The standard by which others are measured

Rating: Null/10 (5 June 1999)

I still remember seeing this film in a dark, dingy cinema in New York City's Manhattan borough. It is a facinating dystopian view of the future, all with a single burning question at the forefront: What makes us human?
Ridley Scott's vision of a Los Angeles in 2019 still haunts me. The first time I saw the LA skyline at night driving down Interstate 5, the images of the first frames of this film came to mind, and I nearly wrecked my car!
If you have not seen this film yet, watch the "original" version first, complete with running narrative and happy ending (forget the "extended version" with gratuitious violence). Then watch (and savor) the letterboxed (widescreen) Director's Cut, and see how a great film was made better. There's less blood and guts, no narration, and, yes, the dream sequence (with the unicorn) plays an important part. Take note as to the origami folding Deckart finds at the end of the film! It answers (as well as asks) many questions that were never mentioned in the original version.
The two most impressive moments for me are Leon Kowalsaki (Brion James)'s classic paradox ("Wake up! Time to die!"), and Roy Batty (Rutger Hauer)'s death speech. Hauer literally stole the scene (the words "like tears in rain" were ad-libbed!), and the sylloquy literally moved me to tears. After all these years, and all the times I've seen this film, it still does! All Roy wanted was to be human, and he could only find his humanity in death.
To hell with what Leonard Maltin thinks of this film! For me, it ranks with "2001: A Space Odyssey" as one of the most ambitious views of the future without any hype and schlock normally associated with science fiction. Everything has a worn, grimy feel to it, unlike the bright, shiny props in so many films. The colors are unusual. Most of the interior scenes have sepia or tan backgrounds. The camera angles and lighting are incredible, and Harrison Ford's acting is totally believable.
The film isn't perfection, but dammit, it reaches out and touches it!
(Take note as to how many of the gadgets and themes are now commonplace. Retrofitted buildings, laptop computers, digital video, on-board computers in cars, the heavy influence of Asian pop culture and cuisine in the USA, all in a film made in 1982!)