A truly worthy successor to one of the great science fiction films ever!

Rating: 10/10 (8 October 2017)

Blade Runner 2049 is the long awaited sequel to Blade Runner, over thirty years in the making. Blade Runner is not only my favorite Ridley Scott film, one of my favorite science fiction films, but one of my favorite films period. Rarely enough, it was a movie I initially hated, due to my faulty expectations. I went in thinking it would be a sci-fi action piece, like Star Wars or Total Recall, but Blade Runner is not that at all. It's the same with this sequel. If you go into this thinking action you will be soundly disappointed.
I went into this film expecting a sequel to Blade Runner, and got exactly that. This might be one of the best sequels ever made. That's difficult to say, as there are a lot of amazing sequels out there, but it makes that list of greats. I still like the first Blade Runner more, but this is for sure a worthy follow-up. Virtually everything works about this movie.
2049 does what a great sequel should do. It maintains the feel of the first, but does its own take, as opposed to rinse and repeat. It also expands on the original in every aspect; the world, story, characters, and the theme of what it means to be human.
The effects are astounding. You can tell the budget is on the screen. This film looks as good if not better than the original. It's bleak and atmospheric, as a Blade Runner sequel should be. The score is also great. It's not quite as memorable as the first movie's score, but it still fit the film beautifully.
The cast is great. Everyone gives an amazing performance. However, the standout performance is Jared Leto, in my opinion. The only other film I him from, off the top of my head, is Suicide Squad, of which he did nothing to impress me. I thought he was the worst on-screen Joker (in live action) to date. However, he truly brought his a-game. That was the one thing I wish there was more of in this movie; more Jared Leto.
The fact that this movie exists actually makes the first Blade Runner an even better movie. 2049 took the one thing I did not care for in the first film and built its narrative around it in a very creative way. One thing people might not like is that, while Harrison Ford is in all the marketing, and has second billing, below Ryan Gosling, his character does not appear until more than halfway through. I actually prefer this though, as this story does revolve around Ryan Gosling's character. This film manages to be its own contained story, while also leaving the door open for future installments.
I'll admit, the movie's run time did worry me at first. I thought this would not earn its length, and be too loaded with filler, and the pacing would suffer. Some might feel that way, but I did not. Every scene in this film felt necessary, either for the plot, or expanding on the theme and/or characters.
Like I said before, between the two, I do prefer the original slightly more, for a couple reasons. First of all, while the music in 2049 is amazing, I found the music in the first Blade Runner more memorable still. Secondly, the first film had one of the greatest, and most iconic, villains in movies. While Jared Leto was great he was not the main threat. The main antagonist of 2049, to me, did not measure up. That does not mean the villain was bad, just not as good.
Overall, if you love Blade Runner like I do, 2049 is an outstanding sequel you should definitely go see. If you don't like the first film, then don't bother with this, as it's very much the same in terms of its feel and tone.