Blade Runner 2049 (2017)

 "And blood-black nothingness begins to spin.,,"

Some films are entertainment. Some are much more of an immersive cultural experience, where one is simply bombarded with meaning by subtext, visuals, dialogue, plot, performance, world building all of it. suffice to say that, after just one viewing (in truly delightful company, I might add), I've no doubt that I've done no more than scratch the surface.

This film doesn't feel as though it's two hours and forty-three minutes long. Yet it owns its slow pace, with Denis Villeneuve feeding us a number of well-thought through environments in this future world (albeit a future to the 2019 not of the real world, but of Blade Runner!). It takes its time. This means suspense, yes, but just luxuriating on the visuals and what they mean for this subdued, downcast world where there are no trees but still cigarettes.

The plot is, perhaps, not particularly breaking new ground, despite a rather effective twist towards the end of the film, but that isn't the point. It's about mood. It's about an extraordinary cast portraying subtle yet deep emotions through facial acting. It's about world building- the Blackout, the sheer horror of Wallace's desire to create a race of synthetic slaves.

And it's a film about ideas. About memory versus reality. About the question of whether an AI can truly love. About what it means to be alive, and what that means as to who matters and who does not. About how we can so easily accept the terrible things done in our name. But also about hope, despite everything.

This is not in itself an adaptation of a Philip K. Dick novel, merely a sequel. Yet it feels very Philip K. Dick. It'll take a few more viewings to absorb this film properly, but it's a thing of pure hope that so philosophical a film can exist. A worthy sequel. And an extraordinary film.