The official selections of the Golden Globes has just been announced, and surprisingly, one of the most popular movies of the year has not been selected. It is Blade Runner 2049, directed by the Canadian Denis Villeneuve. The film is the sequel of Ridley Scott’s cult Blade Runner released in 1982. After the success of his Arrival last year, Villeneuve has been invested with the difficult mission to create a sequel as good as the original film. The expectations were high, but according to the international press, Villeneuve globally succeeded in furnishing a great second film. Therefore, not seeing it nominated in any category of the Golden Globes (the antechamber of the Oscars) is truly surprising. But does Blade Runner 2049 really deserve to be nominated?
Blade Runner 2049 happens thirty years after the events of the first movie. Following an economical crisis in the 2020’s, Tyrell society, the society that was producing replicants (humanoids issued from the human DNA who are used to accomplish the most difficult tasks of society), has to close. The conception of the replicants is now the responsibility of the Wallace Company, which creates humanoids that are more docile than the previous generation. K (Ryan Gosling) is a blade runner agent issued from this new generation of replicants. His mission is to chase and destruct the older replicant that still exist. Indeed, according to the government, the older models are troublesome as they are trying to free themselves from slavery. During one of his missions, K discovers a mysterious box buried under a tree. This box’s content encloses a terrible secret that could question the boundaries between replicants and humans. The Wallace Company targets K as he is now in possession of this box. K has no other choice but to look for Rick Deckard (Harrison Ford, the hero of the first movie), the best blade runner ever known in order to resolve this mystery.
An incredible cinematography
When watching Blade Runner 2049, the first striking thing you remark is its incredible quality of the cinematography. The pictures composed by Roger Deakins are truly impressing. Everything in it is perfect: the framing, the composition of the image, the colours, the lighting… Each new frame surpasses the previous one and just blows the spectator’s mind. It is impossible to describe with words what we feel when facing such a splendid cinematography. Roger Deakins totally masters his art in all the surroundings: the abandoned countryside and the overcrowded city; the arid deserts and the landscapes drowned under the rain; the slums of Los Angeles and the very classy offices of the Wallace Company. The poise of these decors is so crashing, that it puts the humans and the replicants at the same level, which really serves the reflection of the movie about human nature.
A true film noir
The cinematography, coupled with the lascivious rhythm of the movie, resituate very well the ambiance of film noir that the original movie owned. The technological performances of the film and its subject obviously belong to the realm of science fiction, but its cumbersome atmosphere seems to indicate that Villeneuve aims to produce an authentic film noir. All the codes of the genre are present: the mysterious and silent typed detective (this role fits perfectly Ryan Gosling who delivers one of his best performances), the femme fatale who represents a potential danger to the detective, and a mystery whose elucidation will conduct to a total questioning of the established order. More than its screenplay following all the film noir’s codes, its atmosphere totally respects the genre. Everything in the movie is a materialisation of mystery, doubt, questioning and danger (the dark colours of its compositions, the sordid lights of the neon of the city, the foggy veil that envelops the city, the hairstyles and the clothes super stylized of the characters…) This crashing atmosphere allows the spectators to totally immerse themselves in the plot of the film.
Identifying with the replicants
Another positive aspect of the heaviness of this atmosphere and of the cinematography is that it helps the spectators to identify with the replicants. Indeed, if the image is magnificent, it totally lacks of poesy and lightness, which causes a total annihilation of the perceptions of the spectators, who become quasi-humanoids. Each new frame looks like perfect catalogue photography. Therefore, the image lacks of fluidity in its composition, which consolidates the spectators’ impression to be confronted to the perception of reality that the replicants have. This identification once again serves the statement of the movie because it questions the essence of humanity.
A crushing beauty
Nonetheless, this cold atmosphere is also a limit of the film. Indeed, the magnificence of the shots is sometimes crushing. The film lasts more than 2h40, so this wearisome ambiance is problematic. The heaviness of the atmosphere is obviously voluntary, as the eerie mise en scene goes along with the theme and the genre the film explores. Yet, it becomes really disagreeable at a certain point. The film would probably be more agreeable to watch if it included more poesy in its scenes. Unfortunately, the only scenes that could have offered a lighter ambiance are eventually some manifestations of a disembodied technological progress. As the minutes pass by, the spectators feel more and more restless, which contrasts in an odd way with the slowness of the film, and becomes harshest.
A rhythm too slow and cumbersome
The rhythm of the movie is indeed very slow, which becomes irritating at one point, especially for a modern audience that is used to a quick sequencing of the actions. The film lasts 2h44 but it could have lasted 2h10. Its lengths sometime disengage the audience, as some steps seem unnecessary to lead the hero where he ends up. This length could have been justified if it served multiple twists or developments, but here it does not seem useful, as the screenplay is ultimately very simple. Because it sequences some very lengthy scenes, the film seems to confront the spectators to a very convoluted story, which is completely not true if you focus on the substance of the screenplay.
A rather basic storyline
Indeed, the screenplay of Blade Runner 2049 is far from being incredible. The film starts off strong as it offers extremely interesting bootstraps of reflexion. K’s quest pushes people to question what does differentiate a replicant from a human being, and thus it surveys what makes the essence of humanity. His relationship with his virtual fiancée explores the area of the human relationships at the numeric era, and questions the value of a relation whose goal is predefined from the beginning. The mysterious intentions of Wallace push the audience to think about the notion of superhuman, and about the fascination humans have toward what could surpass them- and even annihilate them. However, the screenplay only skims these ideas without really developing them. K’s quest is too quickly materialized; consequently the adventures that the resolution of the mystery generates overtake the thinking that the story could have produced. Therefore, the movie misses to make a point as it avoids developing all theses questions. Moreover, the desires and the motivations of the characters, and the characters themselves do not evolve at all between the beginning and the end of the film.
What about its non selection to the Golden Globes?
Blade Runner 2049 is a visual gem: an object that is simultaneously magnificent and enchanting, but also cold and hard. If the stunning cinematography will probably be remembered for long, its plot is way less remarkable. In the end, the anxiety provoking ambiance of the movie overtakes the visual pleasure it generates, so that the spectators suffer from its length. We wonder why Denis Villeneuve decided to create such a long movie to finally develop very poorly the reflexion there is behind his story. The real fans of the first film will nonetheless not be disappointed as Blade Runner 2049 totally respects the atmosphere of its predecessor. On the opposite, those who are not enthusiastic about Science Fiction and film noir might eventually get bored and frustrated by the film. Either way, you have to watch Blade Runner 2049 on a big screen to really enjoy its undeniable visual splendour. Blade Runner 2049 does probably not deserve a nomination for the best film at the Golden Globes, but it would be completely unfair if Roger Deakins does not get nominated for his cinematography at the Oscars. We will know more about his chances to win an Oscar on the 28 of January, as the names of the nominates for the most prestigious cinematic award would be revealed on this date.
