Blade Runner 2049 review [No Spoilers]
Oct 6, 2017 23:51:35 GMT
Cervantes, stratogustav, and 2 more like this
Post by Balder on Oct 6, 2017 23:51:35 GMT
This is my Letterboxd review, hence the format and formal writing.
"Blade Runner, … my favorite movie of all time. Nothing compares to it, Mulholland Drive might be close to beat it, but is perhaps a hairline below it. Now, how does the sequel compare? Does it even hold a candle to the original? Yes, absolutely. Blade Runner 2049 is great, it is a worthy Blade Runner sequel, heck it is probably my favorite movie all this year (will probably even beat Star Wars).
It does not try to be the original. It has its own visual style that is very distinct from the original, but still feels familiar. And damn is it beautiful to watch. Quite objectively it might be the most beautiful film I have ever seen. I hate to use the “Every frame a painting”-analogy, but it holds so true here. Denis Villeneuve has made some great movies in the past, but nothing that has blown me away. This did. The only thing is that I prefer the rain and smoke from the original. This is cleaner and brighter, but is still fitting. It is on par with the original. I said it might be objectively better, but I still prefer the original.
As for the story, I perhaps need to watch it again to fully grasp everything going on. It is very complex, which I think is perfect. It is like a fine whisky, you need a second fill to fully appreciate everything. Ryan Gosling was great as Officer K, Bautista was cool to see in a serious role, Harrison Ford did a good job (but nothing spectacular). I do not think I have a strong opinion about the villains yet, but they were perhaps the weakest point in the movie (for now). They were not terrible in any regards, but having a predecessor with Rutger Hauer as a villain is no easy task to one-up. But I do not think the villains were main point of the movie, so I guess they get a slight pass for this viewing.
The music was terrific. A blend of the old with the new. Again, the makers of this movie understand that it must not copy the original. It stands on its own, but has a few droplets of homage.
The thing I liked best about this movie is how they built on the world. It is so perfectly crafted with details and creative constructions. I was not bored for a second during that long runtime of 2h 43min because I was so entertained by this universe. The effects are the absolute best I have seen to date. I do not know how they did it, but I am amazed.
In conclusion I need to watch it several more times to get a better picture of it, but ultimately it is no doubt a masterpiece.
Now for a small rant on why I found out that I hate cinemas. I was surrounded by the most annoying people I have ever met at the movies before. On my left there was a guy that breathed so loud it sounded like a vacuum cleaner and another had an oral fixation gnawing his snuff box, below me a guy who refused to sit like a normal human being (half of the subtitles were blocked by his head) and to me right there was a girl not eating popcorn, but gnawing it like a squirrel. Perhaps I just people who go to cinemas.
Luckily my mood was lightened as I walked back to my car. A random dude in the park commented on my “Atari” shirt that I was wearing. I stopped and thanked him thinking he was a fan of retro gaming himself. But as I walked closer to him I noticed he had a pretty weird shirt on himself. On closer inspection I see that it is a Nazi shirt, and he had several tattoos confirming it (“aww wtf am I getting into now” I thought). I just played it cool as he seemed nice, but a little frantic and sketchy. After a few seconds of him trying to find out what Atari game he played as child (It was Space Invaders), he came to the suggestion of him buying my shirt, asking me how much I wanted. I just blurted out 20 bucks, as that is what I paid for it. He is really hyper now wanting it, but first he has to call his girlfriend to ask if it is okay. She says no, and he gets really bummed out. I see him holding some change, and I say I can take that for it (3.80 USD approximately). He thinks it is too little and offers me some “painkillers” too which I gently decline. He cannot let me go for just that little, so he offers me a bicycle light too (stolen obviously). I accept, and he tells me he is going to mount it on his wall at home (better than a Nazi flag I guess). I do not support Nazis in anyway, but seeing his enthusiasm for Atari is something I would sell my worn-out Atari shirt for any day. I also told him to check out Blade Runner 2049, as it contains a huge digital billboard of Atari.
tl;dr: Got my dose of both skinjobs and skinheads."
