Marval Movie

The images and themes of Blade Runner are some of the most iconic in movie and even pop-culture history. They have influences and been ripped off so many times and yet there's still nothing quite like the original. Whether a sequel was necessary or wanted is now irrelevant, it's here and the story now continues.

I have to confess that I've never been a fan of the original movie. I've seen it three times, I like hearing analysis of it and talking about it and it is undeniably influential and amazing to look at, but frankly actually sitting down and seeing the movie play-out has never given me a thrill.

We get a black screen where writing comes up informing us of the essential information we need to know going into the movie. Replicants are synthetically grown humans that developed their own humanity, they rebelled but a new company has emerged which makes Replicants that obey absolutely, the old models are still running around Earth so there are still agents that hunt them, which are still called Blade Runners. The  first shot, as the original, is with the opening of an eye. Who eye? It does not matter. We then see a flying car hover above a grey landscape, where eventually there's some kind of farming land. The car lands and a man gets out, he enters the house and waits for it's owner (Dave Bautista), through a series of questions it's obvious that he is a Blade Runner here to "retire" this runaway Replicant. The Repicant fights back, slamming him through a wall but he is stronger than him. Yes this Blade Runner is a Replicant. The Repicants name is K (Ryan Gosling). Before he heads back he finds a buried box under a dead tree and number carved into them that have meaning for K.

Being that he's not human most of his emotions are subdued, for a large portion of the movie Gosling is rather stone-faced throughout it. That's fine because there are other more expressive characters that keep the energy alive, his real effort goes into his body movement, being sleek and efficient. However you can still see the glimmers of the thoughts that are going on under the surface that come out in little eye movements or furrowing of his brow. Plus there is a scene in which he comes to a realization about himself and without going over the top delivers an amazing reaction. For this, I believe it is one of his best performances.

Something I applaud this movie for is it's very little amount of action. There are hand-to-hand sequences and a shootout scene or two but this movie really relies on creating images, atmosphere and provoking deeper questions. Science Fiction isn't suppose to simply entertain you with things going bang and flashing lights, its meant to give you ideas.

Blade Runner has never been a typical science fiction movie. It was more like an existential Film Noir set in the future. It had a lonely man wandering the streets of a dark city and asked questions about what makes us human. This is still that movie.

In the directors chair is not Ridley Scott but Denis Villeneuve. He made Arrival last year which really impressed me so I had no objections to him taking the realms on another science fiction movie. He has clearly done his research for what this world is like. He and cinematographer Roger Daekins have created the same dark, rainy world lit with headlights and advertisements, as well as a few other images that will most likely become classic. Whats striking is the way many scenes are composed with the minimal amount of detail and only a few shapes to help fill in what they are. Take a shot where its mostly black but a few colored lights help us register that there is a car behind the character.

Someone else that's taking over is Hans Zimmer and Benjamine Wallfisch on the music where it was previously handled by Vangelis. They have a frame to work within and I believe to sounds like the original. For the big city shots it's your traditional piece you would expect to hear but there are other moments where the characters dwell on other things and it becomes a deep meditation. They use electronic instruments but create an organic sound with them.

I have no idea how well this movie will be received by the public or by other critics. I also cannot guess how successful it will do at the box-office or with the fans of the original. But I do admire the visuals and the technical achievements put into this movie. I remember some of the shots very clearly and the feeling of the atmosphere it created. It shows a world far off in the future where technology is capable of so many things but the greatest question man faces is within themselves. 

Rating: 3 1/2 stars out of 4

Throughout the events of First Man, the tale of the first man to step foot on the moon, Neil Armstrong, we are asked the question of why are we doing this? It costs a lot of money, a massive amount of effort and even lives lost and for what and why?

Our opening sequence is one where Armstrong is taking a test flight. The turbulence shakes the plane and the pilot, while he is being fed instructions to go a little to the left or increase pressure by two degrees etc. Yet to actually be up there would render anyone a panic-ridden mess. But for a brief moment while up there he flys calmly and can see the curvature of the Earth and the atmosphere. 

The characterization of Armstrong himself is of a very disciplined, reserved man. One who speaks plainly and simply and keeps a lot close to the chest. He talks to his superiors, the press, and even his children the same way. Though for a few moments it is obvious he has deep feelings and can see beauty in things. Ryan Gosling is at his most controlled since Blade Runner 2049, with only a few body movements and notes in speech detailedly convey the character.

Usually, with movies about space, you would expect a bigger emphasis (visually) to be paid to the massive machinery and looking up at the sky. To be sure there are such shots but this movie is more interested in the humanity of this story. There are many shots where the characters faces fill the frame and their grand displays of emotions or the subtle signs of it are fully displayed before us. So many movies are only interested in the machine, or the landscape and let the human element of the story fall by the wayside. Luckily this is not one of those movies, this one reminds us that humanity is going up into the stars.

There are moments within the movie where they work like colleagues of the Armstrong life. Sequences where the music plays and we see fun times being had between parents and children. These work as moments of texture so we gauge with these characters on an emotional level and see that they have facets. They are reminiscent of The Tree of Life and are very effective.

Little has been written or even known about Armstrong's wife Janet. Whether accurate or not the movie seeks to fill in this blank with her portrayal by Claire Foy. She is the one that must play housekeeper and perform most of the social cues to bring him out of his shell. She is not without a mind of her own and gives the men she is surrounded by a good piece it. Two scenes stand out, one where she confronts a higher official at NASA and another when she insists Neil have a talk with their sons.

There is sharp editing on the strapping in sequences. Fast cutting on the men getting into their seats and buckling up and nozzles and plugs being inserted into their sockets. These are accompanied by clear, razor-sharp sound design. It is an emphasis on every devise and movement of them, so we know that everything does indeed matter and if one calculation is off or something is not hooked up right then it could either make the mission incredibly difficult or destroy the entire craft along with the pilots.

The score by Justin Hurwitz is one of the most appropriate and unique of most recent movie soundtracks. There is a beautiful ninety-four piece orchestra for a full score that is reminiscent of 2001: A Space Oddesey, but one of the most unique elements is the inclusion of the theremin. This instrument you will most likely know best from Doctor Who, Star Trek, and Forbidden Planet. Considered a retro instrument now it gives off a very unique sound, somehow both electrical and organic, honestly, words fail me. It does invoke the feeling of space and technology and through its use in many other science fiction properties, we associate it with space exploration. At times it is wonderous, others cold and distant and others like a glorious waltz.

Damien Chazelle, who made Whiplash and La La Land are all about the pursuit of dreams, people that have a built-in need for an accomplishment that seems ludicrous or too hard to even bother enduring but still do it the same. Movies are the same way, it takes a lot of effort and money to get a movie made and throughout that, you could still ask why? Because when you accomplish something impressive and difficult it is inspiring and can change people for the better.

Rating: 4 stars out of 4