Terminator beat Robocop?
This list sucks.
It had a more realistic premise.
I agree. I also I think Robocop had a better line than “I’ll be back.”
Reporter: “Robo, excuse me, Robo, any special message for all the kids watching at home?”
Robocop: “Stay out of trouble.”
Many people seem to love the Harrison Ford voiceovers. Years ago, I seem to remember reading that Harrison was very upset about being told to do the voiceovers. Apparently, the director and producer felt they were necessary because test audiences were walking out of the theater confused with several aspects of the movie. They decided a small amount of “hand holding” was in order, and came up with the idea of Harrison narrating certain aspects of the film. Harrison disagreed with their decision, saying it degraded the integrity of the movie. Thus he used the monotone, lifeless voice as a way of subtle protest, hoping that his subpar performance would keep the narration out of the movie.
Can anyone confirm this?
Not 100% but I have heard the story before and I think it is generally held to be true. It is also interesting that despite it being one of his best films Ford absolutely refuses to talk about Blade Runner.
I don’t care for the voiceover, personally. I mean, I loved Blade Runner when it first came out, with the voiceover, but I think the Director’s Cut is a better movie in every respect. I don’t think it loses any of its noir vibe without the voiceover.
And yeah, it’s my favorite sci-fi movie, too.
I’m confused. If Ridley Scott felt they were necessary, how come the Director’s Cut eliminates the voiceover?
-Amanpour
Okay. What a dork. Answering my own question here.
There were numerous problems during filming. Budget constraints certainly didn’t help. There were tensions on set, particularly the well-known disagreements between Scott and Ford about the Deckard character. Scott even ended up finishing the film after having been fired! Producer intervention also had a significant effect on the film content beyond the initial cuts during filming. The voiceover, the deletion of the unicorn scene and the tacked on happy ending being the most obvious producer influences.
This comes from a Blade Runner movie site that I only just found by googling this issue, so I cannot vouch for the integrity of the site.
-Amanpour
I just saw the original version on TV a few days back. Hot damn I love this film. It’s a little slow but the atmosphere (scenery, music, setting, etc) is the real star.
Anyone a fan of the game by Westwood? Kept all the things that made the movie great IMO.
Yeah, I was. I thought it could have been a little less derivative, perhaps, but it was a solid game with some interesting semi-dynamic elements.
Here’s a great book that goes into what happened with Blade Runner. Really interesting case study of what can go wrong in a big time film production. Highly recommend it if you’re into these types of books.
I briefly met the screenwriter of Blade Runner, Hampton Fancher once and thought he was quite cool. A smooth, vivacious kind of guy. Not a nerdy writer by any means. I asked him about the 2 different endings that were filmed and asked which one he liked best. He said that he actually wrote several different endings. I think there may have been one he liked where Sean Young’s character and Harrison Ford’s character go out into the snow and she kills him. Seems to me that version had him being a robot as well.
I briefly met the screenwriter of Blade Runner, Hampton Fancher once and thought he was quite cool. A smooth, vivacious kind of guy. Not a nerdy writer by any means. I asked him about the 2 different endings that were filmed and asked which one he liked best. He said that he actually wrote several different endings. I think there may have been one he liked where Sean Young’s character and Harrison Ford’s character go out into the snow and she kills him. Seems to me that version had him being a robot as well.[/quote]
This reminds me of, when I read about the director’s cut a few years ago, it said the new cut would imply (reveal?) that Deckard was a replicant, too, in the end. But I didn’t notice this, even after reading that. (But I don’t have the opportunity to rewatch that movie whenever I feel like it.)
Does any one of you agree that Scott’s cut makes Deckard a replicant?
(BTW, scientists are right about Blade Runner.)
I briefly met the screenwriter of Blade Runner, Hampton Fancher once and thought he was quite cool. A smooth, vivacious kind of guy. Not a nerdy writer by any means. I asked him about the 2 different endings that were filmed and asked which one he liked best. He said that he actually wrote several different endings. I think there may have been one he liked where Sean Young’s character and Harrison Ford’s character go out into the snow and she kills him. Seems to me that version had him being a robot as well.[/quote]
This reminds me of, when I read about the director’s cut a few years ago, it said the new cut would imply (reveal?) that Deckard was a replicant, too, in the end. But I didn’t notice this, even after reading that. (But I don’t have the opportunity to rewatch that movie whenever I feel like it.)
Does any one of you agree that Scott’s cut makes Deckard a replicant?[/quote]
Yes, the shot of the unicorn that occurs in both Rachel’s memories and Deckard’s imply that he has the same implanted memories as she does. The origami unicorn that Gad folds and leaves on the floor at the end of the film confirms that Gad knows about these implants and that he knows that Deckard is a replicant. The photos on Deckard’s piano, whilst not 100% condemning, are certainly very similar to Leon’s collection of photos, replicants desperately clinging onto the idea that they too are human. The difference is that Leon knows he isn’t. Imply is really the right word over reveal.
The funny thing is that while they removed the unicorn dream in the theatrical release, they left in the part where Gad leaves the origami unicorn at the end of the film. But bereft of context, it’s a much less meaningful scene.
Very much all part of the dumbing down of the whole thing for theatrical release. In my opinion, the theatrical release is neither better nor worse than the director’s cut, they are almost two completely different films.
No, I think its just a Fuck Theatrical Cut Blade Runner.
Though I’m sure there’s also another camp fucking the director’s cut. Or maybe just the Unicorns. Maybe we should ask Oxide.
I agree. The humanity aspect of Blade Runner becomes much more pronounced when calling into question whether Deckard is a Replicant or not. Ridley Scott insisted at one point that he was, but there’s no way to be certain.
I would love to have both Director and Theatrical cut on DVD. Not only am I completely willing to give Ridley Scott more money, but I, too think they’re different enough to stand on their own. Even if Harrison Ford intended to sour the voiceovers with the monotone speech, I think it just worked all the better for what the film intended to present.
They not only removed it, they never shot it . The unicorn in the Director’s cut is footage from Legend.
I think that’s actually an urban legend–according to an interview with Scott from around the time the movie was released, the scene was shot when they originally filmed Blade Runner:
M: Did you actually shoot the sequence in the glade with the unicorn?
S: Absolutely. It was cut into the picture, and I think it worked wonderfully. Deckard was sitting, playing the piano rather badly because he was drunk, and there’s a moment where he gets absorbed and goes off a little at a tangent and we went into the shot of the unicorn plunging out of the forest. It’s not subliminal, but it’s a brief shot.
I never saw Urban Legend. Was it better than the first cut?
But yeah, looks like I’m really wrong about that.
Lauzirika pointed out that contrary to rumor, the unicorn footage was not shot for Legend (1985), the film Scott directed immediately after Blade Runner.
For proof, he has camera slates of the dailies, just some of the material he has dredged up from boxes that had been marked for junk 13 years ago and left in a storage facility.