Picking Up the Postmodern Pieces:

An Examination of Blade Runner I and Blade Runner II

Michael H. Eaves

Department of Communication Arts

Valdosta State University

Valdosta, Ga. 31698

912-333-5820

meaves@valdosta.edu

Presented at the 1998 Annual Meeting of the SSCA

in the Popular Communication Division

in San Antonio, Texas on Saturday, April 3

Abstract

This paper examines the rhetorical and postmodern differences between the two versions of the released film, Blade Runner. In 1982, Director Ridley Scott released the original Blade Runner (or what I will refer to later in the paper as Blade Runner I). Later, in 1992, Scott re-released the director=s cut of Blade Runner (or what I will refer to later in the paper as Blade Runner II). Blade Runner II contained different scenes, a different ending, and was generally more pessimistic than the original film. Postmodern differences and characteristics of each film are analyzed using a Foucauldian filter.

Picking Up the Postmodern Pieces:

An Examination of Blade Runner I and Blade Runner II

"We are now in the third stage of the sign. The sign has become reality, or the hyperreal; the sign, that is, masks the fact that there is no basic reality...This language displaces the earlier forms of literacy based on orality and the print media. It introduces a new set of media logics and media formats. These new formats alter the person's relationships to the "real" and the technologies of the real. They maintain a narrative and epistemological commitment to the simulational logic of the third stage of the sign. They serve to turn the individual into a new cultural object; an object who produces cultural knowledge and cultural texts via the new informational formats. At the same time they become new vehicles for the production and reproduction of official ideology."

In the above quote, Denzin outlines the power of media in communicating a new text- a "videocy." This theme serves as the social backdrop for this paper. In the paper, I will divide the project into three main sections: 1) basic summary of Blade Runner; 2) central differences between Blade Runner I and Blade Runner II; and 3) conclusion.

In early September, 1992, Ridley Scott announced that his depiction of postmodern society in Blade Runner would be re-released later this year containing versions of the film that were edited in the 1982 release. In an interview with CNN, Scott suggests that his earlier release was significantly edited because the movie industry declared it was too "pessimistic." In the 1982 version, we see a more optimistic ending than was originally intended by Scott. In the paper, I explore some of the postmodern realities of Blade Runner II in leu of Blade Runner I.

Both versions are excellent examples of postmodern film. The films depict what Los Angeles is like in the year 2019. Postmodern elements flourish in the films including floating electronic billboards, overcrowding, international immigration, darkness, industrial decay, and a return to nostalgic architecture. This architecture is seen in several buildings including the Tyrell corporation's Egyptian pyramid style and Deckard's apartment, which "is reminiscent of an ancient Mayan palace. Pastiche, as an aesthetic of quotation, incorporates dead styles; it attempts a recollection of the past, of memory, and of history.

Los Angeles is seen in the stages of late capitalism. In fact, many of its inhabitants have already left for Off-World (a place where life can begin again for the wealthiest and the fittest). The streets are filled with market seller, traders, and buyers. While money is still used, much of the transactions reflect a barter system of trade. Animals are brought into the city where they are traded for merchandise or services. All these elements are combined to form a picture of late capitalism and its decay.

Other examples of late capitalism also exist. Replicants have been created to help humans explore the colonization of hazardous planets. In this sense, technology has been perfected to establish "perfect labor," or what Marx might categorize as the perfection of labor-power. These examples of late capitalism clarify the postmodern nature of the film. Bruno confirms this connection when he writes that:

Another example of postmodernism in Blade Runner is the disorder that Bruno refers to above. Disorder or chaos is a primary characteristic of postmodernism. Indeed, the central theme of postmodernism is a celebration of difference, not sameness.

Alongside the salient postmodern nature of Blade Runner, we find a central theme in the film, the concept of memory. Genetic engineers in the film recognized strange obsessions in the replicants to mimic all aspects of human life. These obsessions included hate, love, fear, and envy. In order to better control the replicants, the engineers "gifted" each replicant with a "past" or memory to cushion his or her emotional disposition. These memories were delicate and often included only a handful of family photos to correspond to their "past." Fearing a lack of control, the engineers installed a four-year life-span in the replicants as a safety device.

