Released 35 years apart, both Blade Runner and Blade Runner 2049 reflect a technologically-advanced vision of the future in which consumerism, corporatism, and a lack of human empathy have become the foundation of society — but which film is better? The first Blade Runner, directed by Ridley Scott, is an adaptation of the classic novella Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep, written by Phillip K. Dick, who was himself a pioneer of the sci-fi and cyberpunk genres. Scott’s film was initially a disappointment, both commercially and critically, with audiences back in the early ’80s turned off by the movie’s slow pacing. Since its release though, Blade Runner has gone on to become one of the most influential works of science-fiction of all-time, inspiring a wide range of imitators in all mediums of art such as the Deus Ex videogames and the ever-popular Ghost in the Shell anime.
Because of the movie’s deeply sprawling philosophical themes and deeply interpretive nature (partly due to various cuts of the movie being released), many fans doubted that a Blade Runner sequel could ever be truly well-done. Rights issues and licensing errors prevented a sequel to the original film from being produced in the ’90s, but in the late 2000s, certain developments allowed Alcon Entertainment to begin working on the long-awaited sequel. Many directors were considered early on (including both Christopher Nolan and Ridley Scott himself), but finally Denis Villenueve was chosen. Blade Runner 2049 was released in 2017 and was a notorious box office bomb, despite achieving near-unanimous critical acclaim from both critics and fans of the original film.
While both movies are stunning works of art that contributed heavily to the cyberpunk aesthetic in pop culture, each of them shine in different ways. And while it’s difficult to quantify and rank such outstanding pieces of art, there are certain aspects of each film that make it clear which of them is the better entry into the franchise.
Blade Runner vs. Blade Runner 2049’s Story
Both films take place in a dystopian future in which technology and commodification have become structural foundations of society, resulting in a world where titans of industry are allowed to play God and push the boundaries of genetics. The central technological marvel at the heart of both films are “replicants;” man-made androids that are physically indistinguishable from humans. With a life-cycle of only four years, replicants are essentially created and programmed to work as slave labor for off-world colonies. Occasionally, some replicants will become self-aware and try to escape their impending fates, a decision which leads to them being hunted by the titular “Blade Runners,” police officers tasked with hunting down and killing rogue replicants. Though both films heavily involve these core concepts, they both differ in how they execute them.
The original Blade Runner is defined as a neo-noir for its morally compromised protagonist and shadowy cinematography, but unlike the most famous films in the noir genre, it doesn’t have an incredibly complex narrative structure. While the script of the original film is exceptional, the structure of the movie itself is relatively basic: Rick Deckard (Harrison Ford) is a retired Blade Runner tasked with hunting down and killing an escaped gang of replicants. The movie challenges the audience’s perspective, but it does so by building on a simplistic plot through the usage of nuanced characters and heady philosophical conflict.
Blade Runner 2049, however, truly embraces the plot structure of a neo-noir by having a slowly-unraveling mystery be the heart of the narrative. K (Ryan Gosling), a replicant serving as a Blade Runner for the LAPD, accidentally uncovers evidence suggesting that replicants can reproduce biologically, a discovery that could upset the very balance of the relationship between humankind and replicants. While tasked with hunting down and killing this miracle child, K starts to question his own programming as well as the societal structure that keeps replicants enslaved, and from this singular mystery stems an interconnected web of deceit and conspiracy. The very DNA of Blade Runner 2049 belongs to the neo-noir genre, making it the film with the better story.
Blade Runner vs. Blade Runner 2049’s Cast and Characters
While Blade Runner 2049 might have the upper hand in story, its characters aren’t as iconic or weighty as its predecessor. That isn’t to say that the movie’s characters are badly written, because K’s struggle with the possibility that his very existence might be the key to liberating replicants is very engaging, and Ryan Gosling’s stone-faced performance conveys so much emotion with so much subtlety. Indeed, all the performances in 2049 are exceptional, as the cast is chock full of experienced actors bringing history to their characters in each scene, but one problem that holds the film back is certain characters aren’t as fleshed out as they could have been. New creations such as Jared Leto’s cold and calculating Niander Wallace aren’t given much time to shine in order to make room for the movie’s dense narrative.
