This ’80s sci-fi cult classic was a commercial failure at the time
Over time, movies that were flops at the time are revisited and eventually considered a classic. A cult classic that was a flop at the time is 1982’s Blade Runner. Upon release, the film received mixed reviews and was a commercial failure.
sword hunter It was directed by Ridley Scott, with a screenplay by Hampton Fancher and David Peoples. The film, starring Harrison Ford, Rutger Hauer, Sean Young and Edward James Olmos, is an adaptation of the novel by Philip K. Dick. Do androids dream of electric sheep? since 1968.
History
The film is set in a dystopian Los Angeles in 2019, where synthetic humans known as replicants are biointegrated by the powerful Tyrell Corporation to work on space stations.
When a group of fugitive advanced replicants, led by Roy Batty (Hauer), escape back to Earth, exhausted police officer Rick Deckard (Ford) reluctantly agrees to track them down.
Ambitious project
sword hunter It is now considered a cult classic and one of the best science fiction films of all time, but things were different back then. Initially, the film did not do well in theaters and was a commercial failure. It was an ambitious project that required many visual effects shots.
All of the film’s effects were created without the benefit of CGI and are still impressive. Matte paintings, models and more came together to bring the world of Los Angeles to life in 2019, with the studio ultimately paying $28 million to produce it. sword hunter.Business failure
The film exceeded its budget by grossing $32.9 million in the United States and another $8.7 million abroad. Unfortunately, this was not enough to make the film a commercial success. sword hunter It also received mixed reviews from critics.
Some wrote that the plot took a backseat to the film’s special effects and did not fit with the studio’s marketing as an action-adventure film. Others praised the film’s thematic complexity and predicted it would stand the test of time.
Influence
In the end they were right, because sword hunter It has now become a cult classic, praised for its production design, depicting a high-tech but decaying future, and is often seen as a leading example of neo-noir cinema and a foundation of the cyberpunk genre.
sword hunter has had a great influence on other science fiction films, video games, anime and television series. The film was also the first in a franchise. A sequel, titled Blade Runner 2049, was released in 2017, with Ryan Gosling starring and Ford reprising his role from the original film. In 2021, the anime series. Blade Runner: Black Lotus released.
To look at?
Want sword hunter to see? You can rent and buy the movie at Pathe Thuis in main videojust like the sequel Blade Runner 2049.