Blade Runner is a
1982 American science fiction film, directed by
Ridley Scott and starring
Harrison Ford,
Rutger
Hauer, and
Sean Young. The
screenplay, written by
Hampton
Fancher and
David Peoples, is
based on the novel
Do Androids Dream of
Electric Sheep? by
Philip K.
Dick.
The film depicts a dystopian Los Angeles
in November 2019 in which genetically manufactured
beings called replicants — visually
indistinguishable from adult humans — are used for dangerous or
menial work on Earth's "off-world
colonies". Following a replicant uprising, replicants
become illegal on Earth and specialist police called "blade
runners" are trained to hunt down and "retire" escaped replicants
on Earth. The plot focuses on a brutal and cunning group of
recently-escaped replicants hiding in Los Angeles and the
semi-retired blade runner,
Rick
Deckard, who reluctantly agrees to take on one more
assignment.
Blade Runner initially polarized
critics: some were displeased with the pacing,
while others enjoyed its thematic complexity. The film performed
poorly in North American theaters. Despite the box office failure
of the film, it has since become a
cult
classic.
Blade Runner has been hailed for its
production design, depicting a "retrofitted" future. It remains a
leading example of the
neo-noir genre.
Blade Runner brought the work of author Philip K. Dick to
the attention of
Hollywood, and several more
films have since been based on his work. Ridley Scott regards
Blade Runner as "probably" his most complete and personal
film.
In
1993, Blade Runner was selected for preservation in the
United States National Film
Registry by the Library of Congress
as being "culturally, historically, or
aesthetically significant". In 2007, the
American Film Institute named it the
97th greatest American film of all time in the 10th Anniversary
edition of its
100
years... 100
Movies list.
Seven versions of the film have been shown, for various markets,
and as a result of controversial changes made by film executives. A
rushed
Director's cut was released in
1992 after a strong response to workprint screenings. This, in
conjunction with its popularity as a video rental, made it one of
the first films released on
DVD, resulting in a
basic disc with mediocre video and audio quality. In 2007,
Warner Bros. released in select theaters and on
DVD/HD DVD/Blu-ray, the 25th anniversary digitally remastered
definitive Final Cut by Scott.
Plot
- Note: There are several versions of Blade Runner.
Advances in genetic technology have allowed scientists to create
sophisticated biologically-engineered
humanoid beings called "
replicants". Following a violent revolt that takes
place "off world", replicants are declared illegal on Earth.
In
Los
Angeles
, November 2019, Rick
Deckard (Harrison Ford) is called
out of retirement when a fellow Blade Runner, Holden (Morgan Paull) is shot administering a Voight-Kampff test to Leon (Brion James), an escaped replicant.
Deckard is called out of retirement under the pretense that he has
been "arrested" by a Blade Runner,
Gaff (
Edward James Olmos). He reluctantly
accompanies Gaff to the police station once Gaff informs him that
his old boss,
Bryant (
M. Emmet
Walsh), wants to meet with him. Deckard is brought to Bryant,
who informs him that the recent escape of Nexus-6 replicants is the
worst yet. He orders Deckard to eliminate the four replicants, a
process referred to as "retirement". Deckard agrees to help only
after Bryant threatens him.
Bryant briefs Deckard on the replicants:
Roy Batty (
Rutger Hauer), the leader, is a self-sufficient
"combat model";
Leon Kowalski
(
Brion James) is a nuclear fuel loader
and front-line soldier;
Zhora (
Joanna Cassidy) is an assassin built for
martial arts; and
Pris (
Daryl Hannah) is a "basic pleasure model".
Bryant also explains that the Nexus-6 model has a four-year
lifespan as a
failsafe to prevent them from
developing emotions and desire for independence. Deckard is then
teamed with Gaff and sent to the
Tyrell Corporation to ensure that the
Voight-Kampff test works on Nexus-6 models. While there, Deckard
discovers that
Tyrell's
(
Joe Turkel) young assistant
Rachael (
Sean Young) is an experimental replicant who
believes she is a human; Rachael's consciousness has been enhanced
with implanted memories from Tyrell's niece, an accomplishment with
which Tyrell seems most pleased.
Deckard and Gaff search Leon's apartment as Roy and Leon enter the
eye manufactory of
Chew (
James Hong); under interrogation, Chew directs
them to
J.F. Sebastian
(
William Sanderson) as their best
chance of meeting Tyrell. Roy's plan to meet his maker is hampered
by the urgency created by his limited lifespan; he is already
exhibiting symptoms of impending death. Later, Rachael visits
Deckard at his apartment to prove her humanity to him but leaves in
tears after Deckard tells her that her memories are implants.
Meanwhile, Pris meets J.F.
Sebastian and he invites her into his
apartment in the Bradbury Building
where he lives with his manufactured
companions. In some
versions of the film, Deckard is
seen in his apartment daydreaming about a
unicorn; he gets back to work and uses a computer
scanner to find an image of Zhora in Leon's photos.
Deckard goes to an area of the city where genetically engineered
animals are sold to analyze a scale found in Leon's bathroom,
learning that it came from a snake made by Abdul Ben Hassan
(
Ben Astar). After a rough interrogation,
the snake dealer directs Deckard to a sleazy strip club owned by
Taffey Lewis
(
Hy Pyke), who employs Zhora. After a
struggle in Zhora's changing room and a chase through the crowded
streets, Deckard shoots and "retires" Zhora. Deckard meets with
Bryant shortly after and is told to add Rachael to his list of
retirements, as she has disappeared from the Tyrell Corporation
headquarters. Deckard spots Rachael in the crowd and follows her
but is grabbed and brutally beaten by Leon. Rachael saves Deckard
by shooting and killing Leon, and the two head back to Deckard's
apartment, where they make love.
Back at Sebastian's apartment Roy arrives, kisses Pris deeply and
tells her they are the only ones left. They employ Sebastian's help
by explaining their plight in a subtly threatening manner. Roy
discovers that Sebastian, though human, is suffering from a genetic
disorder that accelerates his aging; he sympathizes with Sebastian
because of their common fate. Under the pretext of Sebastian
informing Tyrell of a move for a game of
correspondence chess that Sebastian and
Tyrell are playing, Roy and Sebastian enter Tyrell's penthouse. Roy
demands an extension to his lifespan from his maker. Tyrell refuses
to help because of limitations of nature that even he can't
overcome. Roy then asks absolution of his sins, confessing that he
has done "questionable things". Tyrell arrogantly dismisses this,
praising Roy's advanced design and his amazing accomplishments. He
tells Roy to "revel in his time", to which Roy comments "Nothing
the god of biomechanics wouldn't let you into heaven for." Roy then
holds Tyrell's head in his hands, gives him a kiss, and kills him
by crushing his skull in his hands while blinding him with his
thumbs. Sebastian, watching in horror, begins to run for the
elevator, with Roy following. Roy rides the elevator down alone,
strongly implying that he has killed Sebastian as well.
