Home Theater Forum › Home Theater Forum › Blu-ray, DVD, Streaming Video and Digital Downloads › DVD › The official BLADE RUNNER SE thread. (Check out page 8 and #790.)
New Posts  All Forums:Forum Nav:

The official BLADE RUNNER SE thread. (Check out page 8 and #790.) - Page 11

post #301 of 2829
7/23/04 at 5:04am
I don't know why people are so hot for the ultimate edition anyway. Sure I'd like the theatrical version included, but the new CGI Ridley mentioned? Sounds like that Lucas crap we will be force fed in September.

At least Ridley would have released all cuts of the film.

Anyway, DC is the best cut so this release is my last. Thanks Charles!

- Todd
Reply
post #302 of 2829
7/23/04 at 6:58am
Quote:
I really can't understand why people have such an distaste for certain versions of this movie. The differences between them as far as I know are minimal.


No offense, but it doesn't sound as if you've watched the two versions of the film closely, if at all, because I couldn't disagree with your statement more strongly.


***SPOILERS***



The Original Theatrical Release/Unrated International Version *implies* that Deckard is a replicant, whereas the Director's Cut explicitly *tells us* that he is.

I've never liked the Director's Cut for that reason, since when Scott shot the movie, that wasn't the point of the story (and Harrison Ford has since said he hates that element in the Director's Cut as much as he did recording voice-over for the Theatrical Version). To me, it also obscures the entire meaning of the story -- if he's already a robot, what's the point of everything he's gone through?

I would have loved to see the Theatrical Version released on DVD since I like a bit of ambiguity in the film. The DC takes away that element, and if Warner only includes a remastered DC (which is needed since the original DVD transfer was weak), I'm not going to purchase it. Their hands may be tied, but it's still a disappointment.
Reply
post #303 of 2829
7/23/04 at 7:20am
Quote:
Warning: Spoiler! (Click to show)
The Original Theatrical Release/Unrated International Version *implies* that Deckard is a replicant, whereas the Director's Cut explicitly *tells us* that he is.


Really?

Perhaps I missed something, then, because I don't think
 Warning: Spoiler! (Click to show)
that the DC "explicitly tells us" that Deckard is a replicant. If so, what exactly is it in the DC that tells us EXPLICITLY that he is a replicant?
Reply
post #304 of 2829
7/23/04 at 7:23am
It is pretty explicit.

Its like someone chasing you with an axe. It infers an intent to harm but really its pretty explicit.
Reply
post #305 of 2829
7/23/04 at 7:34am
Quote:
It is pretty explicit.


I'll ask again:

HOW?

I haven't seen the theatrical cut, so I have nothing to compare the DC to. But I want to know how the Warning: Spoiler! (Click to show)
"fact" that Deckard is a replicant is told to us "explicitly".
Reply
post #306 of 2829
7/23/04 at 8:00am
I think the proper term would be that the DC implies he's a replicant *stronger* than the TC does. It is still told in an implicit way, not explicit.
Reply
post #307 of 2829
7/23/04 at 8:02am
Rob-

It is actually easy to miss, but once you catch it, it's pretty obvious:

Warning: Spoiler! (Click to show)
Early in the film, Deckard tells Rachel about her implanted memories; he specifically mentions an incident that she never told anyone about.

Later, Deckard is dreaming of a unicorn

At the end, Deckard finds Gaff's orgami unicorn, and he realizes that Gaff knew that the unicorn was an implanted vision, and that he himself is a replicant.


At any rate, I think both implications work. If Deckard is human, you have the whole idea of the replicants acting more human than a human does. If Deckard is a replicant, though, the irony is that he is hunting down his own kind, and also seems to have been designed exactly for that purpose.

I like both the OV and the DC, but I think I prefer the DC. The voiceover never really bothered me, until I saw the DC, and I realized how over-explanatory the OV had been. I absolutely love the "Tears in Rain" scene without the final voiceover. I imagine it wasn't intended to be that long, but the uninterrupted sound of the rain mixed with Vangelis' score is just haunting.

I am still holding out hope for an Ultimate Edition, but for now, I am very glad Warner is bringing this out as a 2-disc SE. I will certainly be getting it.
Reply
post #308 of 2829
7/23/04 at 8:07am
I don't see how that is all that subtle.
Reply
post #309 of 2829
7/23/04 at 9:41am
I always thought the orgami unicorn was simply Deckard realizing that Gaff had been there, was onto them, and as a favor to Deckard, wasnt going to force the issue of his 'retiring' Rachel-since Gaff was unaware of her true lifespan.
Deckards dream scene wasnt even filmed for BR as far as Ive read.




