Leonard Maltin Didn't Pay Attention

Rating: 10/10 (9 February 2002)

Reading some of the comments about this movie, and Leonard Maltin's review of it, makes for a fascinating study of how preconceptions can trump perception. I challenge everyone who has seen and will ever see this movie to look at it, not on their terms, but on IT'S terms. Maybe this should go for all movies, because all through the imdb you can find user comments that tell you more about the commenter's viewpoints and hangups than about the movie itself.
Yes, I am happy to state that I believe this film to be a masterpiece. But I'm not about to call it flawless. What captured me, in the end, had nothing to do with whether Deckard should have been a more efficient blade runner, or whether the replicants should have been more clever about getting into the Tyrell Corporation. Think about the first image of the film, and you'll begin to realise what this film was. BLADE RUNNER is itself a challenge to the viewer's perception. It is faithful to Philip K. Dick because it asks the questions he asked in all his writings: What is human? And what is reality?
And it asks that question to some viewers who think they already know the answer. When they don't.
People like Leonard Maltin.