Blade Runner 2049 (Denis Villeneuve, 2017)

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flyonthewall2983
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Re: Blade Runner 2049 (Denis Villeneuve, 2017)

#101 Post by flyonthewall2983 » Wed Sep 06, 2017 12:13 am

The word now is is that Jóhann Jóhannsson's work has been done away with completely, and Hans Zimmer is taking over scoring duties.

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John Cope
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Re: Blade Runner 2049 (Denis Villeneuve, 2017)

#102 Post by John Cope » Sat Sep 09, 2017 7:05 pm

flyonthewall2983 wrote:The word now is is that Jóhann Jóhannsson's work has been done away with completely, and Hans Zimmer is taking over scoring duties.
As further confirmation of this. Not good news at all. I really wonder WTF happened here and I hope whatever score Jóhannsson did compose and record will leak. Unbelievable...

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diamonds
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Re: Blade Runner 2049 (Denis Villeneuve, 2017)

#103 Post by diamonds » Sat Sep 09, 2017 7:50 pm

For what it's worth, Scott appears to have put the final nail in the coffin as to how the sequel will deal with Deckard:
SpoilerShow
"Deckard is a [expletive] replicant. Harrison can’t disagree now, because the whole premise of this new plot is based on the fact that he’s a replicant. I’m more amused by this than anything."
Emphasis mine, from The New York Times.

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John Cope
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Re: Blade Runner 2049 (Denis Villeneuve, 2017)

#104 Post by John Cope » Sat Sep 09, 2017 7:54 pm

Urgh. Villeneuve for his part at least defers interest in a definitive conclusion on this thankfully but still, urgh. Ridley again with an oft characteristic inclination to shove his read down our collective throats. I guess we'll have to see how this plays out but it doesn't bode well. Hopefully Villeneuve and company have managed to pull the wool over Scott's overly literal and reductionist eyes.

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knives
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Re: Blade Runner 2049 (Denis Villeneuve, 2017)

#105 Post by knives » Sat Sep 09, 2017 8:54 pm

What's the problem with him being a replicant?

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John Cope
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Re: Blade Runner 2049 (Denis Villeneuve, 2017)

#106 Post by John Cope » Sat Sep 09, 2017 9:15 pm

Well, obviously for some there is no problem with this at all. But I've never liked it and find it a misguided literalizing of the central metaphor, one that in doing so underlines it excessively as though we're incapable of grasping the concept via the subtler idea of a humanity that's no longer "human". But this kind of heavy handed presentation of already overly obvious concepts is par for the course these days with Scott, especially in recent years as he's unwisely come to think of his work in a more directly explicit philosophical way. Deckard as replicant also misses the subtler point; that elegance is lost as it is made unnecessarily cluttered and overly complicated. These complications would be appropriate if the film itself wasn't as sleek and simple in its form and narrative as it is. As is it makes the film top heavy and cumbersome with an idea that distracts and takes away from the accomplishment of that otherwise elegant presentation. Scott doesn't seem to realize that what he is interested in is got at much better through simple suggestion on a metaphorical level (e.g. the light reflections on the eyes of those whose humanity is in question). Instead he manages with this to both overly complicate and reduce or diminish the greater implications. Perhaps the new film can manage this idea better with its extended run time and a conception to start that accommodates it but I regret that it may retroactively affect the way the original is read.

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Re: Blade Runner 2049 (Denis Villeneuve, 2017)

#107 Post by Kirkinson » Sat Sep 09, 2017 9:23 pm

John Cope wrote:I really wonder WTF happened here and I hope whatever score Jóhannsson did compose and record will leak. Unbelievable...
Maybe it's a classic case of a director getting too attached to the temp score? He kept the temp-tracked Max Richter piece in Arrival, and even the more creative parts of Jóhannsson's score seemed like they might have been adhering to temp music (I'm just speculating about that, though). Using temp music was also a new thing for Villenueve on that film, as Johannson said neither Prisoners or Sicario had temp music. Maybe this time he just couldn't come up with something close enough to what Villeneuve wanted without compromising his own style and they decided to part ways?

Or it could just be the studio wanting something they were more comfortable and familiar with.

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Re: Blade Runner 2049 (Denis Villeneuve, 2017)

#108 Post by Lost Highway » Sun Sep 10, 2017 5:10 am

Kirkinson wrote:
John Cope wrote:I really wonder WTF happened here and I hope whatever score Jóhannsson did compose and record will leak. Unbelievable...
Maybe it's a classic case of a director getting too attached to the temp score? He kept the temp-tracked Max Richter piece in Arrival, and even the more creative parts of Jóhannsson's score seemed like they might have been adhering to temp music (I'm just speculating about that, though). Using temp music was also a new thing for Villenueve on that film, as Johannson said neither Prisoners or Sicario had temp music. Maybe this time he just couldn't come up with something close enough to what Villeneuve wanted without compromising his own style and they decided to part ways?

Or it could just be the studio wanting something they were more comfortable and familiar with.
Using Max Richter's On the Nature of Daylight was Arrival's biggest misstep. Took me right out of the film because it's already been used several times in films and TV series as a shorthand for loss and heartbreak. All it made me think of was Shutter Island. It's become what Barber's Adagio for Strings used to be. When I saw Platoon, all it reminded me of was The Elephant Man.

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Re: Blade Runner 2049 (Denis Villeneuve, 2017)

#109 Post by MichaelB » Sun Sep 10, 2017 6:35 am

See also the slow movements of Beethoven's Seventh Symphony and Schubert's 'Death and the Maiden' quartet.

