Blade Runner 2049

Directed by: Denis Villeneuve

The sequel for the classic dystopian noir sci-fi Blade Runner (1982) has been on the cards for a number of years. And now we revisit the futuristic setting of Los Angeles, only this time in 2049 – set thirty years after the original. Intended to be directed by the visionary Ridley Scott who helmed the original, but that never materialised and the reins were given to the highly impressive Denis Vellenueve. To emphasise my admiration for the director, Arrival (2016) – his first stint in the sci-fi genre, was easily my favourite film from last year. Even then his track record in Hollywood before Arrival is a lucrative body of work. Starting off in independent Canadian cinema with films such as Polytechnique (2009), a divisive text centring on a school shooting, to then his Hollywood works such as Prisoners, Enemy and Sicario – all of which possess such a rich visual style and delicate pacing. And Blade Runner 2049 is no different.

Diverting away from the exploits of Deckard (Harrison Ford) in Blade Runner, the sequel follows a synthetic police officer most commonly known as ‘K’ (Ryan Gosling). Who, after overcoming a brutal case, becomes embroiled in a plot that has huge implications. Gosling came under some slight criticism in the way the trailer portrayed his character, given his lack of dialogue or facial expressions. But in the context of the film however, his performance resembles something similar to his work with Nicolas Winding Refn. Drive (2011) and Only God Forgives (2013) present this focused, reticent exterior while having these random outbursts of volatile energy. Gosling’s stare is still one of the most unsettling things I have witnessed in film, stemming back to his exhilarating performance in The Believer (2001).

The crew involved in this project is an extraordinary array of talent. While having Velleneuve behind the camera with Gosling and Harrison Ford in front of it, the quality does not stop there. Blade Runner 2049 thrives also through its exquisite and textured visuals, captured by the best there is, Roger Deakins. Previously working with director Villeneuve in Sicario, Deakins finds a sensitive balance between the scope of the quintessential Blade Runner futuristic cityscape and the tactility of the natural world. Hanz Zimmer and Benjamin Wallfisch create this unsettling and the same time soft aural composition. The main theme that runs throughout the original Blade Runner is something that strikes a chord with many film fanatics, but Zimmer/Wallfisch warp that tune into this bellowing crescendo version of the theme. This alternation detracts from the fantastical elements of the original film and amplifies the malevolent undertones that run throughout the entirety of this experience.

Blade Runner 2049 is a beautiful, uncompromising classic. I was overwhelmed after the film finished, not really knowing what to think but I felt that the film was something extraordinary. With a run time of nearly 160 minutes, it never trudges along. I wanted to watch it all over again. A film like no other - everyone needs to see this flawless piece of filmmaking.