A sequel to a Sci Fi Classic, much delayed, that kind of disappoints

Rating: 7/10 (18 December 2017)

As I'm writing this, I say with a heavy heart I was a little disappointed in this film. I wanted to like this film. I really did. But the film has some problems that hinder the full enjoyment. Allow me to elaborate. The biggest problem is the length. The first Blade Runner from 1982 clocks in at only about an hour and a half. Blade Runner 2049, by contrast is almost 3 hours long, a bit too long for a film with such a laborious pace. The first one is very sluggish in its pace, but makes up for it with atmosphere. Blade Runner 2049 seems to take it time at inappropriate moments: in a scene where the main character is looking for Rick Deckard, it takes 15 minutes when it could have just as easily take only 5.
Onto the look of the film. As a visual film, Blade Runner 2049 is stunning. Absolutely beautiful to look at. The gloomy and depressing atmosphere is overpoweringly gorgeous. That is a definite plus. The production designers deserve to win Oscars. What about the story? Well, here goes:
The rogue Nexus 6 replicants have been obliterated, and a new generation has come out that seems (mostly) compliant, used for slave labor and servitude. The main character, known only as 'K', is trying to locate Rick Deckard(Harrison Ford), as they have found the dead body of Rachel(Sean Young), and have discovered that replicants, although told they are inferior, have the ability to have offspring(it is obvious from the corpse she died in childbirth), in this case, Deckard and Rachel's offspring. Afraid of what this discovery will do if word of it gets out to the replicant community, they send K to kill him. Interesting premise, but the problem here is that there are far too many slow moments. The first movie was slow, but it at least had something interesting to look at, so I was never bored. This film by has too much nothing in it, and is often boring.
The acting is pretty solid. I always love to see Harrison Ford in any movie, and the actor who played the main character, Ryan Gosling, did a pretty likable job, too, as did the rest of the cast. One particular standout was Ana De Armas, as K's holographic roommate. A very touching scene is featured where she tries to make love to him, in a sense, when she hires a prostitute and superimposes her image over her. I know it sounds kind of lewd, but in the picture, it is a very sweet and moving segment, done in a surprisingly tasteful way.
That being said, I'd love to give this movie a second watch. I'm hoping I will warm up to it more. Overall, Blade Runner 2049 isn't as memorable as the first film, but it will likely be destined to be a cult classic just like the first, as it offers so many intriguing themes. It just needed to be a bit shorter.