Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?

Rating: 10/10 (25 February 2003)

In my opinion this is one of the greatest science fiction movies ever. And perhaps one of the movies to really define an era of sci-fi. Almost every "future society" movie after it, tried to copy some of the same environment and the same type of look and feel. None succeeded. Blade Runner is basically a story of a man in doubt, in doubt of himself and his way of life. He used to be a hit-man, a so-called Blade Runner, who hunts down stray androids called "Replicants" and "retire" them. But after meeting a replicant called Kate, which has had memories implanted, causing her to develop human-like emotions, he starts to realize that what we see as the definition of "life" isn't really the only correct one. He is starting to get a nagging feeling that replicants aren't just any other machine. This movie is about taking a good look at how we define humanity, and how we define "life" itself. Is a life less worth, because it's not human and "only" a machine? The movie lacks a lot of story that Philip K. Dick's book has, but i still think they've managed to keep the most important parts. The excistential question is there, just as strong as in the novel, and the less important parts of the story isn't really a great loss, movie wise. The movie is also backed by one of the best movie soundtracks of all times, courtesy of Vangelis. The music really helps transmit the feel of this darkish future society. This is the movie that really made the concept of "cyberpunk" into what it is today.
"Replicants are like any other machine, they're either a benefit or a hazard. If they're a benefit it's not my problem."