Film: Blade Runner Live (1982),
Distributor: Warner Bros,
Director: Ridley Scott,
Cast: Harrison Ford, Sean Young, Rutger Hauer, Daryl Hannah, Edward James Olmos,
Joanna Cassidy.
Like most science fiction films in the early 80s, they weren’t set in a galaxy far, far away or didn’t have an alien shaped like a turd with a glowing finger. They simply became misunderstood by both critics and moviegoers alike, unfortunately, Blade Runner was one of the three misunderstood (The Thing and The Dark Crystal are the other two) genre films that were released in 1982. Thankfully time and the generation who grew up with this cyberpunk classic have a deep appreciation which has allowed the film to endure for more than forty years.
Loosely based on the seminal classic Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? by author Philip K. Dick. Blade Runner is set in Los Angeles in the year 2019 with Rick Dekard (Harrison Ford), a Blade Runner who must hunt down and “retire” a band of replicants who are illegal on Earth and are looking to become just that bit more human. On the 4th of November 2023. I was fortunate to see and hear Blade Runner Live at Hamer Hall unlike I had before. The 11-piece Avex ensemble flawlessly performed Vangelis synth and sax-driven score to the surreal images that is Blade Runner.
From Love Theme to Memories of Green and Blade Runner Blues, you forget that sitting below the screen are actual performers enhancing the experience for the audience that made it so special and very memorable. Once the film’s end credits had disappeared the audience gave them a well-deserved standing ovation.
It’s wonderful to witness once again a film that was so misunderstood and over time became a highly regarded cult classic for it still has the ability to weave its dark and moody neon-soaked magic. The Avex ensemble has totally elevated the film’s experience in a truly unique manner.
So if you wish to experience Blade Runner in a way unlike before and if you’re lucky enough that it comes to your capital city. I highly recommend that you book a set to be transported to the mean streets of a rain-soaked Los Angeles in 2019. Just don’t forget to bring your umbrella.