Deckard arrives at Sebastian's apartment and is ambushed by Pris.
Deckard manages to grab his gun and retires Pris, just as Roy
returns. Roy is horrified at her death. Angrily, Roy manages to
punch through a wall and grab Deckard's right arm, and proceeds to
break two of his fingers in
retaliation for
killing Zhora and Pris.
Roy releases Deckard and gives him a little
time to run before he begins to hunt him through the dilapidated
Bradbury
Building
.
However, not too long into the hunt, the symptoms of Roy's limited
lifespan worsen and his right hand begins to cramp, so he jabs a
nail through it to regain control. Able again, albeit temporarily,
Roy eventually forces Deckard to the roof, as Deckard attempts to
escape Roy, he leaps across to another building but falls short and
ends up hanging from a rain-slicked girder. Roy easily vaults the
same distance and is left standing above his struggling opponent.
As Deckard loses his grip, Roy seizes his arm and hauls him onto
the roof, saving Deckard. As Roy's life fades away, he sits and
delivers a brief soliloquy about the experiences of his life:
Roy dies, and from a distance, Gaff shouts over to Deckard, "It's
too bad she won't live; but then again, who does?" A worried
Deckard returns to his apartment and is relieved to find Rachael
alive. As they leave, Deckard finds an
origami unicorn, a calling card left by Gaff.
Depending on the version, the film ends with Deckard and Rachael
either leaving the apartment block to an uncertain future or
driving through an idyllic pastoral landscape.
Novel comparison
As a result of Fancher's divergence from the novel, numerous
re-writes before and throughout shooting the film, and the fact
that Ridley Scott never entirely read the novel on which the film
was based, the film diverged significantly from its original
inspiration. Some of the themes in the novel that were minimized or
entirely removed include: fertility/sterility of the population,
religion,
mass
media, Deckard's uncertainty that he is human, and real versus
synthetic pets and emotions.
Philip K. Dick refused an offer of $400,000 to write a
novelization of the
Blade Runner
screenplay, saying: "[I was] told the cheapo novelization would
have to appeal to the twelve-year-old audience" and "[it] would
have probably been disastrous to me artistically." He added, "That
insistence on my part of bringing out the original novel and not
doing the novelization — they were just furious. They finally
recognized that there was a legitimate reason for reissuing the
novel, even though it cost them money. It was a victory not just of
contractual obligations but of theoretical principles." (Available
from the Philip K. Dick Trust) In the end,
Do Androids Dream of
Electric Sheep? was reprinted as a
tie-in with the film poster as a cover
and the original title in parentheses below the
Blade
Runner title.
The producers of the film arranged for a screening of some special
effects rough cuts for Philip K. Dick shortly before he died in
early 1982.
Despite his well known skepticism of Hollywood
in principle, he became quite enthusiastic about
the film. He said, "I saw a segment of Douglas Trumbull's
special effects for
Blade Runner on the KNBC-TV news. I
recognized it immediately. It was my own interior world. They
caught it perfectly." He also approved of the film's script,
saying, "After I finished reading the screenplay, I got the novel
out and looked through it. The two reinforce each other, so that
someone who started with the novel would enjoy the movie and
someone who started with the movie would enjoy the novel."
Cast
With the exception of Harrison Ford,
Blade Runner had a
number of then-unknown actors such as Daryl Hannah and Sean Young.
The cast included:
- Harrison Ford as
Rick Deckard. Coming
off some success with Star Wars (1977),
The
Empire Strikes Back (1980) and Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981),
Ford was looking for a role with dramatic depth. After Steven Spielberg praised Ford, he was hired
for Blade Runner. In 1992, Ford revealed, "Blade
Runner is not one of my favorite films. I tangled with
Ridley." Apart from friction with the director, Ford also disliked
the voiceovers: "When we started shooting it had been tacitly
agreed that the version of the film that we had agreed upon was the
version without voiceover narration. It was a f**king nightmare. I
thought that the film had worked without the narration. But now I
was stuck re-creating that narration. And I was obliged to do the
voiceovers for people that did not represent the director's
interests." "I went kicking and screaming to the studio to record
it."
- Rutger Hauer as
Roy Batty, the violent yet thoughtful leader of
replicants; and was regarded by Philip K.
Dick as "the perfect Batty—cold, Aryan,
flawless". Of the many films Hauer has done, Blade Runner
is his favorite. As he explained in a live chat in 2001, "BLADE
RUNNER needs no explanation. It just IZZ . All of the best. There
is nothing like it. To be part of a real MASTERPIECE which changed
the world's thinking. It's awesome."
- Sean Young as
Rachael. Tyrell's assistant. Rachael is a
replicant with memories that belonged to Tyrell's niece.
- Edward James
Olmos as Gaff. Olmos used his diverse
ethnic background, and some in-depth personal research, to help
create the fictional "Cityspeak" language his character uses in the
film. His initial addresses to Deckard at the noodle bar is partly
in Hungarian, and means, "Horse
dick! No way. You are the Blade…Blade Runner."
- Daryl Hannah as
Pris. A "basic pleasure model".
- M.
Emmet Walsh as
Captain Bryant. Walsh lived up to his reputation
as a great character actor with the role of a hard-drinking, sleazy
and underhanded police veteran typical of the Film Noir genre.
- Joe Turkel as
Dr. Eldon Tyrell. This corporate mogul has built
an empire on genetically-manipulated humanoid slaves.
- William
Sanderson as J. F.
Sebastian, a quiet and lonely genius who provides
a compassionate yet compliant portrait of humanity. J.F. is able to
sympathize with the replicants' short lifespan because he has
progeria, a genetic disease that causes
faster aging and a short lifespan.
- Brion James as
Leon Kowalski A replicant masquerading as a waste
disposal engineer.
- Joanna Cassidy
as Zhora. Cassidy portrays a strong female
replicant who has seen the worst humanity has to offer.
- Morgan Paull as
Holden. The Blade Runner initially assigned to the
case, he is shot by Leon while screening new Tyrell employees in an
attempt to find the replicants, prompting his replacement with
Deckard.
- James Hong as
Hannibal Chew. An elderly Asian geneticist
specializing in synthetic eyes.
- Hy Pyke as
Taffey Lewis. Pyke conveys Lewis' sleaziness with
ease and with one take; something almost unheard-of with Scott's
drive for perfection resulting at times in double-digit takes.
Production
Interest in adapting
Philip K.
Dick's novel
Do Androids Dream of
Electric Sheep? developed shortly after its 1968
publication. According to Dick, director
Martin Scorsese was interested in filming
the novel, but never
optioned it.
Producer Herb Jaffe optioned it in the early 1970s, but Dick wasn't
impressed with the screenplay: "Robert Jaffe, who wrote the
screenplay, flew down here to Orange County. I said to him then
that it was so bad that I wanted to know if he wanted me to beat
him up there at the airport or wait till we got to my apartment."
