Villeneuve's Sequel is Ambitious and Well-Made

Rating: 7/10 (7 October 2017)

I really enjoyed both the original "Blade Runner" as well as director Denis Villeneuve's previous films, and had been highly anticipating this long-awaited sequel. I thought it was a well-made but imperfect sequel that must be greatly commended for its sheer ambition and aesthetic quality/overtones, but also a somewhat flawed one that does not manage to top the original film in terms of quality.
First of all, the film's visual effects are nothing short of astonishing. They are oddly both simple and highly complex in design, and look truly gorgeous on the big screen. Ryan Gosling is excellent as the protagonist, a blade runner named Officer K. Fans of this franchise will also be delighted to see Harrison Ford return to the screen as Deckard. Jared Leto is convincing as the villain as well. While the film's story is generally well-done, the flaws that are inherent in this sequel pertain to the structure and sequence of the story in some way. The film's pacing is not bad, but the film does drag a little bit in the middle. Also, the way the plot is organized sometimes makes the film feel rather dry, and the script cannot quite offset this feeling. I realize that it will be hard to conjure up a scene quite as potent and powerful as Roy Batty's famous "tears in the rain" monologue near the end of the first movie, but for a director so seasoned at generating genuine emotion and tension, it's very slightly underwhelming that Villeneuve had difficulty adding some density to the soul of the movie.
Overall, this is a solid sequel, although not as good as the original or Villeneuve's other films. Recommended. 7.5/10
Note: I saw the film in IMAX. The exceptional visuals and special formatting for the IMAX release made seeing the film on such a screen well worth the additional cost.