Review of Blade Runner (1982) by Gustavo T — 08 Apr 2016

A brilliant visionary masterpiece and one of the most influentail sci-fi films of all time, meticulously crafted and masterfully directed by Ridley Scott, it has become an enduring cult-classic. Harrison Ford stars in a superlative performance of great moral ambuiguity, as the hard-boiled and world weary Rick Deckard an ex-special policeman known as a "Blade Runner," in a hellish Los Angeles of the future circa 2019, where it is always night and the smog-choked dark skies pour acid rain on the littered, overcrowded, neon-splattered streets, while airborne police patrol cars called spinners, fly through the canyons created by the awesome mile-high skyscrapers.

Deckard specializes in tracking down and terminating replicants, genetically-engineered humanoids, who are virtually identical to a human being, they posses superior strength and agility, and are at least equal in intelligence to the genetic engineers who created them, replicants are used on the off-world colonies as slave laborers, soldiers, and prostitutes and are forbidden on Earth under penalty of death.

Deckard who is retired was the best Blade Runner on the force, he is pressed back into service by his seedy former boss Bryant, wonderfully played by veteran character actor M. Emmet Walsh, because of four especially dangerous replicants that have escape to Earth on a stolen spacecraft after having slaughtered 23 people, they are seeking their creator the reptilian Dr.

Eldon Tyell, terrifically played by Joe Turkel who is the czar of the shadowy Tyrell Corporation where the replicants are manufactured to make him extend their short 4-year life span, because their time is almost up, the leader of the group is a powerful, massive albino-looking replicant named Roy Batty, played by Rutger Hauser in a sensational career-defining performance, that is so compelling and charimatic that he steals the entire picture hands down, Deckard tracks down Batty, and they have final brutal life and death confrontation on a rooftop that is totally unforgettable, the other replicants are well-played by the late Brion James, Daryl Hannah, and Joanna Cassidy, special kudos must go to the beautiful Sean Young, who delivers a memorable turn as Rachel, the new replicant experiment, and Deckard's love interest, the rest of the supporting cast all deliver exceptional performances they include Edward James Olmos, William Sanderson, James Hong and Morgan Paull.

Stunning, eye-popping Oscar nominated pre-CGI visual effects by Douglas Trumbull, Richard Yuricih and David Dryer, using optical effects, matte painting, animation and exquisitely detailed miniatures to create a truly dazzling vision of a very dark oppressive future world, captivating cinematography by the late Jordan Croneweth and a haunting and mesmerizing score by Greek composer Vangelis, this was Scott's second landmark film, his first being "Alien" which revolutionized the genre, "Blade Runner" created the cyberpunk genre and highhandedly changed the look of science fiction forever, it fully and richly deserves its reputation, a timeless and utterly astonishing film.

Note: "Blade Runner" has been selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress for being a culturally and historically significant motion picture, a must-see! Highly Recommended.