The
screenplay by
Hampton Fancher was optioned in 1977.
Producer Michael Deeley became interested in Fancher's
draft and convinced director Ridley Scott to use it to create his
first American film. Scott had previously declined the project, but
after leaving the slow production of
Dune, wanted a faster-paced project to take
his mind off his older brother's recent death. He joined the
project on February 21, 1980, and managed to push up the promised
financing from
Filmways from
$13 million to $15 million. Fancher's script focused more
on environmental issues and less on issues of humanity and faith,
which weighed heavily in the novel. Scott wanted changes. Fancher
found a cinema treatment by
William
S. Burroughs for
Alan E. Nourse's novel
The Bladerunner (1974), entitled
Blade Runner . Scott
liked the name so Deeley obtained the rights to the titles.
Eventually he hired
David Peoples to
rewrite the script, and Fancher left the job on December 21, 1980
over the issue, although he later returned to contribute additional
rewrites.
Having invested over $2.5 million in pre-production, as the
date of commencement of principal photography neared, Filmways
withdrew financial backing.
In ten days, Deeley secured
$21.5 million in financing through a three way deal between
The Ladd Company (through Warner
Bros.), the Hong
Kong
-based producer Sir Run Run
Shaw, and Tandem
Productions.
Philip K. Dick became concerned that no one had
informed him about the film's production, which added to his
distrust of Hollywood
. After Dick criticized an early version of
Hampton Fancher's script in an article written for the Los Angeles
Select TV Guide, the studio sent Dick the David Peoples
rewrite. Although Dick died shortly before the film's release, he
was pleased with the rewritten script, and with a twenty-minute
special effects test reel that was screened for him when he was
invited to the studio. Dick enthused after the screening to Ridley
Scott that the world created for the film looked exactly as he had
imagined it. The motion picture was dedicated to Dick.
Blade Runner has numerous and deep similarities to
Fritz Lang's
Metropolis, including a built up
urban environment, in which the wealthy literally live above the
workers, dominated by a huge building—the Stadtkrone Tower in
Metropolis and the Tyrell Building in
Blade
Runner. Special effects supervisor David Dryer used stills
from
Metropolis when lining up
Blade Runner's
miniature building shots.
Ridley Scott credits
Edward Hopper's
painting
Nighthawks and the
French science fiction comic magazine
Métal Hurlant (
Heavy Metal), to which the artist
Moebius contributed, as stylistic mood
sources. He also drew on the landscape of "Hong Kong on a very bad
day" and the industrial landscape of his one-time home in the North
East of England. Scott hired as his conceptual artist
Syd Mead, who, like Scott, was influenced by
Métal Hurlant. Moebius was offered the opportunity to
assist in the pre-production of
Blade Runner, but he
declined so that he could work on
René
Laloux's animated film
Les Maîtres du temps, a
decision he later regretted. Lawrence G. Paull (production
designer) and David Snyder (art director) realized Scott's and
Mead's sketches.
Douglas Trumbull
and Richard Yuricich supervised the
special effects for the film. Principal
photography of
Blade Runner began on March 9, 1981 and
ended four months later.
Casting the film proved troublesome, particularly for the lead role
of Deckard. Screenwriter Hampton Fancher envisioned
Robert Mitchum as Deckard, and wrote the
character's dialogue with Mitchum in mind. Director Ridley Scott
and the film's producers "spent months" meeting and discussing the
role with
Dustin Hoffman, who
eventually departed due to differences in vision. Harrison Ford was
ultimately chosen due to several factors, including his performance
in the
Star Wars films, Ford's
interest in the story of
Blade Runner, and discussions
with
Steven Spielberg, who was
finishing
Raiders of the
Lost Ark at the time and strongly praised Ford's work in
the film. According to production documents, a long list of actors
were considered for the role, including, but not limited to,
Gene Hackman,
Sean Connery,
Jack
Nicholson,
Paul Newman,
Clint Eastwood,
Tommy Lee Jones,
Arnold Schwarzenegger,
Al Pacino, and
Burt
Reynolds.
Casting the roles of Rachael and Pris also proved troublesome; a
lengthy series of screen tests were filmed with numerous actresses
auditioning for the roles.
Morgan
Paull, who played the role of Deckard during the screen tests
with actresses auditioning for the role of Rachael, was cast as
Deckard's fellow bounty hunter Holden based on his performances in
the tests. One role that was not difficult to cast was Roy Batty:
Ridley Scott cast Rutger Hauer without having met him, based solely
on Hauer's performances in other films Scott had seen.
Joe Pantoliano, who later played the role of
Cypher in the
Blade Runner-inspired
The Matrix, was considered for the role of
Sebastian.
In 2006, Ridley Scott was asked "Who's the biggest pain in the arse
you've ever worked with?" He replied: "It's got to be
Harrison…he'll forgive me because now I get on with him. Now he's
become charming. But he knows a lot, that's the problem. When we
worked together it was my first film up and I was the new kid on
the block. But we made a good movie." Ford said of Scott in 2000:
"I admire his work. We had a bad patch there, and I’m over it."
More recently in 2006, Ford reflected on the production of the film
saying: "What I remember more than anything else when I see
Blade Runner is not the 50 nights of shooting in the rain,
but the voiceover...I was still obliged to work for these clowns
that came in writing one bad voiceover after another." Ridley Scott
confirmed in the summer 2007 issue of
Total Film that
Harrison Ford has contributed to the
Blade
Runner Special Edition
DVD, having already
done his interviews. "Harrison's fully on board", said Scott.
Interpretation
Despite appearing to be an action film,
Blade Runner has
many dramatic, narrative levels, greatly indebted to
film noir conventions, such as the
femme fatale, protagonist-narration (removed in
later versions), dark and shadowy
cinematography, and the questionable moral
outlook of the
hero, extended to include his
humanity.
It is a literate science fiction film, thematically enfolding the
philosophy of religion and
moral implications of human mastery of
genetic engineering in the
context of
classical Greek drama
and
hubris, and draws on
Biblical images, such as
Noah's flood, and literary sources, such
as
Frankenstein.
Linguistically, the theme of mortality is subtly reiterated in the
chess game between Roy and Tyrell based on the
famous
Immortal game of 1851, though
Scott has said that was coincidental.
Blade Runner delves into the implications of
technology on the
environment and society by
reaching to the past, using literature,
religious symbolism, classical dramatic
themes, and
film noir. This tension, among
past, present, and future is seen in the retrofitted future of
Blade Runner, which is
high-tech and
gleaming in places but elsewhere decayed and old. Interviewing
Ridley Scott in 2002, reporter
Lynn
Barber in
The Observer
described the film as: "extremely dark, both literally and
metaphorically, with an oddly masochistic feel". Director Scott
said he "liked the idea of exploring pain" in the wake of his
brother's skin cancer death. "When he was ill, I used to go and
visit him in London, and that was really traumatic for me."
