Sanchez wrote:What do people think about the score? Is it more unique or more like the original? Does it sound like Zimmer?

Not watching this until Sunday sadly.

Ruth wrote:@Vader, yeah. It's a more elaborate explanation of how I feel, I think. It doesn't ruin the film for me, but it's something to think about until after I've seen it again.

I just wanted to give K a big hug lol. From seeing him being treated like shit by others, to how the only "human-like" connection he could ever have is with a freaking hologram, it builds an empathic link between the audience and a character, you expect him to reach something at the end of his "journey", and it just... doesn't happen at all? It just cuts off? Maybe there shouldn't have been such a strong emphasis on his own personal world if they were just gonna regroup like that at some point of the movie and toss him aside, except for "delivering a child to her father".

So I'm not even sure if it's the actual plot point I don't "agree" with or just how it got there, because I kinda like depressing shit. It's just that it's... jarring here? I don't even feel like I'm making a ton of sense but ugh idk lol.

Speaking of the score, I actually liked it quite a bit? Certain bits of the soundtrack, coupled with the cinematography (<3) were HIGHLY atmospheric, it had its blockbuster-like moments like someone already mentioned, but I liked it in general, like did some people just expect a copy paste from Vangelis? Wouldn't that have pissed them off even more lol?

The original Blade Runner (1982) wasn't a love at first sight/oh boy, here comes Rachel in high heel staccato mode deal for me. First time I saw it, sometimes in the early 90s, CRT monitors were still a thing and, without overthinking it much, I believe it was the original cut that graced our small screen at the time and made me wonder why Deckard was such a, frankly, mellowy prick. An asshole, if you like. I was certainly intrigued by it as well, especially by the early bloodshot interrogation scene, but many years will pass before my true appreciation of Ridley Scott's science fiction masterpiece, adaptation of Philip K. Dick's essential existential novel Do androids dream of electric sheep? If you want me to answer the usual question, I will give you the usual answer: The Final Cut, of course. Is there any other way to enjoy Blade Runner these days? But I do believe, and quite strongly, that the real question isn't about Deckard's true origin, or noodle soup, or bad Japanese, but our own struggle when faced with the cold and definitive mortality.

Let's get onto 2017 business, shall we. Onto Denis Villeneuve's crazy ambitious (and generally crazy) take on the idea that is the Blade Runner sequel. A daunting task that, no matter how you choose to spin it, will draw comparisons to original on a molecular level. Thank the gods, then, because Blade Runner 2049, for the most part, is its own beast to be reckoned with. When you see Ryan Gosling's LAPD, Peugeot sponsored flying car for the first time, gliding through the vertigo inflicted cityscape of a far future megapolis, I guarantee you (at least) one thing: you will see it through the lenses of modern masters - Roger Deakins and Denis Villeneuve, and not Jordan Cronenweth and Ridley Scott, respectfully. Where other filmmakers barely emulate and copy-paste and re-visit for the sake of nostalgia, conservatism or market-safe, whichever you prefer the most, these guys are doing their own thing entirely, from the opening shots, accompanied by more than competent Vangelis successors (I was worried about that segment the most): Hans Zimmer and Benjamin Wallfisch, who are doing this weird, unexpected twist on almost meditative, certainly melancholic and romantic overtones of the original, where the old school synth sound methodically goes from ominous citywide depths, this utterly decadent bass darkness, to sacral heights and relevatory cosmic monk chants. In BR2049, everything is more sinister, more in-decay... hopeless. And that is good. The world has moved into even darker territory since 1982.

The acting here, as expected, is top notch and on a similar level with the rest of the production pedigree. Gosling once more proves that he is the young master of self control, with carefully planted outbursts of energy that never drops below his standard, James Dean/Paul Newman Cool Hand Joe. His officer K is the true hero of this new cyberpunk story and his epic quest of self discovery made me emotionally invested throughout the movie, to a point where I really didn't feel the need to see Deckard, ever again. But as you know from the trailers, Harrison Ford is very much in this movie and I won't spoil his part other than mentioning couple of tiny things: he's almost as good as Solo from The Force Awakens and there's a specific point near the end where I felt he definitely needed to take a step back in favor of our newly found hero, but even that moment was done with grace, creating a full narrative circle. All the girls in this movie were standouts in their own way, similarly to Mad Max: Fury Road recently. From excellent Robin Wright, as K's 'mommy' (or, the closest we'll get to see her playing Snake Eater's legendary Boss), to poignant, bizzare, unique take on A.I. by Ana de Armas. Star-proven Mackenzie Davis, a hooker with a rebellious heart, does a solid job as well, but the real star in the making here is Sylvia Hoeks, a deadly angel-replicant, made by the godly Neander Wallace (trippy Jared Leto doing his take on Master Splinter). She is, at all times, both stunning to look at, elegant, and entirely capable of killing anyone who stands in the way of her master, in a matter of seconds. One of my favorite scenes in the movie features her character Luv, officer K and a water tank, nuff said.

Blade Runner 2049 is one of this year's greatest cinematic achievements and, along with other post 2000 masterpieces, one of those movies that remind me why I love movies in the first place. It's thought provoking, moves at its own editing pace (180 turn from your standard modern blockbuster), tries to tell a complete story that isn't a sequel bait even with all the lore snippets scattered across the nietzschean landscape and, for the most part, delivers on the promise of a unique, uncompromised vision. Will it ever escape the looming shadow of the truly great original? No, never. But the legitimate way of analyzing it on its own terms will definitely be there even some five, ten, twenty years from now. It won't give you anything you haven't already seen so many times and in so many, audio-visual or literary forms, but god damn you if BR2049 doesn't at least make you gasp at the sheer vastness of details that are filling the entire frame here. It's rich with subtext even if the script itself goes for the laser focused detective mystery, more than the disjointed, meditative nature of the impactful original. And that moment when you hear the rain drops for the first time, drip-drip-dripping, all over metallic, rusty, neon-lit skyscraper surfaces that yearn to see the light of the day again? Priceless.

M4: 10/10