Why You Love A Hero Who Doesn't Matter | Blade Runner 2049
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 15 ส.ค. 2018
- In Blade Runner 2049, the most unique thing is that unlike most heroes in movies and films, Ryan Gosling's Joe isn't important. We'll talk about why that matters in this video essay.
Blade Runner 2049 is a movie directed by Denis Villeneuve, with the great Roger Deakins as cinematographer. With Hans Zimmer composing the soundtrack for Blade Runner 2049. - ภาพยนตร์และแอนิเมชัน
![Blade Runner 2049 - Empathy Propaganda [Video Essay]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/WTKmaJa3Ci0/mqdefault.jpg)
![Blade Runner 2049 - Empathy Propaganda [Video Essay]](/img/tr.png)
We love him because we can relate to him. In the grand scheme of things, most of us are...nobody.
The fact that a normal, average man can make his life matter in some way, gives us hope.
A bit ironic though that the "average joe" character is played by borderline supermodel Ryan Gosling lol.
Not that I would've changed a thing I think he was perfect in this role.
best comment ever
that was perfectly put. I also feel a lot more connected with heroes that are not fighting in a global scale. Like in comics i prefer heroes like Daredevil and Moon Knight who's actions are mostly contained inside their city and whatever they accomplished can easily be erased the next day since fighting criminals one by one is a losing effort and I think deep down these type of heroes knows it but they will keep doing what they do anyway.
@@hittkid6312 as with animal rescue, to the one you save, it makes all the difference in the world.
@@hittkid6312 that’s why I love daredevil. He knows his work can be undone easily, and that he can’t save everyone, but he gets beat up regardless just for the few that he can save
"The right man in the wrong place can make all the difference in the world."
YES!
Classic reference.
(Half-Life 2)
wow what a perfect comment for a video
Not to imply that you've been sleeping on the job.
Classic: our mutual benefector
I unironically laughed when he sat down on that and that lady said "oh you thought it was you"
this movie is soul crushing.
Yup, this movie is definitely comedy genre. That Joi ad is hilarious as well
I was sad for Joe, he thought he had importance and just had all of that crashed down to only realize that none of us are important but we and only us choose whats important to us, like said in the video
That part really hurt me
Yeah it really crushed my soul mainly when Joe, got upset over the memory that happened, and hearing Deckard, talking about what happened to him after the original movie.
@Serena HanWang do i want to ask why
I love that his unimportance is hinted at in the name that was inadvertently chosen for him by Joi. Joe. Average Joe. An ordinary guy, and it just makes so much sense.
Then it takes it away by the joi advert calling him joe, as if they all call them joe as default. Really highlights him not being special.
@@ooSHINIES that's what the original comment is saying...
@@ooSHINIES i think the billboard calling him Joi, was Preference Cookies, a faint, banal but poignant memory of the real relationship. But then Im a hopless romantic.
@@brmbkl No, the software product that is Joi calls its owners Joe to make them feel special and pretends to love them. Poor K not only found out he wasn't Deckard's son, he also realizes his holographic girlfriend never really loved him. And then he made the heroic decision to go save Deckard, which is what makes him a hero after all.
Her name is also significant given that she is attractive but isn't physical, so in order to... release, Joe would need to... take matters... in his own, hm, hands
My name is Joe and I saw this film alone in the theater after losing my baby in pregnancy and then the collapse of my relationship with my fiance soon after. I am alone lately and this film touched me after so much isolation and pain. Very good movie, a work of art.
Hey Joe. I’m really sorry to hear you’ve had to push through such terrible experiences the last few years. I deeply hope that the number of things in your life you’re able to draw comfort from continue to grow exponentially as time passes. Keep looking for beautiful things, Joe.
You will be better, Joe! Best wishes
U ok now?
Donnie once said "The search for God is absurd if everyone dies alone", but I think the larger question implied in that scene was whether most people live alone even if they're "with" someone. The only way I've known to get through is to remember that "you're gonna carry that weight". It's not to say that you want to, but even when it feels like you can't you're going to. I don't believe that "we should imagine Sisyphus happy", but we should learn from him.
