The Rare Sequel That Lives Up to the Original

Rating: 10/10 (15 March 2019)

It's not easy to capture lightning in a bottle. Perfectly recapturing the look, sound, feel, and unique blend of elements that defined the original Blade Runner is no small task. Capturing its substance is harder still. And yet this film does it perfectly. Director Denis Villeneuve and the others involved have succeeded in creating the rare sequel that perfectly recreates the style of its predecessor while expanding on its story and themes.
Ryan Gosling stars as Officer K, a new model replicant who works for the LAPD "retiring" unstable older models. He lives alone, except for his house's holographic interface, who gives new meaning to the phrase "virtual girlfriend." Like all of the new models he's very good at his job and never questions orders. At least until a "routine retirement" turns up a secret that challenges everything he thought he knew about his nature, and could change the global balance of power- or plunge what's left of civilization into war.
The original Blade Runner asked intriguing questions about what it means to be human. 2049 goes a step further, questioning the nature of what's real. Characters struggle with whether their memories are their own, someone else's, or something entirely manufactured. The mutual affection between K and his holographic girlfriend raises the question of whether an AI can truly feel, or if there's any way for her to become a real girl. And the enduring question from the ending original Blade Runner is still very much open.
Visually this film is a masterpiece of bleakness. LA is still the shadowy, run down megatropolis it was before, just a little flashier and newer. Endless sheets of rain still pour down on darkened streets as streetlights and flashing signs struggle to illuminate the perpetual gloom and holographic ads offer pleasures of every kind to passersby.
Only this time the streets don't seem so crowded as before. Which makes sense given that anyone who can afford to has bought passage off planet. Because if LA is dystopian the world beyond its walls is downright post-apocalyptic. San Diego is a wasteland out of Mad Max; a vast scrapyard dotted with the ruins of old high rises and occupied only by desperate bands of scavengers and outlaws. Vegas is as quiet as a tomb; shrouded in a haze of cloud and dust, its casinos sitting as though frozen in time. And in between is only desolate emptiness as far as the eye can see. And it's all so artfully photographed and exquisitely atmospheric.
Harrison Ford doesn't have as much screen time as the trailers might have suggested, but whenever he's on screen it's clear that he hasn't lost a beat. The weariness and slight grumpiness that seems to be his default setting these days serves him well as the reclusive old Deckard, gone semi-paranoid after so many years in hiding. He throws a mean punch for a man his age, and radiates a mix of anger, sadness, and tired resignation as he describes all that's transpired in the last thirty years. Gosling likewise excels in the frequent action scenes and gives a wonderfully nuanced performance as a man questioning who and what he really is.
But Jared Leto might make the strongest impression. As ruthless industrialist Niander Wallace- creator of the new generation of replicants- he is a study in contradictions. His manner is eerily emotionless, yet his gaze exudes brilliance and obsession. He calls the replicants his children and speaks of their destiny and need to grow, but treats them as disposable. And his zeal to propel mankind forward makes him merciless to anyone who stands in his way. We're not entirely sure what he is either. He seems to be a cyborg, but it's unclear how far the changes go, or if he might be something more artificial altogether. What I do know is that this performance is enough to redeem him for his overwrought turn as the Joker in Suicide Squad.
If this movie has a fault it's that it stays too faithful to the original's grating synthesizer soundtrack, heavy on reverb and distortion. But then again, I suppose that it does fit the film's mood and add to the sense of tension when needed. And while the fights and shootouts are very good, nothing can match Deckard's battle with Roy in the last film. Blade Runner 2049 is not quite the original, but it comes very close. And for a movie like Blade Runner that's high praise indeed.