Saturday, March 03, 2018

Movie review - "Blade Runner 2049" (2017) ***1/2

The original wasn't very popular at the box office, you know! Just saying! Because it was confusing in a lot of places - even with the voice over (which I've got to say I liked) and often gloomy. It's reputation has risen and risen in recent years and it's now a classic.

So it was brave of them to tackle a sequel - and they did it very well. Harrison Ford is back, as well as Edward James Olmos and a re-enactment of Sean Young.

I liked Ryan Gosling, Robin Wright, David Bautista, Lennie James and Ana de Armas as his fake girlfriend. Jared Leto was fine. I didn't like Sylvia Hoeks as the assassin replicant - her scenes felt tonally off, like they were from a more stock action film. Denis Villeneuve is a very good director.

There are some stunning visuals and scenes - the opening worm farm, the orphanage, the final battle. There were a frustrating amount of unanswered questions - no resolution to the fate of Leto, or the status of the revolution.

It's a very good movie, and there's much to be proud of. I never got wrapped up in it the way I did the original. It lacks a scene with the emotional power of Rutger Hauer's final moments, or the pace and suspense that comes from tracking down people who may or may not be robots.

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