Sorry if that's not the feelgood message everyone else tends to give, but I tend to look at things from my own maudlin viewpoint which often is rather pragmatic when it comes to depression. Someone once said "depression is a life sentence, you never get over it". I think it's more helpful to realise that bad things will always happen than allow one's self to pretend things will ever be "better forever". Still, diff'rent strokes for diff'rent folks. Just chipping in my tuppence on the matter. My condolences are legit, but I don't care to swaddle people with false hopes is all.
Hang in there buddy
Ryan Gosling does an amazing job at these types of protagonists. His character in Drive isn't that far off from Officer Joe.
Turok Makto dude yes hes one of those actors that can show so much emotion w his eyes and a straight face. Hes a amazing actor
I agree, not everyone can do that, you don't know what he is thinking, you truly believe him...
Yeah...he did
@Marcus-Aerilius Maximus were you on this video when you heard the news? random
@Marcus-Aerilius Maximus good
What I love is that Joe hopes that he was real, his life meant something. And yet, even his memories is someone else's. He is not just unimportant, it is not even his story. I love this film!
I disagree he is important just not in the traditional way, hes the definition of an unsung hero
@@VainSick not to mention his life is ‘more real’ than the one who gave him the memories. He has experienced the real world while hers is artificial - beautifully captured in the final scene with him dying in a real snow storm while she enjoys the fake snow
And that is one of the reasons why he's literally me
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Yupp . You definately " " Get I t " " .
-
Hes literally Venom Snake
Everyone in the movie wanted to use Joe for their own ends. The cops wanted to use him to keep the status quo, Luv and Wallace wanted to use him to lead them to the child, and the other replicants wanted to use him to help them safeguard their revolution (arrogantly believing that the fact that he was a replicant made him want to do their bidding). The only one in the movie who never asks anything of Joe is Deckard. And in the end Joe decides that the best thing to spend his life on is to reunite a father with his daughter, instead of on all the plans of those who treated him like a tool for their own ends.
I do wonder why the other replicants needed him to kill Dereck or Luv. Is he so much better than all other replicants as a blade runner replicant that they had to save him and ask him to kill Dereck instead of doing it own their own ?
@@icarojose6316 I assume its because of what he is, a designed killer. I dunno if any of the other replicants in their little crew have the skills to take on Wallace Corp. Another reason could be to use him on order not to expose themselves to much. If they can pin everything on that off-baseline Blade Runner model that's been messing around the last few days then better for them. We know they aren't above sacrificing people if that's what's most convenient to their plans.
@@icarojose6316 Let's be honest, Joe was expendable to them. Why risk someone who has deeper ties and probably more value to the resistance if they can use Joe who hasn't even necessarily committed to their cause and doesn't know enough to compromise them if he's captured?
"Dying for the right cause is the most human thing to do"
Wrong Dying By Taking a Choice for Yourself and not following an Order is The most Human thing to do
K's idea of "the right cause" reunites an embittered old man with his daughter, allowing both to connect. Giant Naked Joi aside, K's Joi loses her existence for HER idea of the right cause. Out of Freysa, it's practically a suicide bomber's credo.
@@danphillips2784 Good one. Also note that ironically, Freysa is Palestinian. Hollywood's poison/subliminal garbage was very limited in this masterpiece , in my opinion. This movie was superb in every way.
John 15:13 Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.
Living for the right cause is the most human thing all along. I would say.
Joe is a love letter to humanity, for the way he tries.
Better part of us.
The transcendence of NPC
@@slomnim the EMO version of Blue Shirt Guy!
Yeah, that simplifies the whole trama of humanity.
Who is joe ? :v
What I loved about Joe's character was that despite being insignificant himself, he sacrificed his life for something significant. Typically one would assume that it was to help the replicant revolution.
I don't believe he gave a shit about the revolution. But rather for something deeper, more meaningful. He did it for family, something he never had. He brought a father and daughter together. Something that he craved for himself. A human connection. Joe was truly a well written character.
replicants freeing themselves is as deep and meaningful as family and part of him definitely did it for that as well dude what are u on
@Ruben-fn5li the rebellion told K to kill Deckard, it's in the rebellion's best interest to cut off any loose ends like Deckard. His choice despite knowing this shows what he cared about.