"Its too bad she wont live-but then again, who does?"
Reply
post #310 of 2829
7/23/04 at 9:47am
Mark_TS

Although pretty much everyone is aware of the sequence, please do not openly talk about spoilers like that.
Reply
post #311 of 2829
7/23/04 at 9:49am
I agree with you Artur, Bryan, and Mark. I don't see these things as "explicit" at all. As Artur said, the DC may IMPLY it stronger than the original version, but that doesn't make it EXPLICIT.
Reply
post #312 of 2829
7/23/04 at 9:58am
Todd-uh...pray tell, how is-what is virtually common knowledge in this forum and thread and the outside world, 'spoiling'?
Reply
post #313 of 2829
7/23/04 at 10:09am
I'm sure most of you know this but

Warning: Spoiler! (Click to show)
Ridely Scott went on the record a few years back that Deckard is a replicant. I remember it being in newspapers.
Reply
post #314 of 2829
7/23/04 at 10:43am
Mark-

Quote:
Warning: Spoiler! (Click to show)
I always thought the orgami unicorn was simply Deckard realizing that Gaff had been there, was onto them, and as a favor to Deckard, wasnt going to force the issue of his 'retiring' Rachel-since Gaff was unaware of her true lifespan.

That's why I think the ending works both ways. It's just that in the DC, it becomes a double revelation.

Quote:
Deckards dream scene wasnt even filmed for BR as far as Ive read.

According to Future Noir, the unicorn shot was filmed, but not used, then later lost. For the DC, I believe an outtake from Legend was used. But it was originally intended to be there.
Reply
post #315 of 2829
7/23/04 at 11:09am
Mark,

Thats why everyone is using spoiler tags. I don't mean to offend, I'm just suggesting you follow suit.

- Todd
Reply
post #316 of 2829
7/23/04 at 12:09pm
Please correct me if I'm wrong, but I recall a change in dialog in the DC that I found bothersome.

Warning: Spoiler! (Click to show)
My memory may be playing tricks on me, but in the international cut on LD I seem to recall Batty referring to Tyrell as "Father" during their climacting meeting. I rewatched the movie the night before seeing the theatrical release of the DC, so at the time the film was still fresh in my memory. I found it irksome that "Father" was changed to "Fucker" in the DC. In my opinion, it really robs the scene of its poignancy.


On the other hand I may just be suffering from a severe lapse of memory. I intend to pull out the LD and the DVD tonight to see if I was dreaming or not. In the meantime if anyone else has the means to check anytime soon, some affirmation would be appreciated. Frankly, I'm surpised I haven't done this sooner...

Jimmy
Reply
post #317 of 2829
7/23/04 at 12:10pm
Quote:
Jeannette - you cannot be remembering the original version clearly because the voice-over contains far more dialogue than just a "little of it" and the lack of it on the DC makes a substantial difference to the tone of the film.


Well I put a stop watch to it and the voice over appears 10 times during the movie and clocking in at a whopping total of 3 min 6 sec of a 117 min movie. That's very little to me.

also I'm sure most of you know this but

Warning: Spoiler! (Click to show)
Ridley Scott didn't write Blade Runner so the decision about whether Deckard is a replicant is not his to make
Reply
post #318 of 2829
7/23/04 at 12:48pm
I agree with Rob, Artur and the others who feel that the DC is anything but explicit in regards to the issue we're talking about. It provides evidence but doesn't draw any conclusions for you.

Certainly, before ever having seen the DC, I had felt that the theatrical version made the same implication, if not quite as strenuously. In fact, I've always been confused by the briefing scene, wherein D learns the total number of rogue Replicants. The count was off, making me think...

Well, you know...

Anyhow, I consider the issue unsettled and subject to interpretation.
Reply
post #319 of 2829
7/23/04 at 1:46pm
So I take it Scott still wants to do a real Director's Cut of the film at some point?

They should call this the "Pseudo-Director's Cut".

Heads will explode if he ever does one and then says it's not what he'd really call a director's cut either a la Alien.

Frankly, I'm surprised there was that much v.o. Seems like a lot to me. Sure a lot compared to movies like Spider-Man 1 & 2. Ford's lack of enthusiasm matched the character for me whether it was intentional or not. There's a marked difference between the two films, quite a bit more than Star Wars Original vs SE if you ask me. Fans of the "DC" can rejoice. The rest can invest in laserdisc.