A perceptively high level of
paranoia
exists in the cinematic manifestation of
corporate power, omnipresent police, probing
lights, and in the power over the individual especially represented
by genetic programming of replicants. Control over the environment
is large scale, hand in hand with the absence of any natural life,
and with artificial animals substituting for the extinct originals.
This oppressive backdrop clarifies why people are migrating to
off-world colonies. The dystopian themes explored in "Blade Runner"
are an early example of cyberpunk concepts expanding into film. The
film also makes extensive use of eyes for a variety of themes and
manipulated images to call into question reality and our ability to
accurately perceive and remember it.
These thematic elements provide an atmosphere of uncertainty for
Blade Runner's central theme of examining humanity. In
order to discover replicants, an empathy test is used with a number
of questions focused on the treatment of animals, thus making it
the essential indicator of someone's "humanity". The replicants are
juxtaposed with human characters who lack empathy, while the
replicants appear to show compassion and concern for one another at
the same time as the mass of humanity on the streets is cold and
impersonal. The film goes so far as to put in doubt whether Deckard
is a human, and forces the audience to reevaluate what it means to
be
human.
The question of whether Deckard is intended to be a human or a
replicant has been an ongoing controversy since the film's release.
Both Michael Deeley and Harrison Ford wanted Deckard to be human
while Hampton Fancher preferred ambiguity. Ridley Scott has
confirmed that in his vision Deckard is a replicant. Deckard's
unicorn dream sequence inserted into the
Director's Cut coinciding with Gaff's parting-gift of an origami
unicorn is seen by many as showing Deckard is a replicant as Gaff
could have access to Deckard's implanted memories. The
interpretation that Deckard is a replicant is challenged by others
who believe unicorn imagery shows that the characters, whether
human or replicant, share the same dreams and recognise their
affinity, or that the absence of a decisive answer is crucial to
the film's main theme. The inherent ambiguity and uncertainty of
the film, as well as its textual richness, has permitted viewers to
see it from their own perspective.
Soundtrack
The
Blade Runner soundtrack by
Vangelis is a dark melodic combination of classic
composition and futuristic synthesizers which mirrors the film-noir
retro-future envisioned by Ridley Scott. Vangelis, fresh from his
Academy Award winning score for
Chariots of Fire, composed
and performed the music on his
synthesizers. He also made use of various chimes
and the vocals of collaborator
Demis
Roussos. Another memorable sound is the haunting tenor sax solo
"Love Theme" by UK saxophonist
Dick
Morrissey, who appeared on many of Vangelis' albums. Ridley
Scott also used "Memories of Green" from Vangelis' album
See You Later (an orchestral
version of which Scott would later use in his film
Someone To Watch Over
Me).
Along with Vangelis' compositions and ambient textures, the film's
sound scape also features a track by the Japanese
Ensemble Nipponia ('Ogi No Mato' or 'The
Folding Fan as a Target' from the Nonesuch Records release
"Traditional Vocal And Instrumental Music") and a track by harpist
Gail Laughton ("Harps of the Ancient
Temples" from Laurel Records).
Despite being well received by fans and critically acclaimed and
nominated in 1983 for a
BAFTA and
Golden Globe as best original score,
and the promise of a soundtrack album from Polydor Records in the
end titles of the film, the release of the official soundtrack
recording was delayed for over a decade. There are two official
releases of the music from
Blade Runner. In light of the
lack of a release of an album, the New American Orchestra recorded
an orchestral adaptation in 1982 which bore little resemblance to
the original. Some of the film tracks would in 1989 surface on the
compilation
Vangelis: Themes, but not until the 1992
release of the Director's Cut version would a substantial amount of
the film's score see commercial release.
These delays and poor reproductions led to the production of many
bootleg recordings over the years.
A bootleg tape surfaced in 1982 at science fiction conventions and
became popular given the delay of an official release of the
original recordings, and in 1993 "Off World Music, Ltd." created a
bootleg
CD that would prove more
comprehensive than Vangelis' official CD in 1994. A disc from
"Gongo Records" features most of the same material, but with
slightly better sound quality. In 2003, two other bootlegs
surfaced, the "Esper Edition", closely preceded by "Los Angeles:
November 2019". The double disc "Esper Edition" combined tracks
from the official release, the Gongo boot and the film itself.
Finally "2019" provided a single disc compilation almost wholly
consisting of ambient sound from the film, padded out with some
sounds from the Westwood game
Blade Runner.
A set with 3 CDs of
Blade Runner-related Vangelis music
was released on December 10, 2007. Titled
Blade Runner
Trilogy, the first CD contains the same tracks as the 1994
official soundtrack release, the 2nd CD contains previously
unreleased music from the movie, and the 3rd CD is all newly
composed music from Vangelis, inspired by, and in the spirit of the
movie.
Reception
Blade Runner was released in 1,290 theaters on June 25,
1982. That date was chosen by producer
Alan Ladd, Jr. because his previous
highest-grossing films (
Star Wars and
Alien) had a similar opening
date (May 25) in 1977 and 1979, making the date his "lucky day".
However, the gross for the opening weekend was a disappointing
$6.15 million. A significant factor in the film's rather poor box
office performance was that its release coincided with other
science fiction film releases, including
The Thing,
Star Trek II: The Wrath of
Khan, and, most significantly,
E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial,
which dominated box office revenues that summer.
Film critics were polarized as some felt the story had taken a back
seat to special effects and that it was not the action/adventure
the studio had advertised. Others acclaimed its complexity and
predicted it would stand the test of time.
In the United States, a general criticism was its slow pacing that
detracts from other strengths; Sheila Benson from the
Los Angeles Times called it "Blade
crawler", while Pat Berman in State and Columbia Record described
it as "science fiction pornography".
Roger
Ebert praised both the original and the
Director's cut
version of
Blade Runner's visuals and recommended it for
that reason; however, he found the human story clichéd and a little
thin. In 2007, upon release of ''The Final Cut'', Roger Ebert
somewhat revised his original opinion of the film and added it to
his list of Great Movies.{{citation
|url=http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=%2F20071103%2FREVIEWS08%2F71103001%2F1023|date=2007-11-03|title=Blade
Runner: The Final Cut (1982)|author=Ebert,
Roger|accessdate=2007-11-23}} ==Awards and honors== ''Blade
Runner'' has won the following awards: {| class="wikitable"
border="1" |- !Year !Award !Category – Recipient(s) |- |1982 |Los
Angeles Film Critics Association Award |Best Cinematography –
[[Jordan Cronenweth]] |- | rowspan=3 |1983 | rowspan=3 |[[British
Academy of Film and Television Arts|BAFTA]] Film Award | Best
Cinematography – Jordan Cronenweth |- | Best Costume Design –
Charles Knode, [[Michael Kaplan (costume designer)|Michael Kaplan]]
|- | Best Production Design/Art Direction – [[Lawrence G. Paull]]
|- |1983 |[[Hugo Award]] |Best Dramatic Presentation |- |1983
|London Critics Circle Film Awards – Special Achievement Award
|Lawrence G. Paull, Douglas Trumbull, Syd Mead – For their visual
concept (technical prize). |} It has been nominated for the
following awards:{{cite web
|url=http://movies.nytimes.com/movie/5994/Blade-Runner/awards
|title=NY Times: Blade Runner |accessdate=2009-01-01|work=NY
Times}} *[[Academy Awards|Academy Award]] (1983) **Best Art
Direction-Set Decoration – [[Lawrence G. Paull]], [[David L.