In Blade Runner, there are four replicants who have escaped slave labor from colonizing planets and one replicant who works at the Tyrell corporation. Led by Roy, these replicants seek to infiltrate the Tyrell Corporation (the company who made the replicants) to discover their past. Deckard is told by Captain Bryan that he is to "retire" each of the replicants, the job of any blade runner. Bryan briefs Deckard on the files of the replicants. The data banks used in 2019 are full evidence of the domination of power and knowledge. Foucault warns of this technology of power when society begins to treat humans or "replicants" as spectacles for detail under surveillance.

There are several evidences of memory throughout the film as reflected in the characters of each replicant. A discussion of each replicant as he or she is "retired" in the movie follows with an analysis of "memory" within his or her character.

First, Leon's character induces a discussion of memory. We learn early in the first five minutes of the movie that Leon is a replicant. Investigator Holden conducts a voice-com test to see if Leon is a replicant. The test is designed to provoke an emotional response; if the iris involuntarily dialates and there is a blush response, the individual is a replicant. Holden asked Leon about his mother; then, Leon shot Holden saying, "Let me tell you about my mother..." BANG. BANG.

Throughout the movie, Leon is searching for his past. In one point in the movie, Roy asked Leon, "Did you get your precious photos?" Leon responded by saying, "Someone was there..." Roy inquired, "Men..(Leon shakes head up and down)...police men...(Roy turns away in disgust)"

This short, but powerful dialogue is important. The concept of memory is important for Leon in his continual search for his past as evidenced by his collection of family photos (supplied by the Tyrell corporation). The photograph is the epitome of memories. The photograph represents time standing still-a frozen history. This frozen piece of time represents a "fragment" of memory, unclear, ambiguous, and mysterious. Photographs are a good example of postmodern artifact, a "fragment" of discourse. Foucault discusses how the photograph makes up the fragmentary history or document for the individual. Foucault argues that "history transforms documents into monuments." He continues to say that history is "one way in which society recognizes and develops a mass of documentation with which it is inextricably linked."

The photographs make up the replicant's fragmentary history, a longing for a past. Bruno argues that in Blade Runner, "the replicants are perfect `skin jobs,' they look like humans, they talk like them, they even have feelings and emotions...What they lack is a history. For that they have to be killed. Seeking a history, fighting for it, they search for their origins, for that time before themselves." This search is the foundation of the entire film.

Second, Zhora's character is probably the most shallow. While searching in Leon's apartments, Deckard takes Leon's photos and finds a snake scale in the bathtub. Later, he connects the snake scale with Zhora as she is a dancer with artificial snakes at a club downtown. Deckard, posing as a cynic concerned about morality in society, learns of her secret, tracks her down and kills her. Deckard is upset with his "retirement" of a replicant as he would be if he had shot a human.

Leon witnesses this act and seeks revenge for Zhora's death. At the verge of death, Deckard is saved by Rachel when she shoots and kills Leon. This event leads Deckard to protect Rachel's secret and they develop a close relationship. Rachel inquires about her incept dates, longevity, and other information that Deckard would know. He refuses to tell her anything.

Third, Rachel also seeks a past, a longing for discovering her memory. Deckard tests her ability to recall child events like playing doctor, and the baby spider outside the window. Deckard discounts her recollection of these events as "implants." Rachel tries to identify with her past by putting her hair down and playing the piano. She too holds tight to a photo of her and her mother that Tyrell had given her. Unlike Leon who has no photograph of his mother and thus no memory, Rachel succeeds in finding her past. Bruno writes, "She has a document-as we know, the foundation of history. Her document is a photograph, a photograph of her mother, hugging her, a child, against her, wakening in her the rumpled softness of, most probably, a hamburger."

