by Kris Katz
Brief spoiler-free entertainment reviews

Monday, December 8, 2008

Blade Runner (1982 / DC 1991 / FC 2007)

Hot off of the success of the horror classic Alien, Ridley Scott crafted this dark, stylish, and original sci-fi film noir. When a group of androids escapes into a dystopic future Los Angeles, it's up to Harrison Ford to play detective and track them down. But the androids themselves are fearful that their short lifespans are about to come to a close, and seek to find a way to prolong their lives. While the story remains simple, the questions raised are certainly not. Long thoughts on identity and reality, of mortality and fear and the uncertainty of being each get their time, and the result is a somber, melancholy movie that may ask more questions than it has answers for, but has a deep understanding of its subject matter. It's heady stuff; the kind of content that sticks with you long after the credits roll. It's dense, it's daring, and it's visionary. Blade Runner is a film that rightly deserves its place in the sci-fi pantheon.

9 out of 10.

Note: If you have the choice, the 2007 re-re-release, optimistically titled Blade Runner: The Final Cut, is definitely the one to see.

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