inri222

Thank you Ridley Scott for not directing this.

4/5

stvn1974

Amen, brother, amen.

B5Erik

In late again...

I liked it, but didn't love it.

My biggest problem is the whole plot from Wallace. Why, exactly, does he want his replicants to breed? Creating them artificially, with artificial memories and fully grown is a lot more efficient than waiting 9 months for them to be born, and then waiting another 18-20 years until they're really ready to become slave labor! That made no sense.

And, of course, you've got this, "War is coming," angle that is bubbling under but left in the background (as if for another sequel). For once can we have an epic Science Fiction movie NOT have anything to do with war or the fate of mankind kind of stuff? What made Blade Runner so great (ok, PART of what made it so great) was that it was a smaller scale story. It wasn't fate of mankind, war is coming kind of stuff. It was smaller scale, and more personal. That larger scale stuff that was thrown into this one was out of place. It seemed like a sci-fi crutch for the writers. What's at stake? Killing the child (or hiding the child) should have been it's own goal, not having the fate of humanity or the replicants hinging on it.

I didn't mind the pace (it was right for a Blade Runner sequel), but I didn't like Leto, and the villains were just so - lame. Cardboard cutouts. Robots, if you will. No soul, no humanity, no depth. For a movie that's supposed to have this great substance it sure didn't have good villains.

The movie looked great, and was well directed. And the K's story was interesting, but there was so much that could have been better that I ended up disappointed. I mean, you've got Harrison Ford and you give him almost nothing to do? No character development at all? No real drama for him to take an important role in? The movie could have worked almost as well if they had just mentioned him and left Ford out. Almost. But it could have been better if they had really gotten into Deckard's head a little more and expanded the character a little more than they did.

Now, while this seems like a harsh, critical review, it is - and it isn't. Because I think they got more right than they got wrong. I just think they could have done better.

Goonies85

I'm pretty sure it was Ford who kind of imposed limits on exactly how much of the movie he was willing to be in. While it was great to have him back, I just don't think he was super-enthusiastic to be there. It was a paycheque and his presence was appreciated by the fans, but I think he viewed this kind of similarly to how he viewed his return to the Star Wars universe.

B5Erik

Oh, I'm sure that's true, but the scenes he was in kind of reduced Deckard to a plot device and not a real person. Even with the same amount of screen time they could have done more with him. The script was all surface level (no real depth) when it came to his lines and what K was asking him. They could have filled in some gaps, let Deckard react like a real person, but instead he showed less emotion than he did in the first movie.

Like I said, I don't think it's bad at all. It's good - just not as good as it could have, and should have, been.

Goonies85

I agree that it could've been a lot better. I enjoyed it for what it was but ultimately I was a bit underwhelmed...Especially cause I generally love that director's movies...

Dr. DVD

Re-watched this movie a few weeks ago. I think like the original it gets better with repeat viewings, you just have to have patience with the slow burn style. That said, I too kept looking for anywhere they outright stated Deckard was a replicant and couldn't find it, so I guess the mystery continues for those who wish it...(I think it works fine either way and is fun to keep a secret, I don't care what Ridley Scott says, the guy made Alien Covenant afterall...)

Daytripper

I remember seeing the original as a teen and loved it. And went back to see it multiple times during it first run and every time it was re-released. All of my friends either thought it was o.k. or hated when they first saw it, but over the years grew to appreciate it. I thought "Blade Runner 2049" was brilliant. And just keeps getting better with each viewing. Villeneuve is now my favorite Director this past decade.

brayzie

It seems like he was a typical evil villain who acted evil (and weird) for the sake of being evil (and weird). The original had a little more nuance. There were no good guys when you think about it. The replicants were escaping slavery and killed in order to do so. They valued their own lives at the expense of others. Deckard shot a woman in the back who was terrified and fleeing from him. Society had no problem creating people and then "retiring" them when they deviated from their slave roles.

I hated that too. It was very generic-sounding and it was obviously shoe horned in to create a sequel franchise.

But I will say that the writers and director used this to their advantage. The replicants plotting revolution and the Chosen One was actually necessary to make K feel like he was special, like we all want to feel, only for the rug to be pulled out from under him. I thought the idea that he was actually part human and born naturally was great.

Wallace was extremely lame. The wannabe evil Rachel was serviceable as a villain I guess.

I'm glad they minimized his role. I hated the idea that they brought him back, but it wasn't necessarily meant to be about him, despite the whole new direction of the franchise hinging on him and Rachel's union. For this particular movie, Deckard was the father or parent that K wished he had, and once again, the rug gets pulled out from under him. So for that purpose, I thought it was a great way to use Ford's character.

I agree with your criticisms, but my expectations were pretty low going in, only to be pleasantly surprised. The performances, the tech design, music, and K's story was excellent. I really felt like I was in this world. It was weird because the movie was setting up this cliched man vs machine war/fate of the world-epic, but the core story was pretty small. Pinocchio is in love, finds out he always was a real boy, and finds out that he is special. And after embarking on this long and dangerous adventure which costs him his life, it turns out he was never in love, he was never a real boy, and that he's not special. I've only seen this and Enemy by Villeneuve but I thought both films were amazing.

Dr. DVD

^ Check out Sicario and Arrival. Villeneuve definitely has a good style.

RichC2

May as well throw Prisoners on there too, at which point Incendies is great too. He's a very solid director.

Dr. DVD

Prisoners still has one of the best jump scares in ages

OldBoy

I love Prisoners. It never gets talked about. But, amazing cast doing amazing performances and leaves you on edge and gasping for breath until way after that last scene.

Dr. DVD

Interesting that it never gets talked about as I remember it doing rather well commercially when it was released. In fact, I would say it's the most commercial movie Villeneuve has ever made. Maybe that's why...