The use of sound to wake up sleeping audience members is remarkable. SPOILER FREE

Rating: 5/10 (7 October 2017)

Bladerunner (1982) was an undeniably influential film: a dark, unforgiving world played host to a lineup of memorable characters who expanded the world and narrative. Ridley Scott successfully snowballed tension and mystery throughout the run-time, creating a unique and memorable experience. But can we say the same about Bladerunner 2049?
The impression I got from the first 5 minutes would have led me to say "quite possibly." However, 2 hours and 40 minutes later I was not so sure.
The film starts with our new Bladerunner, played by Ryan Gosling, on a mission to find a Replicant, played by Dave Batista. The introduction to the film ticked the boxes for what I wanted to see; striking cinematography, synthesised music akin to the original , intriguing characters, mystery and raw violence. The majority of these points (with the exception of action) became irritating. After almost 3 hours I found myself thinking "I don't want to see Ryan Gosling quietly looking into the middle distance! Get on with the plot!"
The story itself was interesting enough and in my opinion makes for a logical expansion to the questions raised in the original film. But with what can be an excruciatingly slow pace, you feel every single one of the 164 minutes.
The one thing the film did well, was to follow or proceed periods of quietness with loud sounds or music to wake up anyone in the audience who might be drifting. Sitting at the back I could watch as people's heads slumped to one side, only to be jolted awake by an especially loud synthesiser swell.
NEGATIVES: - Painfully slow pace. - Unnecessary run time. - No unicorns.
POSITIVES: - Looks beautiful. - Music is brilliant (although Repetitive). - It's nice to see Harrison Ford again... I guess...
To conclude, I will quote what my Dad said as we left the cinema: "it was good but far too long, they could cut out all the arty shots and make it an hour shorter!" and when I asked him he said "I think I only feel asleep a few times."