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The official BLADE RUNNER SE thread. (Check out page 8 and #790.)

post #1 of 2829
4/15/02 at 3:58am
Thread Starter 
According to www.dvdfile.com the new SE of Blade Runner has been indefinitely delayed until at least 2003 due to "pesky legal clearances". Sigh.

Looks like I may have to get the current DVD since it looks like the SE will be on Blu-Ray or whatever the next format will be, and it appears that it will be out before BR SE!
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post #2 of 2829
4/15/02 at 8:45am
That's a shame, because I've really been looking forward to this:

Quote:
RIDLEY SCOTT SETS THE RECORD STRAIGHT

Ridley Scott has decided to put the whole Bladerunner affair to rest with the release of a extra special DVD edition of the cult classic. "In this final cut of the movie all ambiguity will be stripped naked and whipped within an inch of its sorry multi-layered life," promises Ridley with a decidedly un-ironic use of a big fat cigar.

The fact that the re-re-release is a surefire way to squeeze more royalty checks out of the smouldering remains of an aging movie is "entirely coincidental," explains the once-cool movie director. "It's primarily designed to stop that jerk from Iowa from ever e-mailing me about it again."

Bladerunner: The Third Time Lucky Special "Moron" Edition, promises a cornucopia of extra features, including Ridley Scott repeating the words Warning: Spoiler! (Click to show)
"He's a f**kin' replicant, you f**king moron"
over and over again in an exclusive 2-hour audio commentary, and a "follow the plot, you idiot" interactive feature will shed further light on the central enigma of this film. Click here for some exclusive screenshots.

(Excerpt from Tachyon TV, the best SF satire site on the 'web. )
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post #3 of 2829
4/15/02 at 9:35am
That satirical "report," unfortunately, is probably close to the truth.

Whatever. I'll clutch onto my copy of this early DVD transfer, complete with its built-in ambiguity (I prefer to think of Warning: Spoiler! (Click to show)
Deckard as a human being who has learned from his Replicant prey about what it truly means to be human
.)

Whatever. This one's getting tiring.
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post #4 of 2829
4/15/02 at 9:40am
I agree with Jack (on more than one count).

What is up with the delay cycle for Scott's post Alien sci-fi work? Sure BR was released on DVD quite some time ago (I have it & like the disc just fine for a barebones DVD) but we have been hearing about this SE & Legend SE for two, maybe three years now......WAAAA! I WANT MY CANDY AND I WANT IT NOW!
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post #5 of 2829
4/15/02 at 9:49am
Too bad about this news. I would like to see if they could improve the video quality on this film.


Warning: Spoiler! (Click to show)
I stll cannot figure why people think Deckard is a replicant. This movie loses its entire point if Deckard is a replicant.
At least IMO.
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post #6 of 2829
4/15/02 at 9:51am
If the end result is what I want - a complete anthology of all versions - then I'll wait (like I have a choice). Considering Legend has been MIA for eons (including the phantom LD special edition that never materialised), waiting for definitive versions of Ridley Scott films is becoming a career.

I'd rather wait for the be all, end all version than be thrown a half hearted version now.
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post #7 of 2829
4/15/02 at 10:02am
Well I never saw the original but...

Warning: Spoiler! (Click to show)
If you ask me, in the director's cut, the oragami unicorn was the detective basically saying to Deckard, "See, I know you dream of unicorns." Therefore, Deckard is a replicant.
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post #8 of 2829
4/15/02 at 10:08am
If the end result is what I want - a complete anthology of all versions - then I'll wait
------------------------------------------------------------

I would like to see another version:

The "director's cut" version minus the Warning: Spoiler! (Click to show)
Unicorn scene. The Unicorn scene is completely useless and adds nothing to the film. It is just a badly thought out red herring.
Again, IMO.

Come on Scott,put out this version too.....then it really will be definitive.
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post #9 of 2829
4/15/02 at 10:49am
Unfortunately, the unicorn dream and unicorn origami both suggest what we don't like.

