Welshrogue

A retired Blade Runner, or hunter of replicants (robots identical to humans) is called back to work when four replicants hi-jack a spaceship and come back to earth.

This is one of THE most influential science fiction movies ever with everything from the soundtrack to the design influencing future movies. Set only in the near future (2019) it sets a grime scene for earth with grime, dirty streets without clear sunlight. To set the mood of the movie, most scenes involve limited light sources and smoke in the room to darken the rest of the room. For the first time in a science fiction movie, the future didn’t look clean and shiny, it looked worn. Huge advertisements are everywhere except down below on the street. Los Angeles is not so much multi-cultural as a mixing pot of every culture under the sun.

Blade Runner stars Harrison Ford, who at the time, was on the first steps towards becoming a huge star, as Deckard. Rutger Hauer, in perhaps his best role, is Roy, the leader of the replicants. Sean Young, again in probably her best role, is Rachel, the liaison for Tyerrel Industries who created the replicants. All three were big, but not huge stars which works perfect for the movie.

Blade Runner was a movie that didn’t do so well to begin with yet grew to become not just a hit but a cult hit that has influenced many movies since. One of the major reasons why this happened was the soundtrack. Composed, arranged, performed and produced by Vangelis, the haunting synthesised music is the perfect companion to the action on the screen.

Blade Runner is yet another movie based on a short story by Phillip K Dick. “Do androids dream of electric sheep?” maybe have been the spark for the script but donates very little to the story. In the book Deckard seems more concerned with buying a replicant animal than hunting down rogue robots.

There were two released versions, the first containing a last minute narration by Ford as the producers felt some help with the story was needed. The second, and perhaps more liked version removed the voice over.

At time of writing, there is talk of yet a third version being released in the fall of 2007 followed by a definitive DVD set containing all three versions. I am counting down until that day. This is the movie that anyone who enjoys science fiction must see.

My wife is a mind reader.

I don’t mean that she knows when I am horny, since all she needs to do is make sure I am still breathing. I mean, that when in the same environment as me, if something makes me think of a song, a joke, or something similar, my wife is usually on the same page, and maybe a paragraph ahead of me!

I will often have something in my head, a song lyric, and without thinking about it, say something that refers to it without directly mentioning it. My wife will sing or say the lyrics as quickly as I thought of it in the first place. It is uncanny some days when there hardly seems to be any point in talking as we both obviously know what the other is thinking. It doesn’t stop her from talking, but its just confirmation that we are on the same page as it were.