@@angelgutierrez9581 no it doesnt, it's just a choice that he made at the end of everything that unfortunately didnt put them in first. doesnt mean he didnt care for the cause, trying to argue this is so weird if u think part of the point the movie was trying to get across was that the replicants freeing themselves isnt something meaningful then idk what to tell u
@Ruben-fn5li never said he didn't care for the cause but he clearly cared far more more about family. He literally died so Decker could see his daughter, an act that goes against the rebellion. The whole point of that act, and the fact the movie ends with this choice shows that the movie itself isn't even really about replicants freeing themselves.
@@angelgutierrez9581 yikes
Cult classic to the core. It's not for everyone, but it will give you an unforgettable experience to those who are properly equipped to feel this movie.
Exactly. If you open up to it, it emotionally delivers!
The first one is my favourite move of all time but this was a worthy sequel
@@recline69okay bud
@@recline69 this one is better in every way possible
@@recline69 honestly after watching them both i find it really hard to decipher which one is the better film. the *only* thing that gives the original blade runner the edge imo is the fact that it has a much better 'antagonist' (or protagonist depending on how you view the film) in Roy Batty. The second film expanded on pretty much every concept i wanted it too and it also had deckard return. I went into the 2049 with awfully low expectations because i do not like ryan gosling but by the end i was damn near crying like a female lmfao my only complaint about the 2049 is that jared leto came off as a really campy 80's cartoon villian and doesn't feel as realistic as Tyrell Corp.
I saw this movie alone and left the theater heart broken, devastated, and with no one to talk to about it. The one-two punch of the realization that he wasn't "the one" followed by the Joy neon billboard scene right after just gutted me emotionally. When the billboard Joy called him Joe, my initial thought was a glimmer of hope. That she was somehow able to upload part of her memory somewhere...before the reality of it all, that it was all fabricated, hit me so hard I almost doubled over physically. I went home and just stared up at the ceiling trying to process my emotions. I think it was the knowledge that no one in their world would understand what he went through, gave up, or even remember his sacrifice at all is what cut me the deepest.
I told a couple of my coworkers about how good the film was without saying too much. They eventually saw it but neither of them had the overwhelming emotional response that I did, they just thought it was "ok but a little long". This movie is such a heroic tragedy the likes of which I have never seen, amazing sound design, aesthetically gorgeous, and regardless of what the people around me say I still count this as one of the best movies I have ever seen in my life.
Not everyone is mentally equipped to take the red pill.
I had the same exact experience. It was an honor seeing this in theaters.
Wow, thats very introspective. It is a great movie, hopefully your doing ok.
I was smashed for days
They ..your co - workers are not of the realization of true meaning of how we are to live.
I feel honored to have seen this movie in the theater
Saw it twice, it changed my perspective on life.
Watched it 5 times!
@@Psyfi85 how your perspective was changed?
psyko9019 How I view myself internally but also how I view humanity. The film isn’t just beautiful, it carries messages too.
I wish I had.😒
Same with Dark Souls. You aren't the chosen one, you're one of many who make the same journey as you. You just end up making it. And that's what, in turn, makes you special.
This 👍
ah, i was looking for this. well said
i just came across this comment and i just got back into bloodborne i hated those games but for some reason im loving it now
I never really thought of Dark souls that way 👍
Same with Morrowind too. You aren't the chosen one, you're just the one who chose to do something about it.
Joe didn't actually wanted to be "special". It depends on what exactly you mean by that. Joe wanted to be a "human". Real human. He passed the replicant test only until he started to remember "his" path. He was hoping that he was a human. Joe always thought about himself as a machine. That's why he never failed in replicant test before. But when he started to think that he might be real born, he immediately fails the test. But dying at the end, Joe is happy. Bcuz he realises that the "real human" chooses his path on his own. Real human is the one who decided to be a human. Joe decides to be a human. When all the "special" stuff happening in the background, Joe smiles laying on the stairs alone. Bcuz he is finally a human. That is special to him, all he wanted. He dies happy...
To be a human is special to him
he dies a real human bean and a real hero
@@zack8865 shut up 💀
@@dwaynekeenum1916 in other words he wanted to be a real human being and a real hero
He died?!
The best stories are ordinary people in extraordinary circumstances.