At any rate, this film still remains beautiful to look at--if we tune out the noise of Scott's post-release second thoughts.
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post #10 of 2829
4/15/02 at 11:12am
How can something be "delayed" if it never had an official release date? At any rate...
Quote:
Unfortunately, the unicorn dream and unicorn origami both suggest what we don't like.
"We?" Most "Blade Runner" purists I know prefer what the unicorn dream suggests. And ultimately, it was and always will be open to interpretation. It's never clearly spelled out, nor will it ever be.
Quote:
At any rate, this film still remains beautiful to look at--if we tune out the noise of Scott's post-release second thoughts.
Paul Sammon's definitive "Future Noir: The Making of Blade Runner" clearly establishes that the debate in question -- Warning: Spoiler! (Click to show)
Is Deckard a replicant?
-- began long ago, when the film was still in production. It was definitely not a "post-release second thought." The unicorn dream sequence was shot back in 1982, before the film's release (and was absolutely NOT an outtake from "Legend" as some have erroneously declared.) It was part of Ridley's plan from very early on, but the money men demanded it be removed for the compromised 1982 theatrical release.
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post #11 of 2829
4/15/02 at 11:37am
Unfortunately, the unicorn dream and unicorn origami both suggest what we don't like.
------------------------------------------------------------

Only in conjunction with each other. When I saw the theatrical cut of the film, oh so many moons ago, I did not infer anything from the origami unicorns other than that they were markers similar to Kilgore's deck of cards from Apocalypse Now.

It blows me away that a director could, seemingly, lose the entire point of his own movie; regardless, it is still a visually stunning piece of work.
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post #12 of 2829
4/15/02 at 12:51pm
As Charlie correctly stated, Ridley Scott dallied with the "other" interpretation of Rick Deckard from the film's, ahem, inception. Any ambiguity in the film is, at least partially, due to the constraints that were forced upon the original production.

Pick your interpretation and go with it. Either scenario offers up interesting possibilities and ( as others have noted ) neither one diminishes the world building aspects of Scott's wonderfully realized future.

Personally, I find Scott's interpretation to be more challenging Warning: Spoiler! (Click to show)
as it effectively removes humans from the equation. Which enabled me to appreciate the film's themes moreso from the position of an isolated observer. Emotional distance isn't always a bad thing.
Regardless of where you might stand on the issue, both versions still deviate from Dick's original themes ( If I recall correctly ) explored in Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep

- Walter.
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post #13 of 2829
4/15/02 at 1:13pm
I am not going to get into this tired discussion again (and it is off topic anyway) so let me say to Heinz W, get the current version if only to have the directors cut before the director messes with...wi...um...

..it can be had for cheap?
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post #14 of 2829
4/15/02 at 1:20pm
Charlie,

Can you shed some light as to when this will be released. I know you have been working on this Special Edition and can you tell us what the delay really is. (I know, how can it be delayed if it does not have an official release date : ) ). Any new info would be appreciated.
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post #15 of 2829
4/15/02 at 4:05pm
Quote:
It blows me away that a director could, seemingly, lose the entire point of his own movie;


Well I have to disagree with that statement.

Warning: Spoiler! (Click to show)
I think that the whole Deckard is a Replicant storyline WAS the point of the movie.

Instead of the irony of a Human gaining humanity from something less than human I've always felt the film was about reconizing that the Replicants WERE human. They were not androids or robots like A.I. but geneticly created HUMAN LIFE. Just because the life originated from a lab instead of a womb doesn't make any a less Human life, and therefore intitled to basic human rights including self defense. To me the whole movie was a metaphore for racism.

What racism has alway been is the illusion that a specific group of people are to some degree less than human and not intitled to the same rights as others. This is the deal with the Replicants. They are considered artificial and undeserving of any human rights, they are simply property to be bought and sold. Just like how Africans were considered as animals 200 years ago. And just like the Africans it is perfectly legal to murder or "retire" Replicants if they try to asume the rights of "humans".

Consider the scene between Deckard and Rachael at Tyrell's office. She asks him if he has ever retired a Human by mistake. He replies no. The biting irony to this scene is that they both still look at Replicants as something seperate from themselves when in reality they are calmly talking about killing themselves. This is the brilliance of the film. You start out viewing Batty and his gang from the POV of society, but end the film viewing society from the POV of the Replicants. This is why Deckard being a Replicant is the ultimate point of the film. He IS a Replicant but still completely Human.

"You've done a "mans" job sir. To bad she won't live. But then again who does?"
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post #16 of 2829
4/15/02 at 4:36pm
Since my directors cut LD is dying (rot it appears) I was in the market for the DVD but holding off on getting current DVD with the SE around the corner.

Looks like my waiting period is going to have to end....arghhh.
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post #17 of 2829
4/15/02 at 4:55pm
Mark EJ makes some good points in his spoiler-covered statements. Warning: Spoiler! (Click to show)
Compare Blade Runner to the 2nd-Season TNG episode "The Measure Of A Man", and see if the themes aren't similar!


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post #18 of 2829
4/15/02 at 5:35pm
Arrghhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh
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post #19 of 2829
4/15/02 at 7:09pm
Quote:
How can something be "delayed" if it never had an official release date?


