All the visual pull of a sci-fi film with the heart of a drama

Rating: 8/10 (12 April 2008)

"Blade Runner" is a film very much like the androids that are in it: innovative creations that appear one way on the outside but are another on the inside. "Blade Runner' has the facade of an action sci-fi epic, but is more a futuristic drama that poses questions about humanity and questions the future.
Forget that it's Ridley Scott, epic action filmmaker. Forget that its Harrison Ford, 80s action film extraordinaire. "Blade Runner" is not even close to those genres--it is science-fiction, but with a focus on the purpose, not on the technology. While "Blade Runner" offers some stunning visual effects (for 1982) and some terrific art direction, it's only meant to create the sci-fi aura needed to make the ideas hit harder.
Ford stars as Rick Deckard, a Blade Runner in Los Angeles in 2019. A Blade Runner is a cop in charge of hunting down Nexus 6 androids that were banned from Earth under punishment of extermination because they exceeded human strength and knowledge. When 4 of these "Replicants" hijack a ship and find their way to Earth (they are supposed to remain in Earth's off-planet colonies), Deckard is put in charge of taking them down, and he goes around trying to do just that.
"Blade Runner" moves rather slowly, taking a lot of time with its scenes. Especially when the sci-fi leads you to expect action, it can get really slow. It's the images and the use of darkness and light that make this film good and interesting. While confusing, you start to get the film towards the end.
While not Ford's best role because it doesn't call on him to do much, he still continues to be the best protagonist to get his butt handed to him in every film. He's always the most realistic of any hero because he never does it without help or without getting something for his grief.
Once you get what the film says about humans and emotions and what truly is human, then you appreciate how the film goes about getting there. An action film simply wouldn't do that. Once again, the sci-fi is simply to establish and set the tone for future L.A., it is not an integral part of the film. Expect some more thought-provoking sci-fi along the lines of an Assimov, Wells or Orwell and "Blade Runner' will surely give you something you enjoy munching on.