"I've seen things you people wouldn't believe... attack ships on fire off the shoulder of Orion. I watched C-beams glitter in the dark near the Tannhauser gate. All these moments will be lost, in time, like tears in the rain."
Somehow Blade Runner has survived and has risen above two decades of competing interests hacking away at it. There must be a zillion different "cuts":
The franchise has even weathered a mediocre computer game and teeming hordes of overly analytical, melodramatic fans.
In the end, I really wish I could make a "Phil Davis cut of 2002". In this print, the dialog with Abdul ben Hassan the snake manufacturer would not be so miserably dubbed. The vast majority of Mr. Ford's narration would be consigned to the 15th level of Hell (yes, the contractors would have to dig extra deep). The cheesy unicorn scene would be reshot with a horn that didn't flop and the scene wouldn't preempt one of the most moving transitions of movie music ever. Some of Ridley's trademark flashing lights would be digitally edited out. (He must've gone through some sort of phase. Some sections of Alien are nearly unwatchable due to intense strobe effects. Yes Ridley, your lighting has put on all on edge… and pissed us off.) All the replicants would take their rightful place in the movie. Deckard would shoot the helpless female replicant cowering the closet and thus establish a very low basepoint from which his character would evolve. (Yes, he shoots another female replicant in the back as she's fleeing, but some could say he was justified after being attacked and nearly strangled to death.) The "drive off into the sunset" ending would join Mr. Ford's narration. Finally, the nearly nude dancers would be returned to Taffy's bar. I don't think all this is going to happen, but I can always hope. Maybe someday they'll release a DVD of all the fragments that you would be able to stitch together. Maybe... someday...
Even the soundtrack defies the fans' desires for veracity. For the longest time, the only music you could find was performed by the New American Orchestra, an "adaptation" of Vangelis' score. This disc is an adaptation in the same way that the Blueridge All-Banjo Orchestra's rendition of Saint-Saëns' Symphony No. 3 (Organ) is an adaptation. It's just not the same.
Imagine my joy when a good friend and fellow Blade-ophile informed me that the actual score had been released. Next, imagine my disappointment when I read the liner notes and learned that the disc is not the soundtrack. Don't get me wrong. The disc rocks. I guess they had to make a decision about which version of the soundtrack to release and gave up, understandably.
So why do I like the movie?
Hrm.
It's cool, dark, and gritty.
It emphasizes character over plot and special effects.
It deals with the questions of existence in a compelling way.
It tells me that life may be brutal and short, but that it is also precious and important. Whether your creator is "God" or a corporation, whether your memories are real or manufactured, what you have is yours.
Pakeha