I see your point. But, I believe the "behind the door" talk had this release coming out this year. I just wonder why it is taking so long. I'm sure it will be done right, however.
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post #20 of 2829
4/15/02 at 7:56pm
Is it really bogged down in legal concerns, or did a Black Hawk simply crash land on it? I feared BR wouldn't make it this year when I heard the SE of Black Hawk Down wouldn't be ready until later.
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post #21 of 2829
4/15/02 at 8:26pm
Some how -

every time I watch Blade Runner I lose the plot half way through and find myself running to the fridge for help.

I dunno, seen it a hundred times and it's always the same

Rob
:-)
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post #22 of 2829
4/15/02 at 8:30pm
It amazes me how Blade Runner and the upcoming (eventually) DVD cannot be discussed without immediately reverting to people talking about the contents of the movie itself instead of the DVD!

Just release the damn thing!
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post #23 of 2829
4/16/02 at 5:31am
If Ridley didn't tell us that Warning: Spoiler! (Click to show)
Deckard was a replicat
would we be even having this discussion?
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post #24 of 2829
4/16/02 at 9:11am
@#X!*&$@ !

I CAN NOT BELIEVE THAT THIS -- THE ULTIMATE DVD -- IS BEING DELAYED AGAIN! ARG, THIS IS SO FURSHLUGINGER FRUSTRATING!

I AM BEATING MY HEAD AGAINST MY KEYBOARD! RELEASE SOMEDAMNTHING, WILL YOU PLEASE, RIDLEY?!



MC
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post #25 of 2829
4/16/02 at 9:29am
Whew, Micah, my ears are ringing!

Yeah, of course we're reverting to a discussion about the film itself--the thing's that polarizing. Somehow, Blade Runner is a great film in spite of itself.

Just wish this SE would get released. (Seth: Go ahead and get the current version. Why wait any longer? It will tide you over until the SE arrives--apparently, sometime, before the decade is out.)
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post #26 of 2829
4/16/02 at 11:05am
Randy: I wish I could give you a full update and timeline, but it's just an ongoing process to make sure that it's done "right," and that most fans will be happy.

To everyone: Ridley is not the one behind any perceived "delay." If it were up to him, you'd be getting everything you wanted, and in a timely manner. Unfortunately, he doesn't own the film.

Jack mentioned that this has become "tiring." I agree. And so has the notion that state-of-the-art restorations of mishandled 20 year-old films and meaningful supplements can be cranked out at the drop of a fanboy's hat. And believe me, I say that as hardcore BR geek myself...someone who has been dreaming about this special edition since even before the advent of DVD.

In the meantime...have a better one.
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post #27 of 2829
4/16/02 at 11:20am
Unfortunately, the "fanboys" don't care about legal issues, who's-getting-paid issues, or even "this is such a pain in the ass and so time consuming to restore" issues.

"Fanboys" want the films.

I really don't care either way. I'm satisfied with the DC.

I really cared about The Godfather, Citizen Kane, and 2001: A Space Odyssey. They managed to get them out in a reasonable timeframe.
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post #28 of 2829
4/16/02 at 11:22am
Quote:
at the drop of a fanboy's hat



I'm stealing that one, Charlie.

Quote:
since even before the advent of DVD
One of the things we former LD guys had to learn from the era of LD special editions -- where delays of a year weren't uncommon, and sometimes stretched into two or three -- was the virtue of patience.

M.
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post #29 of 2829
4/16/02 at 3:59pm
Quote:
it's just an ongoing process to make sure that it's done "right," and that most fans will be happy.

EDIT
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post #30 of 2829
4/16/02 at 5:50pm
Thread Starter 
Hey, I know exquisite transfers and mountains of supplements can't be "cranked out at the drop of a fanboys hat", but after about three postponements or so it DOES become tiresome. If you told me in 1999 or 2000 that this set wouldn't arrive until 2003 then fine; no problem. But being strung along for three years becomes irksome.

I'm also well aware that no official announcement was made, yet most of the better DVD sites are fairly reliable with their release info and if they report on possible release timeframes, especially regarding a high profile release like this, I tend to believe them to a certain extent.

I thought releasing The Day the Earth Stood Still in 2001, that films 50th anniversary, would have been cool. But I'm just estatic that it didn't because now we'll get a superior product, and I'll always prefer that of course.

Charlie, thanks for responding and do let us know if you hear anything about this delay and keep up the excellent work!

BTW:
Warning: Spoiler! (Click to show)
Deckard ain't no Replicant, and he ain't no human either. He's the first hybrid Replicant/Human damnit!
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