AndyDursin wrote:I love the movie. I don't find it cold or impenetrable. It's more atmosphere than story, but wow, talk about a film that absolutely influenced an entire generation...there are only so many movies you can ever point to and understand what kind of a mark it made like BLADE RUNNER did.
Entirely agreed.
Blade Runner was dismissed as (at best) as a "noble failure" upon release. But its not hard to see why -- in a summer movie season which included hits like
E.T.,
Poltergeist,
Star Trek II,
Conan, etc., most people probably assumed a movie from the director of
Alien, with the star of
Raiders of the Lost Ark would be another exciting thrill ride (with, of course, another hit instrumental tune from Vangelis, fresh off the success of
Chariots of Fire).
I think audiences and critics were baffled -- more because of what Blade Runner
wasn't, as opposed to what it was. Although it does have some action sequences (and impressive effects work), it's far-more introspective and atmospheric than your average science fiction movie. And 35 years on, there's little in the film which seems dated (with the possible exception of one scene which features a pay phone), and it has in fact proved very prescient. Many critics who dismissed Blade Runner upon release, reconsidered their opinion after viewing it again in later years (Roger Ebert most notably).
I personally was kind of ambivalent about Blade Runner when I saw it in theater. I thought it "looked kinda cool" and was watchable, but I wasn't especially impressed (I also was expecting Indiana Jones meets Alien -- plus I was also too young to appreciate it the deeper issues the film explores). But seeing it again a few years later (luckily once again on the big screen) I was completely knocked-over. It was -- and remains -- so unlike anything else. And I agree Andy -- it's not a relic of its (or any other) era.
It's also arguably the most visually impressive film ever made, and features what is probably Vangelis' best work (for films or otherwise). Certainly it is one of the best science fiction film ever made.
https://youtu.be/Ywd0yNXmHaA?t=27
https://youtu.be/yWPyRSURYFQ?t=58