I never cast any blame on WB; I knew fully well it wasn't any fault of the studio. Just wanted to defend those being bashed for not doing the happy-dance.
Reply
post #320 of 2829
7/23/04 at 2:16pm
Quote:
Just wanted to defend those being bashed for not doing the happy-dance.

No one was "Bashed" for not rejoicing with the fans, they were criticized for "Bashing" Warner Brothers without actually knowing the facts behind the UE not getting released.

I can see many other studios falling under the Endless DVD Rehash critique but WB is not at the top of this list by a long site....if anything they can be criticized for not updating many of their older titles (OUTLAND anyone?).
Reply
post #321 of 2829
7/23/04 at 5:57pm
Quote:
There were no 70mm prints of the U.S. theatrical version or the 1992 "director's cut".

Not true!

I watched the US theatrical version in 70mm 6-Track Dolby 4 times in 2 days at a local Canadian cinema.

One of my best ever moviegoing experiences!
Reply
post #322 of 2829
7/23/04 at 6:18pm
ok. the sig pic is now back. let's all rejoice.
Reply
post #323 of 2829
7/23/04 at 9:03pm
As for the dream scene, it is a negative struck from a positive print they found, and it wasn't something used from Legend.
Reply
post #324 of 2829
7/24/04 at 3:34am
No one's mentioned Vangelis incredible music score to this film. Would we like Blade Runner as much if it had a more generic score by another composer?

My views: Happy to see this classic finally getting a remastered rerelease.
Not happy that the superior original theatrical version I had first seen and loved way back in 1982, may never get a release on dvd.
Reply
post #325 of 2829
7/24/04 at 4:23am
FIrst time I've visited this thread since the HTF's news, so I'll say that I'm excited. I don't have the 1997 release, so I'm looking forward to having BR on DVD.

Personally, I definitely prefer the Director's Cut. I just like it without the narration, and wthout that horrible awful happy ending with cut footage from The Shining.

But I understand the feelings of fans of the original version. I feel the exact same about the Star Wars OT. Hopefully a release with the original cut will make its way to DVD sometime.

I never really saw anything in the original cut of BR to imply that he was a replicant. In the DC, I would say it was implied. I mean, the origami uncorn had a meaning in the original cut, and in the DC nothing has actually changed that says it doesn't retain that meaning. All the unicorn scene does is add another possible interpretation to the origami figure. Perhaps he's referencing Deckard's dreams, as everyone assumes. Or perhaps he's still saying what we've always believed he was saying, and its just coincidence that Deckard has been dreaming about unicorns.

Does that make sense.
Reply
post #326 of 2829
7/24/04 at 11:36am
Check out this useful link for a whole slew of fascinating facts and analysis on Blade Runner.

http://www.brmovie.com/
Reply
post #327 of 2829
7/24/04 at 3:27pm
Quote:
I hated Blade Runner the first time I viewed it. It took some time for me to shed my snobby "the book is always better." Mind you, my favorite film, has more flaws than any other film I hold in similar regards. It took quite a while for me to warm up to the film also.


Zen, that's really interesting. I would imagine that you're a member of a relatively small club: a big movie fan who hated their favorite movie the first time they saw it!

I'm sure many (if not all) of us have come to really like some movies that we disliked at first, it's certainly true for me. But going from "I hated it" to "it's my all-time #1," that's gotta be rare.
Reply
post #328 of 2829
7/24/04 at 3:41pm
You know what...actually I didn't like BR when I first saw it as well, but since it was at the local $1.00 theater I kept going back to see it because it was on the same ticket as Creepshow which, being a gore hound at the time, I loved.
Over very little time Blade Runner became one of my absolute favorites.

This happened with Fight Club as well but I didn't really watch it the first time because I was on the damn computer at the time and only watched it peripherally so the end wasn't spoiled...upon second viewing I was floored.
Reply
post #329 of 2829
7/24/04 at 4:09pm
Quote:
it's like starting any thread that has Lucas in it.....before too long...they will appear!

Oh, that is totally not true. Just because someone mentions Lucas, we're supposed to just pop up in a thread and...


...




....awwww crap.


My bad
Reply
post #330 of 2829
7/24/04 at 4:32pm
D'oh!


$1.00 theaters...boy who remembers those?
Raiders of the Lost Ark & Time Bandits on the same bill for $1.00...those were the days.
Reply
New Posts  All Forums:Forum Nav:
  Return Home
  Back to Forum: DVD
Home Theater Forum › Home Theater Forum › Blu-ray, DVD, Streaming Video and Digital Downloads › DVD › The official BLADE RUNNER SE thread. (Check out page 8 and #790.)