Blade Runner 2049 Movie Review - A Visual Stigma Worth Cherishing

Cast - Ryan Gosling, Harrison Ford, Jared Leto, Ana de Armas

Directed By - Denis Villeneuve

Genre - Sci-Fi, Action, Neo-Noir

While the studios and directors try to impress us with sequels by making it bigger and better than there prequels, not every sequel turns out to be great or even as close as its prequel. But Blade Runner 2049 is a sequel that is even greater than its prequel and not only follows the themes and ideas of the original, but it also builds upon them and explores them deeply. Officer K (Ryan Gosling) uncovers a secret that could lead to a war between the humans and replicants. I would not tell anymore as there may be chances you would have skipped this masterpiece, so I will make this review spoiler free and give you my thoughts on one of the greatest movies ever made.

This is a film that will inspire many people in the future to take up their cameras and start filming. With its gorgeous visuals and exceptional direction, Director Denis Villeneuve with cinematographer Roger Deakins successfully creates a world in a distant future where Replicants are programmed to carry out specific tasks which mostly involve killing the other rogue Replicants and K is one of the Replicants who is hated by everybody and goes on with his tasks of following the orders of his superior. He has an AI named Joi (Ana de Armas) who makes K believe that he is unique and has been made for a special purpose. Blade Runner films are all about identity with questions like "What makes us human?". This film has a lot of symbolism and deeper meanings to things that are visible if you watch it multiple times. Whenever I watch it again, I find or take away something which I had missed on my previous viewing. The climax of this film is one of the best sequences in the film and every time during the climax when the song "Tears in the Rain" comes up, I start to cry, and this happens every time even after repeated viewings. Blade Runner 2049 is a film where even the colours in the frame tell you their own story, and on deeper analysation, you can figure out the tone of the movie by these colours.

For some, this film may feel slow, dragged or even boring but I found myself engaged with it throughout and was hypnotised by its amazing visuals that were a feast for my eyes. It's a pity that a film like Blade Runner 2049 though earning rave reviews from the critics did not perform well at the box office.

The characters in this film are as stunning as the movie itself. Ryan Gosling does a perfect job in rendering the character of K. He gets lost inside his character and gave away one of his best performance to date. Harrison Ford is blows you away with his acting and gives away a best performance of his career. I found Ana de Armas perfectly believable as a gorgeous AI who impresses you with her performance. Jared Leto was menacing as Niander Wallace and does an excellent job of scaring you whenever he is on screen.

Denis Villeneuve is yet to give a bad movie, and I don't want him to give a bad film. This film shows how much he loved the original and hence he successfully delivers what I consider to be one of the best movies to have come out this century. I liked the original Blade Runner, but I am in love this sequel which I cannot stop myself from repeatedly watching time and again. Roger Deakins got an Oscar for this film which he truly deserved. Hats off to him for creating this beautiful world that is gorgeous to look at. Do yourself a favour and watch this film if you haven't still. For those of you who have watched this film, tell me your views on this film and in what way did it impact you. Do Androids dream of electric sheep? Hell, I don't know. What I know is that this is one of the greatest sequels ever made and you should not miss it.