blade runner ultimate edition (3 Viewers)

[george mcfly]

Those pricks OBVIOUSLY haven't seen AvP.

he took two boring movies and made it into something killer! while still having great respect for the source material..it was like he'd watched those movies five times!

 

[travispickle]

I saw the original BR first time round but have very little memory of it; I'm much more familiar with the Director's Cut - which I love. Can I ask a stupid question? - does the original film explicitly refer to Deckard as a replicant? The Director's Cut to my mind doesn't infer that he is, but rather questions notions of memory and identity and keeps things pretty ambiguous. This has always bothered me! Can anyone help?

 

[george mcfly]

I saw the original BR first time round but have very little memory of it; I'm much more familiar with the Director's Cut - which I love. Can I ask a stupid question? - does the original film explicitly refer to Deckard as a replicant? The Director's Cut to my mind doesn't infer that he is, but rather questions notions of memory and identity and keeps things pretty ambiguous. This has always bothered me! Can anyone help?

nah, it's hinted at..

 

[theoootini]

there is a bit (which i only noticed on the big screen) where you can clearly see dekards eyes doing the replicant redeye thang. Scott said it was unintentional though...

 

[george mcfly]

there is a bit (which i only noticed on the big screen) where you can clearly see dekards eyes doing the replicant redeye thang. Scott said it was unintentional though...

here's a pretty interesting run down of the "is Deckard a replicant?" thing from IMDB

Is Deckard a replicant?

This question causes the most debate among BR fans. The different versions of BR support this notion to differing degrees. One might argue that in the 1982 theatrical release, Deckard is not a replicant but in BRDC, he is.

There is no definitive answer: Ridley Scott himself has stated that, although he deliberately made the ending ambiguous, he also intentionally introduced enough evidence to support the notion, and (as far as he is concerned), Deckard is a replicant. [See section 9.]

The "FOR" case --------------

- Ridley Scott and Harrison Ford have stated that Deckard was meant to be a replicant. In Details magazine (US) October 1992 Ford says:

"Blade Runner was not one of my favorite films. I tangled with Ridley. The biggest problem was that at the end, he wanted the audience to find out that Deckard was a replicant. I fought that because I felt the audience needed somebody to cheer for."

- The shooting script had a voice-over where Deckard says, "I knew it on the roof that night. We were brothers, Roy Batty and I!"

- Gaff knew that Deckard dreamt of a unicorn, therefore Gaff knew what dreams that Deckard had been implanted with. (BRDC only)

- Replicants have a penchant for photographs, because it gives them a tie to their non-existent past. Deckard's flat is packed with photos, and none of them are recent or in color. Despite her memories, Rachael needed a photo as an emotional cushion. Likewise, Deckard would need photos, despite his memory implants. Rachael plays the piano, and Deckard has a piano in his flat.

- Gaff tells him "You've done a man's job, sir!" Early drafts of the script have him then add: "But are you sure you are man? It's hard to be sure who's who around here."

- Only a replicant could survive the beatings that Deckard takes, and then struggle up the side of a building with two dislocated fingers.

- Bryant's threat, "If you're not a cop, you're little people," might be an allusion to Deckard being created solely for police work.

- Deckard's eyes glow (yellow-orange) when he tells Rachael that he wouldn't go after her, "but someone would." Deckard is standing behind Rachael, and he's out of focus.

- Roy knew Deckard's name, yet he was never told it. Some speculate that Deckard might have been part of Roy's off-world rebellion, but was captured by the police and used to hunt down the others. In that case, Bryant is including Deckard among the five escaped replicants.

- The police would not risk a human to hunt four powerful replicants, particularly since replicants were designed for such dangerous work. Of course Deckard would have to think he was human or he might not be willing to hunt down other replicants.

- Gaff seems to follow Deckard everywhere -- he is at the scene of all the Replicant retirings almost immediately. Gaff is always with Deckard when the chief is around. This suggests that Gaff is the real BR, and that Deckard is only a tool Gaff uses for the dirty work.

The "AGAINST" case ------------------

- A major point of the film was to show Deckard (The Common Man) the value of life. "What's it like to live in fear?" If all the main characters are replicants, the contrast between humans and replicants is lost.

- Rachael had an implanted unicorn dream and Deckard's reverie in BRDC was a result of having seen her implants. Gaff may have seen Rachael's implants at the same time Deckard did, perhaps while they were at Tyrell's.

- Could you trust a replicant to kill other replicants? Why did the police trust Deckard?

