The film that imagines a horrible future
What is "Blade Runner" about?
Released in 1982, Blade Runner is an American science fiction film directed by Ridley Scott. It is an adaptation of Philip K. Dick's novel "Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?"
A fascinating story...
Set in 2019 in a noisy and polluted Los Angeles, we are in a world where humans and "replicants", robots physically similar to humans, live together. Detective Rick Deckard, a blade runner, a special police unit has a mission: to eliminate four replicants who have escaped from a space colony. He meets Rachel, a sophisticated artificial being with human feelings, and little by little the two characters become attached to each other.
Popularisation & influence
If at the time the film was a commercial failure, today it is one of the greatest films of all time and often ranked first among science fiction feature films.
After more than 40 years, the film is still visually impressive, its sets, costumes and special effects are still a real feat: its atmosphere, thanks to the magnificent soundtrack by Vangelis, has become iconic in the science fiction genre, more particularly in a sub-genre of SF: cyberpunk. Melancholic, oppressive, the visual style of the film has become a real reference in popular culture. Nature has disappeared in favour of total artificiality. An ingenious mix of film noir, crime thriller and science fiction, the result is a unique work.
The film, with its cult statue, still continues today to influence different artists in any field (cinema, video games, drawing...)
25 years later, still going strong
The film was given a sequel almost 25 years later, "Blade Runner 2049" directed by Denis Villeneuve, set 30 years after the events of the first.
Promotional poster of the movie "Blade Runner 2049"
Biography of the director
Photograph by the director of Blade Runner
Born on 30 November 1937 in South Shields, England, Ridley Scott is a British director and producer like his older brother, Tony Scott, also a big name in Hollywood.
He started out in the 1970s directing commercials, before making his first feature film in 1977,"The Duelists". After the success of his second film "Alien" in 1979, he directed "Blade Runner", which is considered today, along with his previous film, to be a masterpiece of science fiction.
It was then that he became a great filmmaker, with films such as "Thelma and Louise" (1991), "1492: Conquest of Paradise (1992) and "Gladiator" (2000).
Acclaimed and recognised by the public, he is today a major figure in Hollywood cinema.
Main Films:
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Alien
1979
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Thelma & Louise
1991
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1492
1992
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Gladiator
2000
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The Martian
2015
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House of Gucci
2021