Blade Runner: A Historic Masterpiece

"Blade Runner", a film that has captured the imagination of people, architects, and film directors around the world. A piece of artwork that will always be spoken of, and will always be a medium on which to compare. At the time of it's release in 1982 "Blade Runner" was in many ways ahead of it's time. Although movies like "Star Wars" had already set a high standard for science fiction films, "Blade Runner" showed it was diverse from previous productions in it's genre. At the time, most stories of the future portrayed a clean, sterile living condition. In the exact opposite way, "Blade Runner" told a story of a more realistic view on the future, a polluted, overpopulated, crime filled world. Now in 2009 we still compare science fiction films to "Blade Runner". Director Ridely Scott had already outdone himself three years earlier with "Alien", but "Blade Runner" was truly unique.
Ridley Scott began directing commercials in England in the 70's, and eventually became very successful. He graduated college with a degree in design, which would later influence his perfectionism. Being that he was so used to commercials, he took his knowledge in photographic expertise, and transferred it to film. This would later result to beautiful, visually stimulating pictures that he so precisely controlled. In "Blade Runner" the world that Ridley Scott created showed just how precise he was. When Ridley first read the script, he immediately began to draw amazing story boards of what he thought the picture should look like, the entire art department would later be based on these drawings. A tremendous amount of work was put into the visual aspect of "Blade Runner", and you can definitely tell.

The story is very simple, what I always say is that so much complexity can come from simplicity, and so it is applied to "Blade Runner", a simple story in a complex world. It is based in the future, Los Angeles 2019 to be exact. The Tyrel Corporation has created genetic beings that are visually indistinguishable from humans, they are called replicants. After violent incidences in the past, replicants were declared illegal on the planet earth, because of this, a team of high ranked police officers known as "Blade Runner's" were created. A "Blade Runner's" sole purpose is to retire(kill) any replicant that is illegally on earth. Rick Deckard (Harrison Ford) is hired to retire a group of replicants who's visit is not intended to end on a positive note. He finds himself on a mission with a series of unexpected events, and an outcome he would have never predicted.

The very ambitious story should have been a hit, but it did not do what is was intended to do until much later. The film had mixed reviews, some critics saying that is had a strange pace, others saying they loved the visual stimulation of it all. Although it was considered a box office failure, "Blade Runner" has since become a cult classic. "Blade Runner" has inspired me in so many ways to become a film director, It is a film that should be seen by anyone who loves a good story, a good ride, and most of all an amazing movie. It is a touching, beautiful, and very entertaining film that should give you goosebumps every time you watch it. I recommend this movie more than any film on my favorites list(It's on my profile). If you have not seen it make sure you do, you will probably end up writing your own blog about the film.