fumi

The big problem with the franchise is that it has continued to dilute itself over the decades. Remember that first movie It was just an alien - no-one knew where it came from only that it killed things. That's an excellent premise. What happened since 1979 is that every aspect of the mythology has been explained and expanded. It's just not frightening anymore. The most frightening thing in the world is the unknown.

I saw it again once last final time at the the theatre today. I'll probably never get the chance to see it on a really big screen again. be sad to see it go.

Good news. The last album was killer.

A bit premature, I reckon. Yeah, I know he finally dropped that album back in 2013 but he had been promising it for something like twelve years.

Let me take one strong example from 2049 to prove one of my points: A scene where K meets the huge holographic ad for Joi. It is one of the definite examples of the practical use of the AI (among strong, subdued and efficient killing machines). It's basically a billboard, sensing your presence, evaluating your emotions and aspirations in order to access your very personal space. "She" is nude, beautifully rendered, speaks to you in a soothing voice, saying things in a manner your closest friend or lover might, with a tagline "I can be whoever you want". It's an advertiser's wet dream. This is the reality. 2049 was a horror film for me, as I said before. It depicts that world where everything is replaced with algorithms and computers. You can fall in love with a hologram and don't need genuine biological partner, because you are nothing more than a set of wires. To fall in love you only need a beautiful face, puppy eyes and attention (audition) of your particular way of life. Horrible. I totally agree. While I loved the film immensely, the world it depicted was absolutely horrifying beyond comprehension.

Yeah, good point.

And if it did feature gay characters this dude would have complained about the pandering. Some people just live to complain. I've nothing against people of any sexual persuasion but I hate people who try to hoist their own sexual agenda onto everything. It's like they're saying "This world and everything in it just isn't gay enough." It's like some critic watching Christopher Nolan's 'Dunkirk' and complaining that 'LGBT communities were not adequately represented in this movie!"

http://www.thestranger.com/slog/2017/10/23/25488210/wow-blade-runner-2049-was-unbelievably-boring An obviously gay writer tries to force his own sexual agenda onto a movie. I fucking hate people like this.

Territory Studios imagines the UI of a broken future. https://www.engadget.com/2017/10/20/designing-the-technology-of-blade-runner-2049/

Blade Runner 2049 - The WATMM version Running Time: 1hr 30 Mins Starring Dwayne Johnson Music By Autechre

Blade Runner 2049: How Hans Zimmer and Benjamin Wallfisch followed up the most influential sci-fi score of all time. http://www.factmag.com/2017/10/20/hans-zimmer-wallfisch-blade-runner-2049-interview/

Wallace Corporation start-up chime. It's actually an excerpt from "Peter and the Wolf" a famous Children's Symphony from 1930s Russia. Notifiaction Wallace.mp3

I thought Leto was a lot better than I'd imagined. Seeing it a third time, when you get chance to really concentrate on his lines and performance, it's actually more subtle (big surprise as I don't care for Jared Leto much as an actor). The first time I saw it, I was like wtf are you babbling about? The way he shifts his head as a blind person is really compelling and yet uncomfortable too.

yeah that replicant uprising bit was a bit off. 'You're the chosen one! Oh, um, actually you're not." I did love that idea that K thought the memory was real and came to realise that he wasn't the hero of the story, (although ironically at the end, it turns out he is). The audience follows along in that belief too until both him and the audience are wrong-footed by the clever plot-twist.

There's a really detailed one here, too. Obviously a bit more complicated that running a few adjustment layers in PS. http://www.indiewire.com/2017/10/blade-runner-2049-vfx-replicant-sean-young-rachael-1201889072/

Cut? I'm hoping there's an even longer version out there somewhere. Seriously though, I guess you could cut some of it but why would you want to?

Also after watching it again.

Saw it for a third time today. There are just so many great visual details and other stuff to dream over. I think it's just sensory overload the first time you see it. Definitely repays with further viewing.

Mark Kermode weighs in the Box Office Bomb Problem. http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/markkermode/entries/3c10636c-78cf-484f-be21-1bfc2a9d2e9c

I personally think the actors work within the confines of their characters all was solid when viewed as such, though some actors did stand out, Sylvia Hoeks in particular, as you pointed out. BUT OKAY so I have two things: 1) was anyone else as distracted as me by Goslings fucked up eyes? One is like a half inch lower than the other and I couldn't stop staring at it. 2) what kind of dog did Deckard have? Not like, was it real or not like they asked (lovely little exchange there symbolizing the Deckard-himself-replicant? question), but what breed of dog was it? It looked lovely and friendly. Like Deckard said, "Why don't you ask him?"

I'd be interested in hearing what you'd say is a really good movie. I'm not being trite. Genuinely interested because for me, this movie is probably the best I've seen this decade.

