to do it the justice that it received in its cinema release!
See it though for what it is, a superbly staged Sci Fi Film Noir which reflects on the human condition, and the future that probably awaits us.