ZSTE more authentic emotions involved so therefore more real
You sir speak the truth
Well said
Indeed. That's why Frodo Baggins is another great protagonist. He is a regular joe dreaming of living the life of a hero. During his travels he learns that he is only an average joe and his choices have left him broken. He has no special power aside from dignity and the determination of doing what is right.
@@xristosrizos8406 frodo is a asshole , sam is the only hero, the one who destroy the ring
An unimportant hero is loved because the audience of general nobodies can relate to the hero on a personal level....
@@RadRogue1 Rey isn't relate-able to the average person because while she technically is nobody special - she is able to do things nobody else can do. She is heroic without facing the challenges that lead to somebody becoming a hero, she is the most highly skilled pilot and fighter without having earned it in the eyes of the audience, her journey of self discovery is extremely shallow. She is a role model for the modern person who thinks they can be and do anything without having to through the extremely difficult physical and mental process of becoming somebody who is truly heroic.
This isn't true for Joe and The Man With No Name, everything is against them and technically they have no reason to help the people that they do, but they help anyway even at great risk to themselves. They suffer through repeated failure and enjoy small victories which allow them to grow. They are role models because they show us what we could be if we were better than who we are.
@@OfficialRatiio for that very reason i'd argue that Jinn erso is relatable. because while she isn't a nobody she certainly isn't anything special. she's spent her life living in situations where she often had to fight or steal to get her next meal and she was able to exerpience loss, trauma, pain. she was willing to sacrifice. she got hurt. and she did it all selflessly for the greater good. Jinn erso is actually one of my favorite characters in the universe.
@@OfficialRatiio I think that's BS. The only "challenge" Luke had to overcome to get his powers was carrying Yoda around.
The problem with Rey being a "nobody" is that avoiding a common twist is *not* a twist in itself. The un-twist is anticlimactical and seems random... and while not every story needs to be tied together (e.g. documentation-style, slice of life) the lack of cohesion contradicts the overall heroic theme. The lack of engagement doesn't have anything to do with the character. (Except for those Far-Right idiots who percieve any action movie with a female protagonist as an attack on white male supremacy. Nazis are stupid.)
@@x.a.2758 I don't think it is BS. Luke had to overcome far more than that.
He had dreams of joining pilot school like his friends and seeing the stars but his dreams were shattered after the Imperials murdered his foster family. He then goes on a journey to find his true purpose which involves a long process of training in the force with multiple traumatised masters as well as skills linked to the rebel alliance. His training is filled with constant failure and small victories. Luke learns much of his wisdom from other, more experienced characters. He then goes on a mission to destroy the death star in a self sacrificing way because he knows it's the right thing to do. In the end of the story, he does one of the most noble things a hero could do. He realises his own father was the cause of his life problems, but that sets him on a new path. Luke walks directly into the Star Wars version of hell itself, the Imperial Death Star, alone with nothing but the hope of giving his father the chance to redeem himself and right his wrongs, to find the good in the most evil man in the galaxy - which he achieves, meaning Luke is one of the most hopeful and noble characters ever written. The catalyst to all of his heroism was suffering, suffering that he rose above.
Luke is a shining example of what any of us could be like (male, female or otherwise) if we overcame suffering in a way that allows us to be the best version of ourselves. He doesn't always succeed, and he gives into hopelessness, fear and rage multiple times but in the end Luke stands up straight prepared to do his best and give his life in order to do the right thing. That is what the character arc of the hero is. The arc is what is important to a characters story.
I don't dislike the character of Rey because she is a "strong female character" - I dislike the character of Rey because she is poorly written.
The problem is more complex than simply "far right nazi's" (that doesn't mean what you think it means by the way) disliking women because they want women to be dominated by the patriarchy. I worry about what you said because it seems very ideological, rather than opinions you thought through properly and came to after genuine mental effort.
While I am not a white supremacist Nazi, I do think that calling people who belong to that ideology stupid is a mistake, since there are plenty of stupid as well as highly intelligent people who belong to every ideology there is. That ideology is linked to tribalism and they feel as though their group is under attack by people like you, which it is - so they aim to fight back and in doing so they fall into the darkness of hatred - but you have to understand where it comes from. It comes from the exact same resentment that fuels the far lefts attack on the white race, masculinity and conservative belief.