5/5
"Blade Runner, … my favorite movie of all time. Nothing compares to it, Mulholland Drive might be close to beat it, but is perhaps a hairline below it. Now, how does the sequel compare? Does it even hold a candle to the original? Yes, absolutely. Blade Runner 2049 is great, it is a worthy Blade Runner sequel, heck it is probably my favorite movie all this year (will probably even beat Star Wars).
It does not try to be the original. It has its own visual style that is very distinct from the original, but still feels familiar. And damn is it beautiful to watch. Quite objectively it might be the most beautiful film I have ever seen. I hate to use the “Every frame a painting”-analogy, but it holds so true here. Denis Villeneuve has made some great movies in the past, but nothing that has blown me away. This did. The only thing is that I prefer the rain and smoke from the original. This is cleaner and brighter, but is still fitting. It is on par with the original. I said it might be objectively better, but I still prefer the original.
As for the story, I perhaps need to watch it again to fully grasp everything going on. It is very complex, which I think is perfect. It is like a fine whisky, you need a second fill to fully appreciate everything. Ryan Gosling was great as Officer K, Bautista was cool to see in a serious role, Harrison Ford did a good job (but nothing spectacular). I do not think I have a strong opinion about the villains yet, but they were perhaps the weakest point in the movie (for now). They were not terrible in any regards, but having a predecessor with Rutger Hauer as a villain is no easy task to one-up. But I do not think the villains were main point of the movie, so I guess they get a slight pass for this viewing.
The music was terrific. A blend of the old with the new. Again, the makers of this movie understand that it must not copy the original. It stands on its own, but has a few droplets of homage.
The thing I liked best about this movie is how they built on the world. It is so perfectly crafted with details and creative constructions. I was not bored for a second during that long runtime of 2h 43min because I was so entertained by this universe. The effects are the absolute best I have seen to date. I do not know how they did it, but I am amazed.
In conclusion I need to watch it several more times to get a better picture of it, but ultimately it is no doubt a masterpiece.
Now for a small rant on why I found out that I hate cinemas. I was surrounded by the most annoying people I have ever met at the movies before. On my left there was a guy that breathed so loud it sounded like a vacuum cleaner and another had an oral fixation gnawing his snuff box, below me a guy who refused to sit like a normal human being (half of the subtitles were blocked by his head) and to me right there was a girl not eating popcorn, but gnawing it like a squirrel. Perhaps I just people who go to cinemas.
Luckily my mood was lightened as I walked back to my car. A random dude in the park commented on my “Atari” shirt that I was wearing. I stopped and thanked him thinking he was a fan of retro gaming himself. But as I walked closer to him I noticed he had a pretty weird shirt on himself. On closer inspection I see that it is a Nazi shirt, and he had several tattoos confirming it (“aww wtf am I getting into now” I thought). I just played it cool as he seemed nice, but a little frantic and sketchy. After a few seconds of him trying to find out what Atari game he played as child (It was Space Invaders), he came to the suggestion of him buying my shirt, asking me how much I wanted. I just blurted out 20 bucks, as that is what I paid for it. He is really hyper now wanting it, but first he has to call his girlfriend to ask if it is okay. She says no, and he gets really bummed out. I see him holding some change, and I say I can take that for it (3.80 USD approximately). He thinks it is too little and offers me some “painkillers” too which I gently decline. He cannot let me go for just that little, so he offers me a bicycle light too (stolen obviously). I accept, and he tells me he is going to mount it on his wall at home (better than a Nazi flag I guess). I do not support Nazis in anyway, but seeing his enthusiasm for Atari is something I would sell my worn-out Atari shirt for any day. I also told him to check out Blade Runner 2049, as it contains a huge digital billboard of Atari.
tl;dr: Got my dose of both skinjobs and skinheads."
5/5