Consequence Of Sound article on the soundtrack. https://consequenceofsound.net/2017/10/album-review-hans-zimmer-and-benjamin-wallfisch-blade-runner-2049-original-motion-picture-soundtrack/ It’s hard to think of a Blade Runner movie without Vangelis. Of course, until now, there’s only been one Blade Runner movie, but Ridley Scott’s 1982 neo-noir sci-fi cult classic is all about aesthetic, and as such, the Greek composer’s work has always been as integral to the film as, say, Syd Mead’s neo-futuristic concepts or Harrison Ford’s stoic portrayal as titular hero, Rick Deckard. The very mention of the film can’t go by without hearing echoes of “Rachel’s Song” or “Blade Runner Blues” or any of the other dozen compositions that add to the dystopian feelings of isolation, uncertainty, or paranoia. So, when it was first announced that Scott and screenwriter Hampton Fancher were (finally) moving ahead with a followup, some 35 years after the original confused American audiences, fans consciously assumed that Vangelis would also be along for the ride. Not exactly. Instead, it was Icelandic mastermind Jóhann Jóhannsson who was scooped up by a Spinner, leaving our trusty Academy Award-winning composer in the rain, only there were no tears to be shed — it was ostensibly by choice. “You can never repeat certain things,” Vangelis told NPR last year of his decision to recuse himself. “It’s only once in lifetime. It’s like doing another Chariots of Fire, it’s impossible.” To his credit, it’s an understandable notion — after all, who in their right mind would want to followup one of the most iconic scores of all time? — but that didn’t stop director Denis Villeneuve from wanting to try. And so, Jóhannsson was surprisingly deactivated late into the process, opening the doors for Hans Zimmer and rising talent Benjamin Wallfisch. As Villeneuve told Al Arabiya, “The thing I will say is that making movies is a laboratory. The movie needed something different, and I needed to go back to something closer to Vangelis. Jóhann and I decided that I will need to go in another direction — that’s what I will say.” Seeing how Blade Runner 2049 is a bonafide masterpiece, we’re not going to argue with his decision, but we will say it was a risky one. Very rare do we ever see a composer successfully take the reins from the celebrated work of a previous icon, even when they’re icons themselves: Danny Elfman did zilch with Brad Fiedel’s industrial tones on 2009’s Terminator: Salvation; Daft Punk pulled the plug on Wendy Carlos’ future sounds on 2010’s Tron: Legacy; and the Force was not with Michael Giacchino’s attempt to capture the intergalactic majesty of John Williams on last year’s Rogue One. But Zimmer’s on another level right now, arguably the most in-demand composer in Hollywood, save for Giacchino, and while he came late into the game on Blade Runner 2049, he’s delivered one hell of a Hail Mary. Alongside Wallfisch, who recently struck gold with Andy Muschietti’s blockbuster phenomenon It, the two found the perfect balance between reverence and ingenuity. Their collaborative score for Villeneuve’s masterful sequel is powerful and elaborate, brimming with all the right sounds that fans need to hear to not only know they’re in the same universe, but one that has since evolved. Because really, that’s what this score sounds like: a total evolution of what Vangelis set in motion way, way back in 1982. It’s louder, it’s gloomier, it’s heavier, and it’s much more expansive, all qualities one might tag with Villeneuve’s breathtaking sequel. Those who’ve grown up worshipping the original score will undoubtedly hear faint echoes of the past, much like the narrative that unfolds on-screen, but it’s hardly as abrasive or on-the-nose as that might read. With the exception of their “Tears in the Rain” redux, the two opt for a more subtle approach to past motifs, one that thrives with hush-hush flourishes sprinkled throughout. It’s as if Zimmer and Wallfisch are sneaking through the abandoned confines of the Tyrell Corporation, and they happened to brush by an ancient machine or two. Instead, you get the idea that Zimmer’s leaning heavily on his recent work for Christopher Nolan’s Dunkirk, capitalizing on that signature bass and those distant strings of his, all of which makes for an essential touch to the hollowed-out world of Blade Runner 2049. But there are also hints of The Dark Knight Rises, what with those haunting Gregorian chants (“Wallace”) and the unforgiving digital storms (“Blade Runner”), and they also set aside enough room for the beauty in the universe, as evidenced by the tranquility of stunning tracks like “Rain” or “Joi” or “Memory”. It’s stunning stuff. Completists will also appreciate the two Elvis Presley songs — “Suspicious Minds” and “Can’t Help Falling in Love” — and the lonely Frank Sinatra classic (“One For My Baby (And One More For The Road)”) that soundtrack arguably the greatest scene in a film of greatest scenes. Hearing those pop up during the listen should send a few shivers down the spine of anyone who’s seen the film, particularly the way they’re wedged between haunting tracks like “Pilot” and “Hijack”. Unfortunately, the whole shebang is somewhat soured by Lauren Daigle’s godawful closing ballad “Almost Human”, but the song itself works like a post-credits sequence — superfluous and extra baggage the majority will otherwise ignore. Instead, due attention should be given to the real closers, the two sweeping 10-minute suites, “Sea Wall” and “Blade Runner”, all the evidence you need to know that Villenueve made the right choice in giving the job to Zimmer and Wallfisch. You’ve never seen a miracle, but you can hear one.