Snyder]], [[Linda DeScenna]] **Best Effects, Visual Effects –
Douglas Trumbull, Richard Yuricich, David Dryer *[[British Academy
of Film and Television Arts#Film|BAFTA]] (1983) **Best Film Editing
– [[Terry Rawlings]] **Best Make Up Artist – [[Marvin G. Westmore]]
**Best Score – Vangelis **Best Sound – Peter Pennell, Bud Alper,
Graham V. Hartstone, Gerry Humphreys **Best Special Visual Effects
– [[Douglas Trumbull]], [[Richard Yuricich]], [[David Dryer]]
*British Society of Cinematographers: Best Cinematography Award
(1982) – [[Jordan Cronenweth]] *[[Fantasporto]] **International
Fantasy Film Award (1983) – Best Film – Ridley Scott
**International Fantasy Film Award (1993) – Best Film – Ridley
Scott (Director's cut) *[[Golden Globe Award|Golden Globe]]: Best
Original Score (1983) – Motion Picture – Vangelis *[[Saturn Award]]
(1983) **Best Science Fiction Film **Best Director – Ridley Scott
**Best Special Effects – Douglas Trumbull, Richard Yuricich **Best
Supporting Actor – Rutger Hauer **Best Genre Video Release (1994) –
Director's cut ===Current rankings=== Current recognitions for
''Blade Runner'' include: *In 2007, the [[American Film Institute]]
[[AFI's 100 Years... 100 Movies (10th Anniversary Edition)|listed]]
it as the 97th greatest film of all time, making it new to the
list, having been left off the 1997 version. In 2008, ''Blade
Runner'' was voted the sixth best science fiction film ever made as
part of the [[AFI's 10 Top 10]].{{cite news | author = [[American
Film Institute]] | title = AFI's 10 Top 10 | date = 2008-06-17 |
url = http://www.afi.com/10top10/scifi.html |
accessdate=2008-06-18}} *Blade Runner is currently ranked the third
best film of all time by The Screen Directory.{{citation
|url=http://www.thescreendirectory.com/cat4/top_tens.php?c=60|title=Top
Ten Films of All Time|accessdate=2007-09-26|publisher=The Screen
Directory}} *One of ''[[Time (magazine)|Time]]'''s 100 All-Time
best
movies.{{citation|url=http://www.time.com/time/2005/100movies/0,23220,blade_runner,00.html|title=All-Time
100 movies: Blade Runner (1982)|publisher=Time
Inc|accessdate=2007-10-07|date=2005}} *British movie magazine
''[[Empire]]'' voted it the "Best Science Fiction Film Ever" in
2007. *In 2002, ''Blade Runner'' was voted the 8th greatest film of
all time in [[Channel 4]]'s 100 Greatest Films poll. *''New
Scientist'' readers voted it as the
[http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg20026826.300-scifi-special-your-alltime-favourite-science-fiction.html
"all-time favourite science fiction"] film in October 2008.
==Cultural influence== [[Image:BladeRunner Spinner
Billboard.jpg|thumb|right|300px|A police [[Spinner (Blade
Runner)|spinner]] flying beside huge advertising-laden
[[skyscraper]]s. These special effects are benchmarks that have
influenced many subsequent science-fiction films.]] While not
initially a success with North American audiences, the film was
popular internationally and became a [[cult film]].Sammon, pp.
318–329 The film's dark style and futuristic design have served as
a benchmark and its influence can be seen in many subsequent
science fiction films, [[anime]], video games, and television
programs. For example, [[Ronald D. Moore]] and [[David Eick]], the
producers of the re-imagining of ''[[Battlestar Galactica (2004 TV
series)|Battlestar Galactica]]'', have both cited ''Blade Runner''
as one of the major influences for the show. ''Blade Runner''
continues to reflect modern trends and concerns, and an increasing
number consider it one of the greatest science fiction films of all
time.{{citation | author=Jha, Alok; Rogers, Simon; Rutherford, Adam
| date=2004-08-26 | accessdate=2006-11-14 |
url=http://www.guardian.co.uk/life/feature/story/0,13026,1290561,00.html
| title=Our expert panel votes for the top 10 sci-fi films |
work=Guardian Unlimited | publisher=Guardian News and Media Limited
}} The film was selected for preservation in the United States
[[National Film Registry]] in 1993 and is frequently used in
[[university]] courses.{{citation|author=Rapold,
Nicolas|url=http://www.nysun.com/article/63805|title=Aren't We All
Just Replicants on the Inside?|date=2007-10-02|journal=The New York
Sun |accessdate=2007-10-04}} In 2007, it was named the 2nd most
visually influential film of all time by the [[Visual Effects
Society]].{{citation
|url=http://www.visualeffectssociety.com/documents/ves50revelfin.pdf|accessdate=2008-01-29|format=PDF|publisher=Visual
Effects Society|title=The Visual Effects Society Unveils "50 Most
Influential Visual Effects Films of All Time"}} ''Blade Runner'' is
one of the most musically [[sampling (music)|sampled]] films of the
20th century,{{citation | author=Cigéhn, Peter | date=2004-09-01 |
url=http://web.archive.org/web/20041013041105/www.sloth.org/samples-bin/samples/source?summary
| publisher=sloth.org | title=The Top 1319 Sample Sources (version
60) }} and inspired the [[Grammy]] nominated song "[[More Human
than Human]]" by [[White Zombie (band)|White Zombie]].{{cite web
|url=http://www.videosift.com/video/White-Zombie-More-Human-Than-Human
|title=White Zombie — More Human Than Human |accessdate=2008-02-24
|work=}} [[Drum and bass]] DJ and producer [[Dillinja]] used
elements of "Blade Runner Blues" for his track "The Angels Fell",
which was featured on the 1996 [[Metalheadz]] compilation
''Platinum Breakz''. Leon's line "Let me tell you about my mother"
was sampled by [[Tricky]] on his song "Aftermath", which was
featured on his 1996 album ''[[Maxinquaye]]''. ''Blade Runner'' has
influenced [[adventure game]]s, such as ''[[Rise of the Dragon]]'',
''[[Snatcher]]'', ''[[Beneath a Steel Sky]]'' and ''[[Flashback:
The Quest for Identity]]'', the anime series ''[[Bubblegum
Crisis]]'', the [[role-playing game]] ''[[Shadowrun]]'', the
[[first-person shooter]] ''[[Perfect Dark]]'', and the
''[[Syndicate (series)|Syndicate]]'' series of video games. The
film is also cited as the a major influence on [[Warren
Spector]],{{cite
web|url=http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/14.04/gurus.html
|title=Wired Magazine: Gaming Gurus, Issue 14.04 |publisher=Condé
Nast Company |date=2006-04-01 |accessdate=2009-08-28}} designer of
the computer-game ''[[Deus ex]]'', which both in its visual
rendering and plot displays evidence of the film's influence. The