I understand that my comment is a lot to go through but I hope you can begin to understand my perspective at least a little.
@@OfficialRatiio At first I wanted to say that's an interesting take bc obviously that's not how I see the character... both characters, actually.
Except then you started talking about "the Left attacking the white race". I didn't mean you specifically when I made that side comment about Nazis -- but good to know where you're coming from.
Unions are not lynching white people or anything nazi groups do. If you think universal human rights and literal genocide are in any way equivalent, well, you are either incredibly stupid or willfully fascist. So, which kind of fascist are you? The stupid kind I mentioned or the "highly intelligent" kind you seem to have a lot of empathy for?
Starts off a replicant. Becomes a human. Becomes a replicant again. Dies a human. This movie really was incredible.
"Joe doesn't connect to us by speaking to fantasy of who we as the audience wish we were or could be, but to who we actually are, and to the nobility its possible to find there. Because the truth is humanity isn't only, or even mostly, defined by the emptiness we all often feel. But also importantly by how we try and decide to try and fill it."
I mean...just yes. Bravo. This film is a Goddamed master piece to be able to communicate this.
Your name lol!
I really ! wanna see it.
The hero is going through a journey of self discovery. It's a beautiful film.
Rings of Joseph Campbell.
Very beautiful. 🦄
For me he is practically a Pinocchio! An artificial thing that discovers what means to be human. He practically rescues his father from the belly of a whale as well
Hearth breaking
Oh wow thank you yes the Pinocchio 🤥 story and yes whale like rescue
In film noir the detective is always someone who is not important.
I am a big fan of Neo-Noir. Especially mixed with a synthwave style and good aesthetics. Do you know other movies like that?
Unknown User Dark City
@@unknownuser3604 Blue Velvet
@@unknownuser3604 a Serbian Film
@@dawnderhenker based
One of the lines I remember from Edward Snowden when he appeared on Joe Rogan's podcast was, "There are no heroes, only heroic decisions." When I heard that, the first thing I thought of was Joe's character in Blade Runner 2049 - it suits him perfectly. A special character in a very very special film, one of my all-time favorites.
Suits Snowdon as well. His whole life changed because he chose to do the right thing.
Yikes!
This story is so depressing for joe. Lived his life being hated, with constant threat of death. His only glimmer of hope comes and in its pursuit he loses absolutely everything. His GF, his job, his home, and his freedom. He then finds out that hope he’s been chasing was fake, and he’s just a decoy. He then is told he should sacrifice all he has left, his life, so that the real person, isn’t found out. He dies with nothing, never feeling anything, and probably won’t be remembered by anyone. Great i can relate to that but now I want to put a gun to my head
Might have more to do with the way you're looking at it.
K's life may seem bleak from his own point of view (pretty much everyone's does in the world or Blade Runner), but in the end, K becomes a self-made hero, completely on his own terms. He disregards his orders and protocol in order to become that hero, and in so doing, demonstrates his humanity by sacrificing himself for truth and love. Not his own love, but the love of others. Selflessly. It's clear that he did indeed feel things along the way. He felt the desire to be loved. He felt the desire to feel special and important. He felt the crushing loss of realization that he wasn't the kind of special that he'd convinced himself he could be. Those feelings represent the suppressed humanity within an engineered, synthetic lifeform designed to replicate a human making its way out of him. That he was designed not to feel things, and regularly tested to verify that he did not feel things, but he feels them regardless of the potential dire costs to himself. K is everything he wanted to be. It is only implied that he will be recognized for it in his own world, only after his own death, and only by Deckard and Dr. Stelline.
K represents the best in humanity, persevering through incredible adversity, selflessly risking himself, and doing so in order to preserve and protect truth and love.
I have to agree with Shark, K didn't die for the recognition of anyone else, he didn't kill Deckard for some silly revolution, nor even for the recongisation of Deckard, though he got that non-the less but implored him that "he was fine". K followed a path that brought him immense satisfaction that was his alone to enjoy instead of merely doing what made people happy. He could've simply shot every space craft down and killed him without ever seeing him, but he chose to ground it and risk his entire existence to make two lives better of his own free will. To someone like K, who never had a single, genuine affectionate interaction his entire life, that sacrifice was worth everything. To quote the first blade runner, he perhaps loved life more than anyone in his last moments.
