[Severian]

Originally Posted by gogologogolo

Gogol Bordello. Hah!

I think the best parts of the movie (as in the original), are the part where the movie is exploring the atmosphere of cyberpunk dystopian LA. As far as I'm concerned the movie did that so well that it didn't need much of a story. It seems that by tying it in to the first movie they constrained themselves. Part of what I liked about the first movie was how they left whether Deckard was a replicant or not ambiguous. Now that it's basically canon, it sort of takes something away for me.

Ok, THIS is a legitimate complaint that I can totally understand and respect. I wasn’t old enough to go to R-rated movies when the first BR came out, so I’m not sure about this, but I *believe* the “is he or isn’t he?” element of the ending, with the Edward James Olmos overdub and the origami unicorn was part of one of the later cuts of the film (“Directors” or “Final” or somesuch), but ever since I first saw that version, that part — that lingering question — has ALWAYS been one of my favorite things about the movie. Indeed, it’s THE THING that took the movie over the top for me, from “solid, classic cult SF film” to “fucking masterpiece and one of the best movies ever.” (Well, OK, that and Rutger Hauer’s phenomenal performance as Roy Batty.)

When I first hear that “2049” was going to definitively answer that question, I was SUPER wary, and even a little bit pissed off. The original is a masterclass in cerebral storytelling from eons before the likes of “Inception” because it left reality in the hands and minds of the viewers. I was NOT ready to be happy about the answer to this question.

But I personally feel that it was handled beautifully, and it won me over. Partially because Deckard was such a smart part of the actual narrative, and that “is he/isn’t he” question was replaced by several other, larger questions aboit life and humanity and society and, y’kbow, rights.

[/quote]
Part of my criticism stems from my sheer technical incredulity of what's going on in the movie. What would be the point of building replicants with fully functioning sex organs? Why would the replicants being able to reproduce be the thing that causes a revolution, when the replicants apparently have to listen to what humans say? They already have human emotions, was that not enough?
[/quote]

***SPOILERS FOR THOSE WHO HAVE NOT SEEN BLADE RUNNER 2049 AHEAD***

...
..
.

Ok, well... No offense, but I think you may have missed something along the way. Not all replicants “obey” and even those who do (like K) have the capacity to not obey. Meaning, they have free will. Meaning, they’re just slaves. Mass-marketed slaves.

The point of the “messiah” child is that it symbolizes that (to quote Jurassic Park in that one scene everyone quotes) “life finds a way.” And if these Replicants are capable of creating life, they are evolving. So they’re not tools. They’re people. And the “messiah” child is a symbol of this that the older replicants (who, by the way, are totally not under any obligation or compunction to obey anything or anyone) want to use to ignite a revolution. Obviously all replicants, new and old, are capable of rebelling, lying to their “owners” and so on. The child is a way to wake them up from their existential sleep, and show them that they are deserving of freedom.

It’s a bit grandiose, and what we see in 2049 is — potentially — just a kind of interlude between this x-factor event (the natural birth of a replicant, by replicants) and the “Revolution” that those cave-dwelling old school Replicants who rescued K and tasked him with killing Deckard are hoping to kickstart.

But K/“Joe” obviously has free will. He made a different choice. He Kobayashi Marued the operation, and did something different.

Abyway, the Wallace character wants to create Replicants who can reproduce because he has a god complex and he wants to take over the universe. Reproducing replicants would exponentially increase his rate of productivity. He *needs* that to happen in order to meet his own personal, insane goals of playing God, and to meet his practical goals of, ah, taking over the galaxy.

Both sides want and need the key, the “messiah” child.
The biblical parable of all of this is pretty clear, but really, I think if you’re wondering why a reproducing replicant is so important, you might have missed something in the movie. Which nobody could possibly blame you for. I mean, I waited for this fucker for eons and went at my earliest possible opportunity, and even though it had my complete and undivided attention from beginning to end, it was LOOOONG.

Maybe a re-watch is in your future?

Didn't realize Johannsson was removed from the project. Still some great sound design. Hans Zimmer must be a very busy man.

Yeah, I expect so. He seems to do everything these days. Think he was booted from Justice League in favor of Danny Elfman, which seems like a gargantuanly stupid idea. But whatever.

I was REALLY looking forward to a Johannsson score, and I was bummed when I heard he wouldn’t be involved. Big time. The “Arrival” score has been in rotation for the better part of a year now. A-fuckin’-maxing.

Still, Zimmer rarely doesn’t do an incredible job, and I loved the score and sound design as well. Might even buy it.