Ahoy, squirts! Quint here with another pair of reviews of the upcoming BLADE RUNNER super awesome director's cut, which is coming out on an even superer awesomer DVD huge mega collection very soon. Ridley Scott just screened his new cut at the NYFF and we got some word on it. Sounds fascinating. What do you folks think?
Hi guys! A very quick review of "Bladerunner: The Final Cut". I saw the 9 PM screening on Saturday night at the New York Film Festival. The film itself is a subtly tweaked update of the "Director's Cut". For serious fans of the film, it's a must-see/must-have that finally fixes all remaining problems and loose-ends. "Bladerunner" is probably one of my favorites of all time - I know it inside and out - but most of the changes were still not obvious to me. The Warner exec in charge of this film was on-hand (along with Philip K Dick's daughter, screenwriter Hampton Francher, and two people who worked on the production of the original film). He said they made over 100 tweaks from the "Director's Cut". But to a casual fan it's likely to feel exactly the same. The more obvious changes include Joanna Cassidy's (Zhora's) death scene which was re-shot to get rid of the stunt double with the horrible wig (the new scene is seamlessly integrated into the film). Ben Ford (Harrison Ford's son) re-shot the scene, and played Deckard, when he goes to interview the snake dealer Abdul Ben-Hassan. According to the Warner exec, Harrison was busy but his son worked out perfectly because he's the same age that Harrison was in 1981/1982. He said this scene was re-done because the lip-sync in the original there was so awful. Also gone is the white dove flying into a perfectly blue, sunny sky at the end. The new shot is of the dove flying upward into a rainy, cloudy, and dark night sky. Additional gore has been restored to Batty gouging Terrell's eyes out and Batty inserting the nail into his palm. Also, camera men that mistakenly appeared in the final chase between Batty and Deckard have been removed as well. All continuity errors have been fixed. The sound and look of the film is better than ever! I can't wait to get this on DVD in December. Overall, it's a much-appreciated fan pleaser. This version puts to rest all previous issues with the film, and, at least in my eyes, now officially makes Bladerunner a perfect film. Before it comes out on DVD in December, the "Final Cut" will get a limited theatrical release in NY and LA. I encourage all "Bladerunner" fans to see it on the big screen! Amil
And here's one more!
So last night I saw BLADE RUNNER: The Final Cut presented as part of the New York Film Festival at the Rose Theater inside Jazz at Lincoln Center. This is the FIFTH and final version of BR and this restoration of Ridley Scott's original vision is absolutely beautiful. Every single frame is stunning. The post-production crew from WB kicked butt and you can really tell the restoration was a labor of love. To say this movie has held up over time would be the understatement of the century. It completely holds its own and kicks butt. Seeing it on the big screen really changes the environment of the film. The LA cityscape is even more intimidating. The street scenes make you feel even more insignificant and lonely. I have watched this movie 50 times, but last night was the first time I realized that the off-world colonies probably were paradise compared to Earth. In other words, the people you see roaming around the streets of future LA are the losers. That's right. They are the people who got left behind because they couldn't pass the tests to be eligible to leave. I used to be upset that there were no black people in Blade Runner, but now I feel a little better about that. Anyway, the story is the same. The only substantive changes are some added gore and sound effects in a couple of the killing scenes. The sound is MUCH better and the score has been totally changed in some parts of the film. The dove release still looks fake. But they fixed Zhora's death scene and got rid of that horrible stunt double. According to the crew, who answered questions for about 30 minutes after the film, they got the original actress to come back and re-shoot parts of the death scene. Pris is a lot more violent and fierce in this version when she attacks Deckard. I think they cut the scene differently to show that she could easily and quickly dominate him. They also fixed the math problem with the number of missing replicants. If there is any way you can get to NYC or LA to see this, DO IT. If you decide to use this, call me Lakbone.
