Film Review — Blade Runner 2049
★★★★★
Picking up 30 years after the events of the original, a replicant detective (Gosling) makes a discovery that causes him to question his own existence.
A remarkable achievement in filmmaking, a sequel that steps out of the shadow of its famous predecessor, adding something new instead of merely replicating past glories.
Director Denis Villeneuve crafts a slow and methodical mystery that deftly expands upon Ridley Scott’s bleak and oppressive world, ruminating on similar themes, but asking different questions. Ryan Gosling, Ana De Armas, and Sylvia Hoeks are excellent in a gold-standard cast, delivering performances that exist in the no-man’s land between human and machine.
Roger Deakins’ cinematography is god-tier, and the Vangelis-evoking score by Ben Walfish and Hans Zimmer raises goosebumps in all the right places. Quite simply one of the greatest sequels ever made. It’s a crime more didn’t go and see it.
Director: Denis Villeneuve
Starring: Ryan Gosling, Harrison Ford, Ana De Armas, Jared Leto
Cinematography: Roger Deakins
Music: Benjamin Walfish and Hans Zimmer
Running time: 163 mins
Release year: 2017
BBFC rating: 15 for strong violence, language, sexualised nudity
