Starring: Ryan Gosling, Harrison Ford, Ana de Armas, Robin Wright, Jared Leto
Directed By: Denis Villeneuve
Running Time: 164 mins
BBFC Certificate: 15
UK Release Date: February 5th 2018 (UK)
When it was first announced that a sequel to Blade Runner was in the works, it seemed like a bad idea. Ridley Scott and Harrison Ford are on a bit of a roll revisiting their greatest hits, following Scott’s Alien Prequels and Ford’s return to Indiana Jones and Star Wars. However, Blade Runner was such a singular movie – and one so far removed from the modern blockbuster – that it seemed a wholly bizarre idea to now be making a sequel.
Scott then handed the directing reigns across to Denis Villeneuve, which gave some guarded optimism following Sicario and Arrival, but it still seemed ill judged. [Read more…]
Today the nominations for the BAFTA Film Awards were announced, with Guillermo Del Toro’s grown-up fantasy The Shape Of Water leading the pack with 12 nods. It scored nominations for Best Film, Original Music, Cinematography, Production Design, Costume Design, Sound, Editing and Special Visual Effects. Guillermo del Toro is nominated for both Director and Original Screenplay, Sally Hawkins for Leading Actress and Octavia Spencer for Supporting Actress.
There’s 30 years between when the action of Blade Runner took place and that of the upcoming sequel, Blade Runner 2049. A lot can happen in three decades, and so three short films are coming which explore what’s been happening in that time.
Returning to the world of Blade Runner makes for an interesting trailer challenge for the studio’s marketing department. For many the film is one of the true classics of sci-fi, with a unique style and a tone that’s far more contemplative than most. However, there are also a lot of people out there who’ve never seen it and have grown up on a diet of bloated sci-fi excess. So how do you appeal to both crowds?
Returning to the world of Blade Runner makes for an interesting trailer challenge for the studio’s marketing department. For many the film is one of the true classic of sci-fi, with a unique style and a tone that’s far more contemplative than most. However, there are also a lot of people out there who’ve never seen it and have grown up on a diet of bloated sci-fi excess. So how do you appeal to bother crowds.
The jury is still out on whether returning to the world of Blade Runner 35 years after the original is a good idea, but it’s certainly a very intriguing idea. The trailer released back in December also did a great job of suggesting this may be a worthwhile trip to the future, and hopefully there’ll be another trailer soon giving us an even better look (rumours suggest we may be getting one next Monday when Ryan Gosling, Harrison Ford and director Denis Villeneuve take part in a live Facebook Q&A on Monday 8th May at 5pm BST).