The Future In 'Blade Runner 2049' Is Both Bleak And Colorful
Blade Runner 2049
- Starring Ryan Gosling, Harrison Ford, Robin Wright, Jared Leto and Dave Bautista
- Rated R
- Sci-Fi/Thriller
- Run time - 2 hr, 43 min
- In theaters October 6, 2017
Dystopian media is everywhere you look, each with a slightly different take on what the future could (hopefully not) hold. According to this sequel to the 1982 Ridley Scott property, the future is a wasteland, a technologically overwhelming world and one where Jared Leto makes replicants.
The film picks up thirty years after the original, but not much seems to have changed. Replicants are still being made, cops are still trying to track some down and there is still a gray area about whether or not this whole process is a good idea. However, with a solid plot line, Ryan Gosling leading the way as a Blade Runner named K and a few new tech aspects, this universe gets a bit of a refresh, revitalizing a 35-year-old concept.
When K gets an assignment to locate a replicant (Dave Bautista), he uncovers a bigger mystery than he anticipated, which takes him, his boss (Robin Wright) and his half-real, half-tech partner (Ana de Armas) on a potentially deadly path to find answers before the dangerous replicant-creator Niander Wallace (Leto). His search leads him to long-lost Rick Deckard (Harrison Ford) in hopes of learning more about both his quest and himself.
Gosling holds his own as protagonist, which not many could do convincingly while sharing the screen with Ford, and Wright proves that she will, in fact, be an incredible, badass woman, no matter what role she's given. Leto's performance seems a bit lopsided at times, though whether that's due to his acting or his lack of screentime could be debated.
With so many dystopian films being made, it's getting a bit difficult to stand out, but 'Blade Runner' manages it, providing a hint of dark humor in unexpected places and developing a plot line that hasn't really been seen in many movies of its kind. Sure, the world may be a bit terrible, but that isn't quite what the fight is for in this story. The 'big bad' isn't trying to rule the world, per se, or at least in the standard, maniacal supervillain way we so often see.
There's morality to this world, and it's one that sci-fi fans are familiar with. This sequel manages to just expand upon what we've already seen, rather than regurgitate a plot that had already proven itself once before. Nods to the original are peppered throughout, from characters whose looks clearly pay homage to those before to a Coca Cola ad that had everyone in the theater laughing for a moment.
It may be a long film, clocking in at almost three hours, but it makes the most of its time, filling spare seconds with impressive backdrops and subtle plot twists. We may be living in a superhero fantasy world when it comes to movies, and it's nice to see a sci-fi flick stand out among the crowd.
Rating: 4 out of 5 Elvis Holograms