Last, Pris and Roy, our fourth and fifth replicants, meet J.F. Sebastian, one of Tyrell's genetic designer. We know the least about Pris and of Roy, we only know he longs for more life in which to store up his experiences. Pris and Roy convince J.F. that they need Tyrell's help or Pris will die. Being deceived, J.F. leads Roy to Tyrell. Roy kills Tyrell and J.F. since he is not able to live longer by changing the termination date.

Deckard investigates J.F.'s apartment and is surprised by Pris who is disguised as a toy. Deckard kills Pris after a close encounter with death. Roy goes to J.F.'s apartment and finds Deckard has killed Pris, the replicant he loved. Suddenly, Roy hunts down Deckard only to first give him a head start. Roy plays a mental game with Deckard and wants him to experience the same anxieties, fears, and uncertainties that it is like to be a slave. Almost falling to the street below, Roy saves Deckard's life and tells him a story before he dies. He shares his experiences with Deckard. His story goes something like this,

Deckard returns to find Rachel still alive, as she has no termination date. Deckard and Rachel drive away from the city toward the sun, symbolic of a better tomorrow (this scene will no doubt be omitted in the new release). As Deckard explains at the end of the movie, all the replicants wanted to know were the same questions we want to know: Who am I? Where do I come from? How much time do I have?

To return to or beginning quote, replicants in Blade Runner represent that videocy or simulacra for what is real. The replicant has the same longing for a past as does a human. Bruno concludes nicely when he says that, "the replicants in Blade Runner are, on the contrary, as the name itself indicates, serial terms. No original is thus invoked as point of comparison, and no distinction between real and copy remains."

There are three main differences between Blade Runner I and Blade Runner II: 1) the continual reference to the unicorn in Blade Runner II, which is largely absent in Blade Runner I; 2) the camera angles and exposure to postmodern scenes of decay and ruin are more pervasive in Blade Runner II; and most importantly, 3) the endings are vastly different, with Blade Runner I ending on a much more optimistic note than Blade Runner II.

The presence of the unicorn in Blade Runner II is important because it is not found in Blade Runner I. World Book Dictionary defines a unicorn as Aan imaginary animal like a horse but having a single, long, spiral horn in the middle of its forehead and the tail of a lion.@ The unicorn is a rhetorical construction of myth in several ways.

First, the unicorn symbolizes a heraldic quality, like the horse. This is the use of myth as metaphor, and it might have been excluded from Blade Runner I because producers felt the story line was not simple enough.

Second, the unicorn is a mysterious creature. The mythic qualities probably give it the best rhetorical construction in the film. Myth plays an important role for the rhetor, director Ridley Scott, and the audience, viewer of the film.

Third, the unicorn symbolizes freedom and creativity, both postmodern qualities. In the postmodern arena, one is searching to (de)center the middle, to seek the periphery instead of the center.

The camera angles are vastly different in Blade Runner I and II. In several of the opening scenes of Blade Runner II, the camera almost takes the viewer to each site with a close, detailed examination. This approach is not used in the first film. In addition, there are more scenes of postmodern architecture (e.g., the Bradbury Theater, Statue of Liberty, and large and massive buildings which now appear to be deserted). Several important indications are reached by the use of camera in Blade Runner II.

First, in Blade Runner II, the viewer gets unedited Ridley Scoot, raw Blade Runner. In this film, the viewer gets a feelings that Scott is telling his untold story. Through the use of different camera angles and new scenes, Scott is able to use the camera to capture the Apostmodern@ experience.

Second, (re)releases are becoming more popular. With the most recent example of George Lucas= 1997 release of the Star Wars Trilogy, (re)releases allow directors to show scenes which were edited out and left on the floor, and enhance the angles of camera to improve the effect of the film. With the Star Wars Trilogy, it appears that technology was the primary motive for the 20-year (re)release. Such was not the case with Blade Runner II.