Even though the memories weren't real for him, it was real for him. He knew exactly how much the Dr had suffered and felt, on a whim, that she deserved better. He didn't need or want thanks, K had already gotten more than he ever expected.
Officer K, Joe, will be remembered by Deckard and his daughter for their entire lives, maybe even further. He didn’t die to be forgotten, he died to be remembered by 2 people who will value his sacrifice infinitely
So, Joe is an Average Joe. Born as an ordinary and at some point in childhood, he started to believe that he is special. Then, he came into the adulthood and realized that he is not special. However, that realization did not beat him down but instead gave him the grit to dedicate his life to becoming a part of something special. He reached an old age and died as a happy man knowing that his actions have brought purpose to his life. Could we say that BR 2049 is an allegory of a life spent well?
Officer K is a replicant. He was not born.
@@tankolad what is being born though really? Does it mean you have to come out of the womb for birth to signify a real tangible experience. Or is being made in a factory much the same? Blade runner has always had this philosophy about humanity and what it means to be human. The final quote from the replicant in the original blade runner puts it perfecty. Basically that experience is felt and lost amongst a sea of experiences. Is my experience better or worse than yours? Is human experience better or worse than a replicants experience of life? It doesn't matter. It's all the same. It's like "tear drops in rain."
Officer K was built in factory to serve certain purpose. Joe was born when he asked his first question about this purpose.
With all the self centered people these days, thinking they’re so special and going depressed when they realize they’re not, I think it’s a great message that how special you are comes from what you become a part of. Very few special men or women of history became special because of who they were, the majority became special because of something they dedicated their lives to. Similar to Joe, he was nothing special, but by the end of the movie, he became the savior of the Messianic figure of the film, and because of what he dedicated his life to, he became something more through his actions.
K almost certainly dies on the snowy steps at the end of the movie. The music is a clue!
So many heroes in this movie.
The director
The cinematographer
The music directors
The Art and VFX supervisor
The actors.
Absolute masterpiece.
Basically everyone but K
Actual adult writers, not adult-child narcissists projecting their ‘super easy, barely an inconvenience’ emotionally neutered grandiosity.
"I will ruin him! I will take everything from him!
But how do you take something from someone who hasn't got anything?
I know, I shall give him something first!"
-Vesuvia
What’s that from?
@@joeymejia794 ah, just an italian kids movie. Pretty nice, though I realize now it doesn't really fit in with this video XD. It's called "Totò Sapore e la mahica storia della pizza"
@@cramerfloro5936 I actually do think it’s pretty fitting. Thanks for the reply!
@@joeymejia794 Holy shit! I was about to comment on why I like this villain, when I noticed what might be a literary reference in her!
Ok, so, Vesuvia explains that her motivations for plunging all of Naples into chaos is that the people don't fear her (she's the embodiment of an active volcano that could reduce the whole city to a pile of cinders at any moment and the people just... live their lives, not paying attention to her). Her come in my absurd speculation: because her motivations could be a twist of Giacomo Leopardi's famous poem "La Ginestra". In it we see the destructive powers of mt. Vesuvius, which represents "Stepmother Nature", but we also see a genista plant that grows defiantly next to it, representing humanity's solidarity. Probably just a coincidence, but it would be cool if they based this villain on this poem.
the scene where she see's his dream and tell's him it's "real", and then he goes quiet for a few seconds before screaming "GOD DAMMIT" rocked me to my core. It kind of surprised me but at the same time it was such a natural reaction, I found tremendous respect for Ryan Gosling as an actor after that particular scene
It’s heartbreaking for both of them. His whole identity crumbles. And she sees that her action has a real consequence on a replicant. She seems genuinely caring and sympathetic towards replicants. Her desire to share her story is what is causing replicants to gather a resistance. “ Oh, you thought it was you. We all wish it was us.”
This, Hollywood, is how you subvert a film, take note.
As if they give a shit.
@@juanjogrande11 It is a bit like Prometheus... great story, deep background... but everyone just wanted to see the xenomorph!
no, subversion should never be noted
they did it right in this movie but it should never be replicated in the same way cuz it would take away its effectiveness
@@jeffmendoza6556 Please do not compare Prometheus to Blade Runner 2049...Prometheus was disappointing in many ways...
