Stunning piece of visionary sci-fi

Rating: 10/10 (2 January 2004)

I'll set out first of all by stating that this is a kind of combined review of both the original Blade Runner, and the more recent Director's Cut.
Set in the year 2020, the world's fallen into decay in the world of Blade Runner. Perpetual acid rain, low quality of life, and a seriously bad state of environment has led to the rich classes abandoning earth and moving to the off-world colonies. On these colonies replicants are used as slaves, replicants being engineered humans made by the Tyrell Corporation. They're physically superior to normal humans, and at least equal in intelligence. Unfortunately they're volatile too, and a Nexus 6 group of replicants goes on a murderous rampage on the colonies, and come back down to earth.
This is where the story begins. Deckard is a former member of the Blade Runner unit, charged with hunting down and 'retiring' loose-cannon replicants. Brought back in on this case, because he's the best, he reluctantly finds himself drawn back into the world he wanted away from.
Atmospherically Blade Runner was amazing. Neon skies, behemoth corporate buildings, constant darkness, and other forms of haunting futurisms compliment the theme supremely and make the world totally believable.
The characters were excellent too - with uniformly superb performances all round from the likes of Harrison Ford, as Deckard, Sean Young as Rachel, and the unforgettable Roy Batty, played by Rutger Hauer.
They made this into more than a film - it was an experience - suckered into this world we felt part of too. Ridley Scott's direction was magnificent here too, making every scene buzz with activity and ensuring the plot was always moving.
In the original, the voice-overs were nauseating and obtrusive, but nonetheless they were informative and educational. The Director's Cut saw them removed, which enhanced the narrative but did make certain things less clear.
There's also the ending of the original, which was removed from the Director's Cut and meant it finished at a much more poignant and meaningful moment.
Truthfully you are better off seeing both movies, as you can only get the full experience that way, but just know the Director's Cut is a superior film.
Overall this was an amazing film which was maybe too visionary in '82 as it was a monumental flop. It's taken some time for it to be truly appreciated, and now it's up there as one of the principal sci-fi movies.
Outstanding.