On Earth, rogue replicants are outlawed, a hazard that demands execution, which is provided by the ruthless blade runners. The world of the future is cold, dark and unfriendly. It is a time of decay, fear, trash, neon and promises of clean air, blue waters and green grass. .
Deckard's former job in the police department was as a talented blade runner, a euphemism for detectives that hunt down and assassinate rogue replicants. Called before his one-time superior (M. Emmett Walsh), Deckard is forced back into active duty. A quartet of replicants led by Roy Batty (Rutger Hauer) has escaped and headed to Earth, killing several humans in the process. After meeting with the eccentric Eldon Tyrell (Joe Turkel), creator of the replicants, Deckard finds and eliminates Zhora (Joanna Cassidy), one of his targets. Attacked by another replicant, Leon (Brion James), Deckard is about to be killed when he's saved by Rachael (Sean Young), Tyrell's assistant and a replicant who's unaware of her true nature. In the meantime, Batty and his replicant pleasure model lover, Pris (Darryl Hannah) use a dying inventor, J.F. Sebastian (William Sanderson) to get close to Tyrell and murder him. Deckard tracks the pair to Sebastian's, where a bloody and violent final confrontation between Deckard and Batty takes place on a skyscraper rooftop high above the city. The film ends in a monstrous, violent and emotionally engaging finale, which makes a lasting impression. .
So why see "Blade Runner- when it's 20 years old, it's available in the video stores and it was on Channel 17 a few days ago? The main reason is that director Ridley Scott has re-cut his timeless masterwork. In 1982, preview audiences for the movie were overawed by its wealth of visual detail, and they expressed confusion with the storyline. So Warner Bros, and a reluctant Scott, inserted narration and an uplifting ending. When an alternate version of the movie was exhibited recently to positive response, Scott decided to make a final version he'd be happy with.
