Blade Runner 2049 offers an aesthetically beautiful but morally grim depiction of post-apocalyptic life set thirty years after its eponymous predecessor, well into our future.
The story is extremely slow paced, especially relative to the original movie, which moves frenetically fast. I was perhaps more aware of the contrast because I watched the two films back to back, on successive nights. I realized in doing so that a big part of the appeal of Blade Runner was its newness, its brash originality and its boldness. There is nothing like that in Blade Runner 2049 at all. Instead, I got the feeling that the whole world was on quaaludes, a sense perhaps enhanced by the droning, desperate-sounding, yawning musical score.
Is the story coherent or plausible? Maybe not, but it is logically possible. My reasonably high score is due only to the exceptional cinematography: Gorgeously composed shots. Great use of shadow and muted color. Dark and dreary but also beautiful.
The story is extremely slow paced, especially relative to the original movie, which moves frenetically fast. I was perhaps more aware of the contrast because I watched the two films back to back, on successive nights. I realized in doing so that a big part of the appeal of Blade Runner was its newness, its brash originality and its boldness. There is nothing like that in Blade Runner 2049 at all. Instead, I got the feeling that the whole world was on quaaludes, a sense perhaps enhanced by the droning, desperate-sounding, yawning musical score.
Is the story coherent or plausible? Maybe not, but it is logically possible. My reasonably high score is due only to the exceptional cinematography: Gorgeously composed shots. Great use of shadow and muted color. Dark and dreary but also beautiful.