Contrast this with the satisfying characters presented in the original Blade Runner. While audiences don’t know every detail about Roy Batty (Rutger Hauer) and the unfathomable events he’s witnessed in his short life-span, one truly feels the weight of his demise along with the rest of the desperate replicants that Deckard is forced to hunt and kill. On top of this, the taboo love story between Deckard and Rachael (Sean Young) is both tragic and inevitable, and truly one of the greatest connections showcased in science-fiction. Both the cast and characters of the original Blade Runner are unforgettable, in a way that 2049 almost replicates.
Blade Runner vs. Blade Runner 2049’s World and Visuals
It simply cannot be overstated just what a massive impact that the original Blade Runner had on the visual landscape of cinema from 1982 onwards. So much of what is considered a staple of the cyberpunk subgenre (neon-bathed alleyways, inescapable corporate advertising rooted into the very infrastructure of the future, and claustrophobic streets packed with grimy civilians) was birthed by Ridley Scott and his creative team with that first film. The production designers and VFX experts leaned on a variety of inspirations to craft the film’s vision of a technological revolution gone wrong, including the French artist Moebius, as well as the movie Metropolis and the physical landscape of Hong Kong.
With all that being said, while the first film is a premiere example of filmmaking ingenuity, the visuals have begun to feel dated. Blade Runner 2049, on the other hand, is breathtaking from start to finish. Denis Villenueve and Roger Deakins went through painstaking lengths to ensure that the visual language of the film was not only continuous with the original, but succeeded the futurist architecture of the original in a way that felt natural and authentic. The social decline caused by 30 years of oppression and corporate authoritarianism is beautifully conveyed by Roger Deakins, and paints a picture of a capitalist hellscape bathed in technicolor, something that was simply unachievable with the special effects used in 1982.
Blade Runner vs Blade Runner 2049’s Themes
It’s difficult to compare the thematic impact of both movies because each of them tackle radically different ideas while working within the same contextual storytelling framework. Both films feature rogue androids and implanted memories in a dystopian wasteland, but each film uses these concepts in unique ways. Blade Runner 2049 casts a massive shadow on the societal overreach of industrial titans, the treatment of marginalized members of an oppressive society, the commodification of life and child-birth, and finally, the nature of heroism and the impact of the one vs the many. It is truly a complex and heady film, with a variety of interpretations that will only continue to grow in the future.
However, in terms of the sheer scale of discussion surrounding the philosophical ideas presented in both movies, the original Blade Runner has been dissected and discussed at length for decades. The movie’s deep dive into what makes someone human is broad enough to warrant dozens of different interpretations, but at the same time, specific enough to affect each main character in the film in a distinct way. Deckard’s humanity and whether or not his potential existence as a replicant makes him less human echoes discussions that have taken place across the canon of classic literature, and directly parallels stories such as Paradise Lost and Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein. In this way, the original Blade Runner is one of the most thematically dense works of art of all-time.
Why Blade Runner 2049 Is Better Than Blade Runner
Inevitably, Blade Runner 2049 is simply a more enjoyable viewing experience than the original. While both of them are incredibly complex and well-executed, the modernity and visual spectacle of 2049 capitalizes on aspects of the original that simply couldn’t be perfected back in 1982. Denis Villenueve has a deep understanding of what made the politics and philosophy of the original film so impactful, and because of this, he was able to make a sequel that surpassed the original by merit of its intricate and deeply-layered narrative. Very few sequels are able to meet the standards set by the original, and even fewer are able to excel them. Fortunately, Blade Runner 2049 exudes a freshness and creative energy that gives it the slight edge on its predecessor, and it’s a shame that it didn’t do better at the box office.
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