Flawed Divinity

Rating: 9/10 (5 December 2000)

I remember seeing this film as a child, and simply being in awe. For years, I imagined how it might be seeing it in the theater again. And then the Director's Cut appears! The condition of Blade Runner is indeed now like a polluted beach: It's still a classic, and it's still a great film, but the years of trampling and seemingly endless revisions have left its reputation looking like the moons surface! It's best left to recover for maybe another ten or twenty years, to be enjoyed and recognized for its contributions to the genre -- I remember standing in line for The Fifth Element at the Cinerama Dome on Sunset Boulevard and 1 out of every 5 drivers who stopped said: "It looks a lot like Blade Runner!" -- it has many subtle and classic moments worth treasuring, and it is a film that has had profound influence. Both versions of this film (the original and the director's cut) are important, and Blade Runner has redefined earth-bound SF as Star Wars has for space-bound SF.