Film Noir Cinematographer Jordon Cronenweth Vangelis Blade Runner 1982 Storm Aftermath Casa Grande 2 Metal Print

There have been volumes written about this cult science fiction classic and numerous versions released on DVD. I like the first one narrated unemotionally (in true film noir fashion) by Harrison Ford with the last sequence lifted with out takes from Stanley Kubrick's "The Shining" (1980).

The production design is extraordinary, even if the producers guessed wrong that LA would be Oriental and not Hispanic in the future. The story is still confusing at times and I am not concerned if Deckard is an android or not. "Blade Runner" remains a classic, far superior to the juvenile "Star Wars" (1977).

Jordon Cronenweth's (1935-1996) cinematography is beautifully complimented by Vangelis' score.

The phrase "tears in the rain" was added by Rudger Hauer. In the 25th anniversary remastering of "Runner" he explained that he indeed jumped from the roof top but asked that the (on wheels) set be moved 10 feet closer.

His death gives humanity to a film steeped in...

I first became obsessed with photography and motion pictures while growing up in post WW2 Manila in the Philippine Islands in the late 1940's/early 1950's. Film noirs were a particular influence. But my first love remains the theater. I acted in numerous amateur productions from 1958 to 1978. In 1979 I earned a MA in drama from the University of Arizona; earlier getting a BA in English from the University of Minnesota, where I co-founded the first film society on campus and ran it for four years. While at the U of A, I studied with the master black and white photo essayist W. Eugene Smith (1918-1978) the last year of his life. I am the last person cited in Jim Hughes' definitive biography of Gene, as I wrote about attending his final...