The idea of making a sequel to Ridley Scott’s iconic Blade Runner has long been akin to inviting a Replicant over to play chess: it was just the ultimate Bad Idea. And yet here we are, 35 years after the original noir sci-fi classic was released, and that sequel, Blade Runner 2049, has turned out to be the best idea. In fact, not only is 2049 an amazing movie on its own merits, but it’s also faithful to its predecessor even while it finds ways to transcend it at times. It’s that rare breed of film that already feels like an instant classic.
Ryan Gosling takes the center seat here as Agent K, a Blade Runner working the rough and tough streets of dystopic Los Angeles some 30 years after the original film. His mission remains the same as Harrison Ford’s Deckard’s was back then: Track down and “retire” any renegade humanoid androids -- AKA Replicants. The film opens with K in the middle of one such investigation, as he interrogates a potential Replicant. Is this latest target human or isn’t he? And what does that mean to K? You’ll have to watch the film to find out, though the throughline of Blade Runner 2049 asks an even bigger question: Does it really matter anymore who’s a Replicant and who’s not?
While the basic concept of the original film is maintained here, the Blade Runner world has evolved and changed in meaningful ways since Deckard was first seen slurping noodles and bitching about his ex-wife. Roy Batty’s violent escapades on Earth did not mean the end of Replicant kind; no, the Replicants and the humans around them have just adapted in the years since then. The result is a line between human and Replicant that is even more blurred than it was the first time around, and the effects of that blurring bear a heavy emotional weight for the characters and the viewer.
Much of what’s really happening in director Denis Villeneuve’s (Arrival, Sicario) film has been kept out of the marketing, and having seen the film unspoiled, it does seem a shame to ruin any reveals - even what’s going on in that first scene with the possible Replicant. This is perhaps a unique aspect of Blade Runner 2049 in that we often go into movies these days – especially big-studio franchise films – knowing most of what’s about to go down. Entering this film mostly ignorant is the best way to approach it, and mercifully, we’ve been allowed to do that without having to go into full media blackout mode.
The rest of the cast is also impressive. Again, careful avoidance of spoilers prevents one from saying too much, but Ana de Armas, as K’s love interest/gal Friday Joi, is stunning in a unique role that begs for post-viewing discussion. Ditto for Sylvia Hoeks as Luv, the lieutenant of new corporate baddie/super-scientist Wallace (Jared Leto), supplanter to the Tyrell Corporation. Hoeks proves as great a threat as Roy Batty ever was, while Leto is in the film just enough to not overstay his welcome. Guardians of the Galaxy’s Dave Bautista has a small but important role, bringing a restrained pathos to his character. And while Mackenzie Davis, as streetwalker Mariette, is unfortunately given less to do than the others, she does share a memorable scene with de Armas and Gosling that is simultaneously sad and enthralling and manages to comment on the unreality of modern-day social media personas without being heavy-handed about it.
Of course, that’s what Blade Runner has always been about: identity. As Deckard says about Roy Batty in his original narration in the 1982 film, “All he'd wanted were the same answers the rest of us want. Where did I come from? Where am I going? How long have I got?” The filmmakers of Blade Runner 2049 continue to ask those questions, bringing new and fascinating variations to the theme, and satisfactorily resolving Deckard’s story along the way.
THE VERDICT
Perhaps one of the greatest fears fans had about a Blade Runner sequel was that it would simply replicate (ahem) the innovative and influential visual style Ridley Scott established in that film, while filling it with some kind of standard good-vs.-evil Hollywood cop tale. It’s a huge relief to see that Villeneuve and his team are well aware of what the original film was about and show enormous respect for it. Instead, 2049 plays off of the themes, plot, and characters of the 1982 movie without cannibalizing it or negating or retroactively ruining any of those elements. Rather, it organically expands and grows what came before. It’s a deep, rich, smart film that’s visually awesome and full of great sci-fi concepts, and one that was well worth the 35-year wait.