John McCann says ‘Blade Runner 2049’ is a visual spectacle like no other this year, but it may only be for people who enjoyed the first one…

In what was arguably the most highly anticipated movie event of the year (aside from the annual Star Wars hype), the prospect of one of Hollywood’s most talented and on-form directors captaining the sequel to Ridley Scott’s iconic 1982 masterpiece Blade Runner was one that had most sci-fans giddy with excitement.

Denis Villeneuve’s remarkable work on his previous feature ‘Arrival’ indicated that the chances of a film worthy of it’s place alongside the original were quite high and unsurprisingly the director delivers (and more besides) in a film that is asthetically superior to anything that you will see on the big screen this year.

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The innovative film maker stays true to the style, themes and tone that made it’s predecessor such a cult classic and there are a lot of similarities with the original, yet Villeneuve has added his own unique brush strokes on what was already a picturesque canvas.

Hans Zimmer pays homage to Vangelis’ iconic soundtrack with a similar haunting score and Roger Deakins cinematography is simply breathtaking.

Casting Ryan Gosling in the lead role was a masterstroke also, as was evident from his work in Nicolas Winding Refn’s ‘Drive’, he plays the quiet brooding type quite well.

Harrison Ford adds a level of gravitas to the production whereas credit must also go to a formidable supporting cast which includes Jared Leto and the remarkable Sylvia Hoeks.

All this praise for this incredible feature does come with a warning however; if you are not fan of the original then this may not be the film for you (a point that was evident from a few early walkouts at the screening I attended).

In a cinematic world of the instantly gratifying blockbuster the slow burner is not the popular choice and at a running time of 164 minutes this does at times require patience, yet in my opinion the payoff is mostly definitely worth it as Blade Runner 2049 is a visual spectacle like no other you’ll see this year!

4/5