Betrays the essential points of the original story

Rating: 3/10 (17 October 2017)

From an isolated point of view, this film is an impressive piece of science fiction dystopia. The story is reasonably entertaining/dramatic, the mystery is well-paced - and above all the cinematography is so well done that you sense that every frame was considered very carefully by people who really loved the original film.
But if you were a fan of the original novel by Philip K. Dick or if you simply saw - and loved - the 1982 film, you will - like me - end up with the feeling that this film seriously an unforgivably betrays its the crucial points of its predecessor.
In "Blade Runner" (1982), the point was that replicants could be just as good (or evil) as humans, but that their emotions, memories, and ultimately lives, could be considered just as 'worthy' as those of human beings. The Roy Batty character that made the first film so interesting made this entirely clear in one of the closing scenes of the 1982 film.
In "2049", the ethical aspects of what constitutes proper lives and emotions is pushed in the background. The new generation of replicants are basically human wannabes, whose biggest dream is to be able to give birth just like humans... why is this even important? It's a purely biological qualification criterium rather than an ethical one. This is DEEPLY provoking - if not outright stupid.
We are also presented with a central mystery/story that tries to unveil family relations. Compared to the ethical aspects of the original story, this is not interesting at all.
To tell the truth, I am writing this the day after I saw the film. Yesterday I was really happy with what I saw. But once I started thinking about what made the original story so great, I quickly realised that new film ultimately betrays the most important messages of the first film. And that is unnforgivable.