look of the film (darkness, neon lights and opacity of vision) is
easier to [[Rendering (computer graphics)|render]] than complicated
backdrops, making it a popular choice for game designers.{{citation
| last=Atkins | first=Barry | contribution=Replicating the Blade
Runner|year=2005|title=The Blade Runner
Experience|editor-last=Brooker|editor-first=Will|pages=79–91|publisher=Wallflower|place=London|id=ISBN
1-904764-30-4}}{{citation|last=Tosca|first=Susana
P.|contribution=Implanted Memories, or the Illusion of Free
Action|year=2005|title=The Blade Runner
Experience|editor-last=Brooker|editor-first=Will|pages=92–107|publisher=Wallflower|place=London|id=ISBN
1-904764-30-4}} ''Blade Runner'' has also been the subject of
[[parody]], such as the comics ''Blade Bummer'' by [[Crazy
(magazine)|Crazy]] comics,{{citation|author=Kissell,
Gerry|url=http://media.bladezone.com/contents/publications/magazines/crazy/|title=Crazy:
Blade Runner Parody|publisher=Blade Zone: The Online Blade Runner
Fan Club|accessdate=2008-02-05}} ''Bad Rubber'' by [[Steve
Gallacci]],{{citation|url=http://www.comics.org/details.lasso?id=37533#5|title=The
Grand Comics Database Project|accessdate=2008-01-29|work=Bad Rubber
|author=Gallacci, Steven A|publisher=Grand Comic-Book Database}}
and the ''[[Red Dwarf]]'' special episodes, "[[Red Dwarf: Back to
Earth|Back To Earth]]".{{cite
web|url=http://dave.uktv.co.uk/library/red-dwarf/red-dwarf-blade-runner-beyond/
|title=Red Dwarf movie influences: Blade Runner & beyond
|publisher=Dave.uktv.co.uk |date=2009-04-20
|accessdate=2009-06-16}}{{cite web
|url=http://www.nme.com/blog/index.php?blog=121&title=red_dwarf_back_to_earth_this_weekend_s_e_1&more=1&c=1&tb=1&pb=1
|title='Red Dwarf: Back To Earth' - This Weekend's Essential
Viewing - NME Video Blog - NME.COM |publisher=www.nme.com
|accessdate=2009-06-16}}{{cite web
|url=http://www.amazon.co.uk/Red-Dwarf-Back-Earth-DVD/dp/B001UHO102
|title=Red Dwarf - Back To Earth - Director's Cut DVD 2009:
Amazon.co.uk: Craig Charles, Danny John-Jules, Chris Barrie, Robert
Llewellyn, Doug Naylor: DVD |publisher=www.amazon.co.uk
|accessdate=2009-06-16}} ===''Blade Runner'' curse=== Among the
[[folklore]] that has grown up around the film over the years has
been the belief that the film was a curse to the companies whose
[[logo]]s were displayed prominently as [[product placement]]s in
some scenes.Sammon, p. 104 While they were market leaders at the
time, many of them experienced disastrous setbacks over the next
decade and hardly exist today. RCA, which at one time was the U.S.
leading consumer electronics and communications conglomerate, was
bought out by one-time parent GE in 1985, and dismantled.
[[Atari]], which dominated the [[video game console|home video
game]] market when the film came out, never recovered from [[video
game crash of 1983|the next year's downturn]] in the industry, and
by the 1990s had ceased to exist as anything more than a brand, a
back catalog of games and some legacy computers. The Atari of today
is an entirely different firm, using the former company's name.
[[Cuisinart]] similarly went bankrupt in 1989, though it lives on
under new ownership. The [[Bell System]] [[monopoly]] was broken up
that same year, and most of the resulting [[Regional Bell operating
companies]] have since changed their names and [[merger|merged]]
back with each other and other companies to form the new AT&T.
[[Pan American World Airways|Pan Am]] suffered the terrorist
bombing/destruction of [[Pan Am Flight 103]] and after a decade of
mounting losses, finally went [[bankruptcy|bankrupt]] in 1991 with
the falloff in overseas travel caused by the Gulf War. [[The
Coca-Cola Company]] suffered losses during its failed introduction
of [[New Coke]] in 1985, but soon afterward regained its market
share.Chapman, Murray. (1992–1998)
[http://scribble.com/uwi/br/brfaq/faq-curse.html The Blade Runner
Curse] Murray Chapman, University of Queensland. Retrieved on
2008-01-30 Its continued success has made Coca-Cola one of several
exceptions to the ''Blade Runner'' curse; also appearing in the
film are logos for [[Budweiser (Anheuser-Busch)|Budweiser]], and
the electronics company [[TDK]], which continue to thrive in
contemporary markets. ===''Future Noir''=== Before the film's
[[principal photography]] began, ''[[Cinefantastique]]'' magazine
commissioned Paul M. Sammon to write an article about ''Blade
Runner'''s production, which became the book ''[[Future Noir: The
Making of Blade Runner]]'' (referred to as the "''Blade Runner''
Bible" by many of the film's
fans).{{citation|url=http://www.brmovie.com/Encyclopedia/PQRST.HTML|title=BRmovie.com:
Encyclopedia Blade
Runner|accessdate=2008-01-22|publisher=BRmovie.com}} The book
chronicles the evolution of ''Blade Runner'' as a film, and focuses
on film-set politics, especially the British director's experiences
with his first American film crew, of which producer [[Alan Ladd,
Jr.]] has said, "Harrison wouldn't speak to Ridley and Ridley
wouldn't speak to Harrison. By the end of the shoot Ford was 'ready
to kill Ridley', said one colleague. He really would have taken him
on if he hadn't been talked out of it." {{citation | last=Shone |
first=Tom | date=2004 | title=Blockbuster | isbn = 0743239903 |
place= | publisher=Simon & Schuster | pages= | chapter= }}
''Future Noir'' has short cast biographies and quotations about
their experiences in making ''Blade Runner'', as well as many
photographs of the film's production, and preliminary sketches. The
cast chapter was deleted from the first edition; it is available
online. A second edition of ''Future Noir'' was published in
2007.{{citation|url=http://scribble.com/uwi/br/fn/ |title=Future
Noir: Lost Chapters|publisher=2019:Lost
Worlds|accessdate=2008-02-05}} ==Versions== {{main|Versions of
Blade Runner}} Seven different versions of ''Blade Runner'' have
been shown: [[Image:Blade runner special ed
case.jpg|thumb|260px|The 5-disc limited edition DVD set, packaged
in a reproduction Voight-Kampff test case]] [[Image:Blade runner
special ed layout.jpg|thumb|260px|The contents of the 5-disc
limited edition DVD set]] #Original '''workprint version''' (1982,
113 minutes) shown to audience test previews in Denver and Dallas
in March 1982. It was also seen in 1990 and 1991 in Los Angeles and
San Francisco as a ''Director's Cut'' without Scott's approval.
