Themes in Blade Runner
Despite the initial appearance and marketing of an action film, Blade Runner operates on an unusually rich number of dramatic levels.
As with much of the cyberpunk genre, it owes a large debt to film noir, containing and exploring such conventions as the femme fatale, a Chandleresque first-person narration in the Theatrical Version, the questionable moral outlook of the hero—extended here to include even the literal humanity of the hero, as well as the usual dark and shadowy cinematography.
The popular 1980s prediction of the United States being economically surpassed by Japan is reflected in the domination of Japanese culture and corporations in the advertising of LA 2019.
In order to discover replicants, a psychological test is used with a number of questions intended to provoke emotion; making it the essential indicator of someone's "humanity".
The film goes so far as to put in doubt the nature of Rick Deckard and forces the audience to reevaluate what it means to be human.
[4][5] While there is no scientific universal test for consciousness in the real world, the replicants' organic nature may make it difficult to reject the notion of their personhood.
The Voight-Kampff test that determines if you are human measures the emotions, specifically empathy through various biological responses such as fluctuation of the pupil and involuntary dilation of the iris.
[1] Scott considers the glow to be a stylistic device (non-diegetic); only visible to the viewers to help them understand that they are viewing a replicant, almost always occurring after the characters have assumed as much.
Rachael's visual recollection of her memories, Leon's "precious photos", Roy's discussion with Chew and soliloquy at the end, "I've seen things you people wouldn't believe".
This is a notion emphasized by Rachael's fabricated memories, Deckard's need to confirm a replicant based on more than appearance, and even the printout of Leon's photograph not matching the reality of the Esper visual.
Given the replicants' superhuman abilities, their identity as created beings (by Tyrell) and "fall from the heavens" (off-world) makes them analogous to fallen angels.
In this context, Roy Batty shares similarities with Lucifer as he prefers to "reign in hell" (Earth) rather than "serve in heaven".
Nearing the end of his life, Roy creates a stigmata by driving a nail into his hand, and becomes a Christ-like figure by sacrificing himself for Deckard.
This is especially true for the Batty character, arguably a biased prototype for Nietzsche's Übermensch—not only due to his intrinsic characteristics, but also because of the outlook and demeanor he displays in many significant moments of the film.
For instance: A modern audience might admire Batty’s will to flee the confinements of slavery and perhaps sympathize with his existential struggle to live.
His physical and psychological courage to rebel is developed as an ethical principle in which he revolts against a social order that has conspired against him at the genetic, cultural, and political levels.
In Heidegger’s view, Batty’s willingness to defy social conformity allows for him to authentically pursue the meaning of his existence beyond his programming as a soldier.
post-apocalyptic science fiction) Given the many Asian peoples populating Los Angeles in A.D. 2019, and the cityspeak dialect policeman Gaff speaks to the Blade Runner, Rick Deckard, clearly indicates that much cultural mixing has happened.
They perform jobs that are considered too dangerous for humans to do on behalf of off-world colonies, such as heavy manual labour and combat, under the threat of death for disobedience.
This becomes more disturbing when considering the so-called "pleasure models," which harkens the sexual abuse perpetrated by slaveowners in the United States.
Author Adilifu Nama suggested that the replicants in the film were "symbolically Black," stating that, as escaped slaves, they had the same socioeconomic status as enslaved Africans during the time of legalized slavery in America.
Tyrell viewed replicants as lesser than, intentionally designing them for the function of the types of dangerous and demeaning labour aforementioned.
Sebastian, despite calling the smaller toy-like replicants his "friends," has intentionally constructed inferior beings to him and is complicit in a system of slavery.
This is evidenced not only by his "friends", but in the way he speaks to Roy and Pris, asking "Show me something," viewing them as a source of intrigue or amusement rather than conscious beings.
Screenwriter Hampton Fancher has said that he wrote the character as a human, but wanted the film to suggest the possibility that he may be a replicant.
"That was the main area of contention between Ridley and myself at the time," Ford told an interviewer during a BBC One Hollywood Greats segment.
[30] Douglas Trumbull, the film's visual effects supervisor, stated that he does not know Deckard's true nature and that the issue is an enigma.
