Blade Runner

[Stefan Wood]

I picked up the 4 dvd set of Blade Runner yesterday at Best Buy. Saw it last night, and had some thoughts. Regardless of which version you prefer, voice over or not, both versions are here, also with a slightly longer international cut. The remastering is superb. The real surprise, and probably the centerpiece of the box set, is the three and a half hour (!!) documentary of the film, from its origins to production to release, and afterwards with the reediting. Anyone interested in film and film making should see it. It shows how one person's idea of taking a book to screen evolves into something that moves away from a personal view to a group view, from words to pictures. There were constant and evolving changes throughout production, and shows the importance of a director having the vision and willpower to see the entire thing through. They interview everyone -- the screenwriters, the financiers, the actors, the special effects guys, etc. It's amazing that a film can be made at all with all the factors involved. Some interesting things you find out are: how much Harrison Ford disliked the working conditions (they worked from 8 at night to 6 in the morning); Sean Young was not the preferred choice for the part of Rachel (Ridley Scott wanted her because she had the look for the part); the amazing set design and the things that they did to create the look of the future Los Angeles; and finally, the voice over narration outtakes which you hear Ford doing and commenting on how crappy it sounds. Fun stuff.

Edited December 19, 2007 by Stefan Wood

[jazzbo]

Thanks for weighing in with impressions; I've had this box set preordered since the late summer.

I read a book about films based on PKD work that went into detail about the making of Blade Runner, and referrenced the documentary, and when I looked around to see about the documentary, I ran into information about the box set. I also have a book about the making of Blade Runner that I have been saving to read (though I've browsed through it pretty heavily) that uses a lot of information that will appear in the documentary. Can't wait for my set to arrive!

[RDK]

Just ordered from Amazon. If you have HDDVD or BluRay, you can get the 5-disc set for only $28!

[jazzbo]

I got my copy and I watched the US theatrical version (which I have seen in the theater when first released, and I think that's it).

Picture and sound are fabulous!