Although oddly enough Krzysztof Penderecki's 'The Awakening of Jacob' was brilliantly used at the end of Andrzej Wajda's Katyń, despite its association with The Shining - or maybe even because of it: after all, it doesn't exactly hurt that particular scene in Wajda's film to be reminded of a horror film.

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Re: Blade Runner 2049 (Denis Villeneuve, 2017)

#110 Post by flyonthewall2983 » Sun Sep 10, 2017 12:36 pm

The Penderecki piece used so well in Twin Peaks was also in Children of Men.



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Re: Blade Runner 2049 (Denis Villeneuve, 2017)

#113 Post by diamonds » Tue Sep 26, 2017 12:29 pm

Last edited by diamonds on Thu Sep 28, 2017 6:44 pm, edited 1 time in total.

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Re: Blade Runner 2049 (Denis Villeneuve, 2017)

#114 Post by beamish13 » Tue Sep 26, 2017 1:09 pm

Is WB making any 70mm prints of this? They're the only studio that has been making blow-ups, and an event movie like this seemed like a prime candidate for it. I know Roger Deakins prefers digital exhibition of films he shoots.

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Re: Blade Runner 2049 (Denis Villeneuve, 2017)

#115 Post by Big Ben » Tue Sep 26, 2017 5:56 pm

Initial reactions are coming in and they're very positive. Far more so than I was expecting. Looks like Villeneuve was absolutely the right choice alongside Deakins (Shock all around at this statement on the forum I'm sure).

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Re: Blade Runner 2049 (Denis Villeneuve, 2017)

#116 Post by DarkImbecile » Tue Sep 26, 2017 6:13 pm

Big Ben wrote:Initial reactions are coming in and they're very positive. Far more so than I was expecting. Looks like Villeneuve was absolutely the right choice alongside Deakins (Shock all around at this statement on the forum I'm sure).
Not that I want to cast doubt on the quality of the film (I'm one of the bigger Villeneuve boosters), but these first reactions are always from hand-picked, usually more fanboy-oriented groups of critics. There will be more general screenings over the next few days (itself a good sign), so I'd recommend waiting until those have come in to draw any conclusions.

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Re: Blade Runner 2049 (Denis Villeneuve, 2017)

#117 Post by beamish13 » Tue Sep 26, 2017 6:56 pm

Villeneuve and Hampton Fancher are the film's two biggest selling points for me.

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Re: Blade Runner 2049 (Denis Villeneuve, 2017)

#118 Post by mfunk9786 » Tue Sep 26, 2017 7:11 pm

DarkImbecile wrote:
Big Ben wrote:Initial reactions are coming in and they're very positive. Far more so than I was expecting. Looks like Villeneuve was absolutely the right choice alongside Deakins (Shock all around at this statement on the forum I'm sure).
Not that I want to cast doubt on the quality of the film (I'm one of the bigger Villeneuve boosters), but these first reactions are always from hand-picked, usually more fanboy-oriented groups of critics. There will be more general screenings over the next few days (itself a good sign), so I'd recommend waiting until those have come in to draw any conclusions.
Yeah, film studios are taking their lead from video game studios these days - game studios have been using YouTube "influencers" (which is pretty much what comic book movie-centric poptimist critics are the analogue for in that world) as the only people they send advance copies of new games to, particularly when they're sequels in franchises with established fanbases. That way, there are dozens of YouTube videos of guys saying "HEY, IT IS SO COOL THAT I GOT THIS GAME AND THE GAME IS SO COOOOOOL" and not actually applying much if any critical thought to the product before anyone who's going to objectively consume and review it gets to touch it. Surely film studios have seen that this may be a wise approach for them to emulate with the preponderance of horrible online film "criticism" out there now.

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Re: Blade Runner 2049 (Denis Villeneuve, 2017)

#119 Post by Big Ben » Fri Sep 29, 2017 12:44 pm

Reviews are mostly in. Make of the consensus what you will: 85 on Metacritic and 97 on Rotten Tomatoes. I realize these may not be everyone's best measurement tool but I think it's important to at least look at critical reception at the time. Surely people will be kinder on this type of film now than they were in 1982 (I jest)?

I'll be that guy and say I've never seen anything Villenneuve has ever done so I have high hopes.


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Re: Blade Runner 2049 (Denis Villeneuve, 2017)

#121 Post by dda1996a » Fri Sep 29, 2017 2:05 pm

I loved every film he made so far and reviews are hailing this. What are its Oscar chances? That will be the day

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Re: Blade Runner 2049 (Denis Villeneuve, 2017)

#122 Post by miless » Fri Sep 29, 2017 2:09 pm

Variety says: the new film owes more to slow-cinema maestro Andrei Tarkovsky than it does to Scott’s revolutionary cyberpunk sensibility

I'm skeptical (especially coming from Variety), but this does pique my interest

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Re: Blade Runner 2049 (Denis Villeneuve, 2017)

#123 Post by swo17 » Fri Sep 29, 2017 2:12 pm


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Re: Blade Runner 2049 (Denis Villeneuve, 2017)

#124 Post by Ribs » Fri Sep 29, 2017 2:12 pm

dda1996a wrote:I loved every film he made so far and reviews are hailing this. What are its Oscar chances? That will be the day
...the day for what? I don't really see what the Oscars discourse can add to this film, which will with these reviews do perfectly alright without it. Sure, it could get nominated for some things and will probably win at least one technical category, but there's basically no narrative behind this as a major awards player whatsoever.

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Re: Blade Runner 2049 (Denis Villeneuve, 2017)

#125 Post by Clarence » Fri Sep 29, 2017 3:10 pm

Probably why they ended up going with Leto.

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