Blade Runner

Work Title: Blade Runner
Medium: Film
Episode Title:
Year: 1982
Writer(s): Hampton Fancher
"Original" Writer: Yes Writer(s): David Peoples
"Original" Writer: Yes Writer(s): Philip K. Dick
"Original" Writer: Yes Own work?: Yes
Summary:

"Deckard is a Blade Runner, a police man of the future who hunts down and terminates replicants, artificially created humans. He wants to get out of the force, but is drawn back in when 4 "skin jobs", a slang term for replicants, hijack a ship back to Earth. The city that Deckard must search for his prey is a huge, sprawling, bleak vision of the future. This film questions what it is to be human, and why life is so precious." (from http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0083658/plotsummary)

Era/Year of Portrayal: distant_future
Distinctive characteristics of the world in portrayal:

Dark and bleak world, flying cars, corporate involvement/advertising, strong influence of asian culture

Technology

  • Name of portrayed presence-evoking technology: Replicants
  • Description of the technology: Androids that are virtually indistinguishable from humans in appearance and motions, but physically stronger and perhaps more intelligent. The replicants interact with humans without being recognized as bioengineered technology.
  • Nature of task or activity: The user interacts with the replicants in the same way they would with humans.
  • Performance of the Technology: The technology functions extremely well in its intent. Eventually the intelligence becomes equal to and perhaps even surpasses that of its creator, causing the replicants to act violently towards the users.
  • Description of creator(s): Dr. Eldon Tyrell, male in his late 60's and head of the Tyrell corporation which manufactures the replicants. He is often described as a "genius" and seems sympathetic to the replicants.
  • Major goal(s) of creator(s): For labor
  • Description of users of technology: Mostly middle-aged, middle-class men
  • Type(s) of presence experience in the portrayal: social_presence
  • Description of presence experience: The users interact with the replicants the same way they would with another human, both when they are aware of the replicant's status and when they are unaware. This is due to the replicant's capability for emotional responses.
  • User awareness of technology during experience: They find it pleasant for the most part. However, the antagonists of the film are replicants and react to the users with violence, at which point the experience becomes unpleasant.
  • Valence of experience: The protagonist of the film has carnal reactions to his interaction with the replicants, both physical and sexual.
  • Specific responses: --
Long-term consequences:

A few users are killed by replicants throughout the film, but the film ends with replicants helping the protagonist.

Other:

Coder name: Chloe Westman
Coder email: chloe.westman@temple.edu
Coder affiliation: Temple University