Ridley Scott did not really take advantage of technological advances in the remake. Instead, he was more concerned about the audience seeing Ahis@ own Blade Runner, the true postmodern depiction of a post-nuclear, apocalyptic era in our future. By making Blade Runner II, Scott is able to tell his untold story. The new camera angles place the viewer in a different seat, the viewer sees things before that he or she did not see. Scott challenges what we saw and has us (re)examine the contents for a different Aread.@

Probably the greatest area of difference between Blade Runner I and Blade Runner II is in the ending of the two films. In Blade Runner I, the movie ends with Decker and Rachel driving away in the sunshine, while they smile at each other. In contrast, Blade Runner II depicts a much more pessimistic ending with the movie ending with Roy dying there right in front on Decker. ADeath@ is the last theme the viewer is exposed to in Blade Runner II. In the first film, the viewer is almost given a sense of Abirth@ or at the very least, (re)newal. The ending most notably has important rhetorical consequences for the rhetor and the audience.

First, the success of the first film was dependent on the public=s view of its contents. Typically, we enjoy a 7.00 movie much better if it ends on an upbeat note. But why is it that the director=s voice is ignored to achieve such success.

Foucault argues in his writings that power creates knowledge. In this case, the power (Hollywood Producers) produce the knowledge of the film. While the film, Blade Runner I and II obviously contain postmodern elements, one may not recognize the rhetorical constraints placed upon Scott in releasing the film.

The (re)release in Blade Runner II becomes Scott=s way of overcoming his marginalized voice. In a sense, Blade Runner II can signify a resistance, a postmodern opposition to popularity, conformity, and normality. Recently, the rhetorical use of Foucault=s plan of resistance has been expanded.

Second, the ending in Blade Runner II serves as a raw, pessimistic, and postmodern view of the future. Foucault=s lacunae on Aresistance@ has been recently expanded. Ronald Wendt argues that this Agap@ in his writing can be resolved by looking at Foucault=s strategy of genealogy. Scott=s vision of an abnormal film was no more evident than in the second release of Blade Runner. Blade Runner II represents an affront to normalization. Wendt clarifies this when he writes:

AThis interplay or relation also exists between normalization and Astruggles@ against normalization. Because of this relation jettisons the term Apower,@ it is much more telling than the power-knowledge interplay that has received so much attention; power is active and power is exercised in the relation between subjection and resistance. This subjection-resistance relation is the other, less obvious relation in Foucault=s conceptualization of power; an idea that brings a great deal of insight to power dynamics.

Third, we can see the film ending in both Blade Runner I and II as separate texts. In Blade Runner I we see an optimistic text, in Blade Runner II, we see a pessimistic text. How can these endings in film serve as texts and which text is perhaps more significant for the rhetor.

Initially, the text in the ending of Blade Runner I is almost predictable. It is normal; it ends, A...and they all lived happily ever after...@ In contrast, Blade Runner II=s closure leaves the audience on edge, without a boundary, without a finish. In some ways, the ending in Blade Runner II is oppositional, it seeks resistance, it is rebellious, it is vague, mysterious, abstract, and subjective.

The endings of the film can then be described as modern versus postmodern. In the first film, the ending is Anormal@ and Apredictable.@ Such characteristics flourish within a modern framework. On the other hand, the later ending is Aabstract,@ Afluid,@ and Asubjective,@ thus giving it postmodern elements. Probably in this way in more than any, Scott is a postmodernist since he is able to show Ahis@ voice in Blade Runner II (sub text). In addition, the actual ending of Blade Runner II (literal text), contains more postmodern themes than in its predecessor.

Postmodern film represents some glimpses of the future for our society, some more optimistic than others. Foucault's concept of memory continues to be a central theme in many sci-fi films made in the 1980s and 1990s (since it is an emotion usually held only by humans). The rhetorical power of cinema is pervasive because the film industry can communicate an important message to our society. Through signs and videocy-a new text of visual form-the film industry may help us to know more about our society, the dangers of technology, and how to keep our planet clean and safe. By examining the differences between Blade Runner I and Blade Runner II, we see the importance that the public and film studio have in the rhetorical construction or (re)vision of the director=s motive and intent for his or her production.