Negative responses to the test previews led to the modifications
resulting in the U.S. theatrical version,{{citation|author=Kaplan,
Fred|title=A Cult Classic, Restored
Again|url=http://www.nytimes.com/2007/09/30/movies/30kapl.html|newspaper=New
York Times|date=2007-09-30|accessdate=2008-01-21}}Sammon, pg. 289
while positive response to the showings in 1990 and 1991 pushed the
studio to approve work on an official director's cut.Bukatman, p.
37 It was re-released with 5-disc Ultimate Edition in 2007. #A
'''San Diego Sneak Preview''' shown only once in May 1982, which
was almost identical to the ''Domestic Cut'' with three extra
scenes.Sammon, pp. 306 and 309–311 #The '''U.S. theatrical
version''' (1982, 116 minutes), known as the original version or
''Domestic Cut'', released on [[VHS]] in 1983 and [[laserdisc]] in
1987. #The '''International Cut''' (1982, 117 minutes) also known
as the "Criterion Edition" or uncut version, included more violent
action scenes than the U.S. theatrical version. Although initially
unavailable in the U.S. and distributed in Europe and Asia via
theatrical and local Warner Home Video laserdisc releases, it was
later released on [[VHS]] and [[Criterion Collection]] laserdisc in
North America, and re-released in 1992 as a "10th Anniversary
Edition".Sammon, pp. 326–329 #The '''U.S. broadcast version'''
(1986, 114 minutes), the U.S. theatrical version edited for
violence, [[profanity]] and [[nudity]] by [[CBS]] to meet broadcast
restrictions.Sammon, pp. 407–408 and 432 #The Ridley Scott-approved
(1992, 116 minutes) '''Director's Cut'''; prompted by the
unauthorized 1990–1 workprint theatrical release and made available
on VHS and laserdisc in 1993, and on DVD in 1997. Significant
changes from the theatrical version include: removal of Deckard's
voice-over, re-insertion of a unicorn sequence and removal of the
studio-imposed happy ending. Ridley did provide extensive notes and
consultation to Warner Brothers through film preservationist
Michael Arick who was put in charge of creating the Director's
Cut.Sammon, pp. 353, 365 #Ridley Scott's '''Final Cut''' (2007, 117
minutes), or the "25th Anniversary Edition", released by Warner
Bros. theatrically on October 5, 2007 and subsequently released on
DVD, HD DVD, and Blu-ray in December 2007 (U.K. December 3; U.S.
December 18). This is the only version over which Ridley Scott had
complete artistic control as the ''Director's Cut'' was rushed and
he was not directly in charge. In conjunction with the ''Final
Cut,'' extensive documentary and other materials were produced for
the home video releases culminating in a five-disc "Ultimate
Collector's Edition" release by [[Charles de Lauzirika]].
==Documentaries== ;''On the Edge of Blade Runner'' (2000) ''On the
Edge of Blade Runner'' (55 minutes) was produced in 2000 by Nobles
Gate Ltd. (for [[Channel 4]]), was directed by Andrew Abbott and
hosted/written by [[Mark Kermode]]. Interviews with production
staff, including Scott, give details of the creative process and
the turmoil during preproduction. Stories from Paul M. Sammon and
Hampton Fancher provide insight into [[Philip K. Dick]] and the
origins of ''[[Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?]]''. Interwoven
are cast interviews (with the notable exceptions of Harrison Ford
and Sean Young), which convey some of the difficulties of making
the film (including an exacting director and humid, smoggy
weather). There is also a tour of some locations, most notably the
[[Bradbury Building]] and the Warner Bros. backlot that became the
LA 2019 streets, which look very different from Scott's dark
vision. The documentary then details the test screenings and the
resulting changes (the voice over, the happy ending, and the
deleted Holden hospital scene), the special effects, the soundtrack
by Vangelis, and the unhappy relationship between the filmmakers
and the investors which culminated in Deeley and Scott being fired
but still working on the film. The question of whether or not
[[Themes in Blade Runner#Deckard: replicant or human?|Deckard]] is
a replicant
surfaces.{{citation|url=http://www.channel4.com/film/reviews/film.jsp?id=106714|title=On
the Edge of Blade
Runner|publisher=[[Film4]]|accessdate=2008-01-25}} ;''Future
Shocks'' (2003) ''Future Shocks'' (27 minutes) is a more recent
documentary from 2003 by [[TVOntario]] (part of their ''Film 101''
series using footage compiled over the years for [[Saturday Night
at the Movies]]). It includes interviews with executive producer
[[Bud Yorkin]], [[Syd Mead]], and the cast, this time with Sean
Young, but still without Harrison Ford. There is extensive
commentary by science fiction author [[Robert J. Sawyer]] and from
film critics, as the documentary focuses on the themes, visual
impact and influence of the film. Edward James Olmos describes
Ford's participation, and personal experiences during filming are
related by Young, Walsh, Cassidy and Sanderson. They also relate a
story about crew members creating T-shirts that took pot shots at
Scott. The different versions of the film are critiqued and the
accuracy of its predictions of the future are discussed.
