Blade Runner 2049 is the sequel 35 years in the making put into the hands of rising star director Denis Villeneuve, who has directed critical hits like Prisoners, Sicario, and Arrival. Ryan Gosling stars in this gorgeous sci-fi fest as a detective who hunts down runaway replicants, who are basically androids who need to be “retired” as they are outdated and some even have criminal records. Gosling’s “K”, a detective who wants to feel like he has a special place in the world while having little to no emotion on the surface at first, discovers upon a buried mystery that can change the course of civilazation. And that course involves Harrison Ford as Decker, the protagonist of the first Blade Runner film from 1982, who oonce shared the same occupation that Gosling’s K now has.
To put it simply, Blade Runner 2049 is a masterpiece. It’s scope and scale is the cream of the crop for Director Denis Villeneuve and cinematographer Roger Deakins, who create a film that is visual eye candy. But beyond the gorgeous effects, magnificent sound design/score, and the excellent oscar-worthy cinematography, Blade Runner is a moving and deeply thought-provoking film about love and sacrifice. It asks the same question that Blade Runner did of what does it mean to be human and simply explores that ideology even more. We are rooted in the story of a man who wants to feel like he belongs but he is afraid to discover the truth and so desperately wants to have a purpose. It purposefully doesn’t spoon feed us the answers as we are taking the journey along with Gosling to discover the secrets and lies within this deeply built universe, and it’s a breathtaking and emotional ride indeed.
Blade Runner is an excellent film that was a risk by hollywood as it is essentially a 200 million dollar slow burn detective story but is a masterclass in filmmaking, visual effects, production design, story telling, and performances. This film is an A+ masterpiece.