Blade Runner 2049 Explained | Denis Villeneuve

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Blade Runner 2049 (2017) Explained

Deliberately paced and densely layered, Blade Runner 2049 can be a bit hard to wrap your head around. What’s so important about Replicants giving birth? Are artificial people any less human than naturally born people? And even after thirty years, we still want to know – is Deckard a replicant? Let’s take a deep dive into this thrilling, cerebral epic.
Denis Villeneuve’s Blade Runner is the long-awaited sequel to Ridley Scott’s 1982 sci-fi cult classic, which was loosely based on Philip K Dick’s 1968 novel Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? Though Scott’s Blade Runner didn’t do well at the box-office, it was considered as the foundational film in the cyberpunk subgenre. Moreover, many critics hail it as one of the greatest American movies of all time. The idea for a sequel first emerged in the 1990s. But financing and licensing issues took more than two decades to resolve. In February 2015, it was confirmed that Denis Villeneuve would direct the sequel and that Blade Runner’s protagonist character Deckard (Harrison Ford) would reprise his role.

The World of Blade Runner
Blade Runner was set in 2019 California; the world is heavily polluted and a large chunk of the human population has already moved to off-world colonies. The all-powerful Tyrell Corporation has created bio-engineered humans, whose slave labour is the foundation upon which off-world communities are built. Called ‘Replicants’, these humanoid beings gradually develop self-awareness and become more ‘human’. Some break away from the colonies and escape to Earth.
In order to hunt them down, government-sanctioned bounty hunters called “Blade Runners” are recruited to ‘retire’ the Replicants. Because Replicants are so indistinguishable from humans, Blade Runners must use a unique ‘empathy test’ called the Voight-Kampff Test to identify them.
The 1982 movie mostly revolves around Los Angeles Blade Runner Rick Deckard, who goes after four replicant fugitives. They are all part of Tyrell Corp’s Nexus-6 model, whose lifespan is only around four years. In his journey, Deckard comes across an alluring Nexus-7 replicant named Rachael (Sean Young). She’s made with implanted human memories. Eventually, Deckard’s experiences make him question the nature of human identity and the commoditized outlook of replicants. Eventually, he flees away from Los Angeles with Rachael.

30 Years Later

Video clips: Warner Bros./ Lasso Group

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[NeroElla]

8:35 "you are a good Joe" 💔💔💔
The scene was a brutal moment of disillusionment for K.
When the larger, commercialized version of Joi calls him "a good Joe, " it’s a stark reminder of how impersonal and manufactured Joi’s programming is.

The moment forces K to confront the possibility that his Joi—the one he shared an intimate, emotional bond with—might not have been as unique or real as he thought.
Her love, her devotion, and even the act of giving him a name might have been nothing more than programmed responses designed to fulfill his emotional needs.
K is left wondering if he can still define his own value, even when his connections to others—Joi, the Replicant child, and humanity—are stripped away.

However despite the existential blow, this scene is also pivotal in K’s ultimate transformation.
It marks the point where he stops seeking external validation of his humanity—whether from Joi, from the possibility of being “special, ” or from others. Instead,
he chooses to act based on his own sense of morality and purpose.

[blizk]

there is so many layers in this movie after first watch i think i need to watch it again

[jhonnjenkins]

Haven't seen the video yet but I got to say that I think the movie just hit the spot for me, the pacing is great, it makes you think a bit, still has some action, looks gorgeous and depicts emotions really well

[CasualYugiStuff]

Great video just finished watching it and really enjoyed it

[archidiarchidis]

one of the best movies ever made, i dont know how is possible to not do well at the box office

[rugbyguy]

2049 is ultimately a better, more complex film than the original despite the untouchable brilliance of Rutger Hauer’s final words. Both films are among my all time favourites.

[williamwalker]

Blade runner 2049, loved it, an excellent sequel. Will definitely see the next one.

[sunoverbeach]

Blade Runner (1982) has long been my favorite film, and back when I heard they were making a sequel I immediately rejected it as yet another poor decision by profit-hungry Hollywood execs until I discovered the project was handed to Denis Villeneuve to direct. I knew all hope was not lost and when I watched it in a cinema with a friend of many years, we both walked out contemplating the brilliance of what we had just watched. I thoroughly enjoyed his take on the story and was eager to watch it again. You have to understand that Ridley Scott created the original Blade Runner as an art film and not as a mainstream block buster to make film studios money. Once you understand that you can appreciate Denis' creative vision and personal imprint and see it for what it is: beautiful storytelling in a dystopian universe. As long as it prompted viewers to appreciate the visuals and ask questions then I think it has achieved its purpose.

[bensantiago]

Definitely a great movie, hard to follow and understand and quite long, movies like this never do great at the box office but as time goes on ages very well.Just like Heaven's Gate which is one of the greatest movies ever filmed but got bad reviews and didn't do well at box office.

[datnwin]

Only tru fans could appreciate ! The best haunting mesmerizing series that I yearn for more after watching them! Can’t wait for the sequel!

[ElMestizoo]

I finally saw this movie…. Its just such a visually appealing movie

[PanduricaBlues]

This movie is very very hard do devour. But once you do, you figure out what masterpiece it actually is...

[kelvinredward]

Bladerunner 2049 is more than a Prequel as it expands the Story and the Direction of Humanity and Genetic development that Humanity has developed, and maybe in 10 Years time we will understand move about each other, and Scientific studies.

[stevenk]

One of the greatest films ever made. Period.

[trollhunter]

For decades, the information on Rachel has been lost and I supposed abandoned. So when K unearths the skeleton of Rachel this information is somehow seen by the Nexus Corporation which means that they either own the police department or they are spying on them. When Luv confronts the head of the police she already knew that they want the information so it means that Nexus do in fact own the Police department like in Robocop.

[Naganime]

"You imagined it was you" Killed me 😫😖😩

[RS-bnrx]

Loved the movie when it was first released.. loved it more this second time around, albeit in segments👍👍

[AllThingsFilm]

Is Deckard a replicant? Well, Gaff made an origami unicorn for Deckard to find, letting him know he was setting him free. Gaff knew about Deckard's dream of a unicorn (a scene that first appeared in the Director's Cut). So, yes, Deckard is clearly a replicant. Plus, if you were paying attention to the scene where Rachel and Deckard are talking in his apartment after Rachel saves him from Leon, there's a moment where Deckard turns to the camera after wiping his face and you see the "brown glow" in Deckard's eyes that Ridley Scott specifically designed to differentiate humans from replicants. So, the answer is "Yes".

I'm so glad Denis Villeneuve made Blade Runner 2049. I thought a prequel was in the works. Apparently, it's a sequel to 2049. Sounds great!

[eitan]

i can't wait for Blade Runner 2099 !

[VortexTheOne]

If you don't get these two movies and they're not in your top 5 best/favorite movies of your lifetime, it's something off with you as a well-balanced human.