;''Dangerous Days'' (2007) ''Dangerous Days: Making Blade Runner''
is an approximately three and a half hour long documentary directed
and produced by [[Charles de Lauzirika]] for the 2007 Final Cut
version of the film. It appears with every edition of ''The Final
Cut'' on DVD, HD DVD and Blu-ray. (It is a DVD format disc, even in
the HD DVD and Blu-ray editions). It was culled from over 80
interviews, including Harrison Ford, Sean Young, Rutger Hauer,
Edward James Olmos, Jerry Perenchio, Bud Yorkin and Ridley Scott,
and also contains several alternate and deleted shots within the
context of the documentary itself.{{citation
|url=http://chud.com/articles/articles/11285/1/INTERVIEW-CHARLES-DE-LAUZIRIKA-BLADE-RUNNER/Page1.html
|title=Interview: Charles de Lauzirika (Blade
Runner)|accessdate=2008-01-29|publisher=CHUD.com|author=Fischer,
Russ|date=2007-02-08}}{{citation|url=http://digitalcontentproducer.com/mil/features/video_real_deal_2/index.html|title=Exclusive:
The Real Deal: Digital film restoration and a final cut reveal the
true Blade Runner|accessdate=2008-01-29|publisher=Penton Media
Inc|author=Greer, Darroch|date=2007-07-01}} The documentary
consists of eight chapters, each covering a portion of the
film-making – or in the case of the final chapter, the film's
controversial legacy. The chapters and their
length:{{citation|url=http://www.filmedge.net/BladeRunner/BRdvd.htm|title=Blade
Runner – The Final Cut: 2-Disc Special Edition DVD
Review|accessdate=2008-01-29|publisher=FilmEdge.net|author=Weitz,
Scott|date=2007-12-16}} *Incept Date – 1980: Screenwriting and
Dealmaking – ''30:36'' *Blush Response: Assembling the Cast –
''22:46'' *A Good Start: Designing the Future – ''26:34'' *Eye of
the Storm: Production Begins – ''28:48'' *Living in Fear: Tension
on the Set – ''29:23'' *Beyond the Window: Visual effects –
''28:49'' *In Need of Magic: Post-Production Problems – ''23:05''
*To Hades and Back: Release and Resurrection – ''24:12'' ;''All Our
Variant Futures'' (2007) ''All Our Variant Futures: From Workprint
to Final Cut'' (29 minutes), produced by Paul Prischman, appears on
Disc 5 of the ''Blade Runner'' Ultimate Collector's Edition and
provides an overview of the film's multiple versions and their
origins, as well as detailing the seven year-long restoration,
enhancement and remastering process behind ''The Final Cut''.
Included are interviews with director Ridley Scott, restoration
producer [[Charles de Lauzirika]], restoration consultant Kurt P.
Galvao, restoration VFX supervisor John Scheele and ''Future Noir:
The Making of Blade Runner'' author Paul M. Sammon.
Behind-the-scenes footage documenting the restoration – from
archival work done in 2001 through the 2007 filming of Joanna
Cassidy and Benjamin Ford for ''The Final Cut'''s digital fixes –
are seen throughout.
- Additional featurettes (2007)
In addition to
Dangerous Days: Making Blade Runner, a
variety of other supplemental featurettes produced and directed by
Charles de Lauzirika are
included both the 4-disc and 5-disc collector's editions of
Blade Runner released by Warner Home Video in 2007:
- The Electric Dreamer: Remembering Philip K. Dick –
14:22
- Sacrificial Sheep: The Novel Vs. The Film – 15:07
- Philip K. Dick: The Blade Runner Interviews –
23:03
- Signs of the Times: Graphic Design – 13:40
- Fashion Forward: Wardrobe and Styling – 20:40
- Screen Tests: Rachael and Pris – 8:54
- The Light That Burns: Remembering Jordan Cronenweth –
19:58
- Deleted & Alternate Scenes – 45:47
- Promoting Dystopia: Rendering the Poster Art –
9:35
- Deck-A-Rep: The True Nature of Rick Deckard –
9:30
- Nexus Generation: Fans and Filmmakers – 21:49
- 1982 Promotional Featurettes – 36:21
Sequels
K.W. Jeter, a
friend of Philip K. Dick, has written three official, authorised
Blade Runner novels that continue
Rick Deckard's story, attempting to resolve
many differences between
Blade Runner and the source novel
Do Androids
Dream of Electric Sheep?.
Ridley Scott apparently toyed with the idea of a sequel film, which
would have been titled
Metropolis. However, the project
was ultimately shelved due to rights issues. A script was also
written for a proposed sequel entitled
Blade Runner Down,
which would have been based on K. W. Jeter's first
Blade
Runner sequel novel. At the 2007 Comic-Con, Scott again
announced that he is considering a sequel to the film. By September
2008,
Eagle Eye co-writer
Travis Wright was writing the
screenplay. Wright worked with producer
Bud
Yorke for a few years on the project. His colleague
John Glenn, who left the film by
2008, stated the script explores the nature of the off-world
colonies as well as what happens to the Tyrell Corporation in the
wake of its founder's death.
Other adaptations
Comics
Archie Goodwin scripted the
comic book adaptation,
A Marvel Comics
Super Special: Blade Runner, published September 1982. The
Jim Steranko cover leads into a 45-page
adaptation illustrated by the team of
Al
Williamson, Carlos Garzon, Dan Green and
Ralph Reese. This adaptation includes one
possible explanation of the title's significance in story context:
the narrative line, "Blade runner. You're always movin' on the
edge."
In 2009, BOOM! Studios published a 24-issue miniseries comic book
adaptation of the
Blade Runner source novel,
Do
Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?
Video games
There are two
video games based on the
film, one for
Commodore 64,
Sinclair ZX Spectrum and
Amstrad CPC (1985) by CRL Group PLC based on the
music by Vangelis (due to licensing issues), and another action
adventure
PC game
(1997) by
Westwood Studios. The
Westwood PC game
featured new characters and branching storylines based on the
Blade Runner world, coupled with voice work from some of
the original cast from the film and some recurring locations from
the film. The events portrayed in the 1997 game occur not after,
but in parallel to those in the film – the player assumes the role
of another replicant-hunter working at the same time as Deckard,
though of course they never meet, so as to remain consistent with
the film.
The PC game featured a non-linear plot,
non-player characters that each ran in
their own independent
AI,
and an unusual pseudo-3D engine (which eschewed polygonal solids in
favor of
voxel elements) that
did not require the use of a 3D accelerator card to play the
game.
A prototype board game was also created in California (1982) that
had game play similar to
Scotland Yard.
Television series
Though not an official sequel to
Blade Runner,
Total
Recall 2070 was initially planned as a spin-off of the movie
Total Recall but transformed
into a hybrid of that movie and
Blade Runner. There are
many similarities between the
television series and the
Blade
Runner universe. The series takes place in a dark, crowded,
industrial, and cosmopolitan setting. David Hume is a senior
detective for the Citizens Protection Bureau (CPB) who is partnered
with Ian Farve, an Alpha Class android. The series focused on
questions such as the nature of humanity and the rights of
androids. The series was based on two works by Phillip K. Dick:
"
We Can Remember It
for You Wholesale" (the basis for the film
Total
Recall), and
Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?
(the basis for
Blade Runner).
Prequel
In June 2009,
The New York
Times reported that Ridley Scott, together with his
brother
Tony Scott, was working on a
prequel to
Blade Runner. The prequel, entitled
Purefold, will be a series of 5-10 minute shorts, aimed
first at the
Web and then perhaps
television, and will be set at a point in time before 2019. Due to
rights issues, the series will not be linked too closely to the
characters or events of the 1982 film.
Notes
External links