- Having Deckard as a replicant implies a conspiracy between the police and Tyrell.

- Replicants were outlawed on Earth and it seems unlikely that a replicant would have an ex-wife.

- If Deckard was a replicant designed to be a Blade Runner, why would they give him bad memories of the police force? Wouldn't it be more effective if he were loyal and happy about his work?

- Deckard was not a replicant in DADoES, although he has another Blade Runner test him at one point just to be sure.

 

[travispickle]

thanks guys; interesting stuff. my own theory is that Deckard is not a replicant, in fact he's all too human. the unicorn dream to me shows he's human, would replicants know what a unicorn is? i see that as a symbol of hope, perhaps for happier, more innocent times, i.e. his own past, childhood.
the 'glowing eyes' i think is caused by the matte composition (precursor to CGI), which is not intentional; but i've read somewhere that actors eyes can show as 'glowing' as a result of using matte composition.
the photos in his apartment aren't that innocuous - they're his only link to his own (real) past; contrasted with the replicants implanted (false) memories. Also the piano motif reminds him of, or is linked to his own childhood. Deckard's character is suffused with such melancholy and seeming regret (though for what i don't know).

 

[mr pharmacist!!!!1]

i wonder, seeing as how they're using matter compositing in the sequel will deckards eyes glow? i think its something that has to be answered.

 

[george mcfly]

i wonder, seeing as how they're using matter compositing in the sequel will deckards eyes glow? i think its something that has to be answered.

they'll most certainly glow when he's using his predator-style heat vision

 

[tim]

thanks guys; interesting stuff. my own theory is that Deckard is not a replicant, in fact he's all too human. the unicorn dream to me shows he's human, would replicants know what a unicorn is? i see that as a symbol of hope, perhaps for happier, more innocent times, i.e. his own past, childhood.
the 'glowing eyes' i think is caused by the matte composition (precursor to CGI), which is not intentional; but i've read somewhere that actors eyes can show as 'glowing' as a result of using matte composition.
the photos in his apartment aren't that innocuous - they're his only link to his own (real) past; contrasted with the replicants implanted (false) memories. Also the piano motif reminds him of, or is linked to his own childhood. Deckard's character is suffused with such melancholy and seeming regret (though for what i don't know).

The Unicorn Dream is meant to suggest an inplanted memory.

The Aliens thread was much more fun than this.

 

[Catwoman]

I read the book many years ago and in the book I don't think he was, but it was all about how humans have to hook up to a machine to feel empathy, but one of the defining characteristics of replicants was that they couldn't feel empathy, so it's a catch 22 kind of thing.

As far as the film goes I think he is. I don't buy Scott's line about the eye at all.

 

[mr pharmacist!!!!1]

The Aliens thread was much more fun than this.

cheers

 

[george mcfly]

I read the book many years ago and in the book I don't think he was, but it was all about how humans have to hook up to a machine to feel empathy, but one of the defining characteristics of replicants was that they couldn't feel empathy, so it's a catch 22 kind of thing.

As far as the film goes I think he is. I don't buy Scott's line about the eye at all.

yeah, i'm the same, i think the eye scene is intentional and Scott just doesn't want to admit it cause then he's pretty much confirming that Deckard is a Blade Runner

 

[Catwoman]

Do you have it on DVD? I'd love to see it again but only have it on VHS. I prefer the director's cut - I don't like the voiceover.

 

[george mcfly]

Do you have it on DVD? I'd love to see it again but only have it on VHS. I prefer the director's cut - I don't like the voiceover.

yeah, i'll burn it for ya!

 

[Catwoman]

Yay!

 

[tim]

yeah, i'm the same, i think the eye scene is intentional and Scott just doesn't want to admit it cause then he's pretty much confirming that Deckard is a Blade Runner

Don't you mean a Replicant? Plus there is the mighty evidense of Ridley Scott actually saying the he is a Replicant.

 

[theoootini]

Don't you mean a Replicant? Plus there is the mighty evidense of Ridley Scott actually saying the he is a Replicant.

ah jaysus. bloody ridley scott is a replicant! ...he's trying to put you off the real story- that he's a shapeshiting morphobot from the planet tharg come to eat our children and nibble on our pets!

..or somesuch

 

[theoootini]

shapeshiting

ha ha. shitting shapes. good wan.

 

[george mcfly]

Don't you mean a Replicant? Plus there is the mighty evidense of Ridley Scott actually saying the he is a Replicant.

hahah bit tired this afternoon!

 

[theoootini]

but really, aren't we all replicants?



i would say yes.