Jeff Mendoza Prometheus was not that good...
My only problem with this film is that I wish the final two scenes were reversed. Deckard reuniting with his daughter is nice but the scene where Joe quietly dies in the snow as the camera drifts away is infinitely more powerful.
Odd. I remember it in that order.
Charlie Dawson it’s funny, most people I say this to say the same, but the last scene really is Deckard and his daughter. (I just checked cause I was paranoid I was wrong, lol)
Hard disagree. I like that we see the final fruition of K's sacrifice last. And that is the reunion of Deckard and his daughter. Edit: It also ties up both films quite nicely as the main through line story is still about Deckard
@sandy I mean, that's fine, but it's not related to my comment.
The film does sort of have two endings, either of which could stand on its own as an emotionally fulfilling way to end the film. The case could be made that we didn't need to see Deckard actually see his daughter--that the film could have just ended with Joe in the snow--but the reunion (introduction?) scene is still go good, and cuts so beautifully before Deckard speaks, that I don't mind them both being in there.
Blade Runner made us question our humanity.
Blade Runner 2049 confronted us with it.
Really great video essay
I can relate to him in a way. I think most people grow up believing they’re going to be someone, that they’re going to do something important or become famous. Then reality hits.
These things were never meant for you. They’re just a shimmer of a life reserved for others. They weren’t saying “look, you can have this!” They’re saying “look, I have this and you don’t!”
Yeah.. I sometimes wonder how constructive it is to tell kids "they can be anything" and all that. Maybe existential crises are part of growing up but, I think it would be better to encourage kids to find what suits them. Career-wise, for example, you could encourage them to explore what they're interested in and think about their strengths and weaknesses, almost like finding your "custom made life" as opposed to "have whatever lofty goal you can think of". Basically, be realistic but don't try to dictate to them what _you_ think they can/can't do as a parent. Idk, I was part of the "you can be anything" generation and I have a serious complex about being seen as special; it's something most can't live up to.
It's gut wrenching when you realize that this movie is a reflection of ourselves.
As a child, we believe that we are the one, but when reality hits you realize that you're the one of the many that had the same fate.
he reunited Deckard and his daughter and foiled Wallace.
Therefore, he IS important.
His importance is that of a grain of sand. Well placed it makes a world of difference. Initially he was of no importance. His decisions were what made him important.
He is important because he made those choices. He wasn't born/created important.
Well and that's kind of the brilliant part. He thought he was just an engineered artificial slave. Then they he thought he was special. Then he discovered he wasn't
This was perfectly mirrored by his experience with Ana de Armas' character. She's just a program meant to simulate love. Then she seems to show sentience and love that's real. She gives him the name Joe when they think he's the special baby born of a replicant and human. Because he's a real person and deserves a real name
Then later after her death he sees that advertisement for her. Where she calls the customer an average Joe. He has to question whether any of it was real. Was she sentient or just a program? Did she actually love him or was it just preprogrammed responses? *does it even matter?*
What does "real" even mean in this context?
And as we're being asked that question it gets applied to his character. What does special and important even mean in this context? Does it actually matter that he wasn't the messiah he briefly thought he was since he ended up doing some pretty special things anyway.
It's fucking brilliant
and he shunned the robot revolution to do it.
he said fuck em all and chose the one path noone wanted him to take, not the humans not the replicants and not wallace.
@@solstice2318 That can be said of each of us.
His name is even Joe, “The Average Joe”.
Ha. Great observation
Joe Mama
@@Ecliptor. bruh 😂😂
joe rogan
No his name is K
I’m super late to the party, I recently saw this film and was astounded by how masterful it was. The themes it played on, and the emotional weight of Joes character I think are so relatable. Joe, a nothing from nowhere, for a moment thought he was somebody, and then realized he was not. Tying those ideas together, the idea of being human and the idea of being somebody, there’s something so beautiful about it and also terribly lonely. Truly a 10/10 film.
People are still partying tho
this movie ages like fine wine. I am still watching videos about BR2049 after 6 years
My teen daughter struggles with issues... She's a great kid but a very tough exterior.
This was the first movie she cried afterwards.... She sobbed....it hit home with her... With me too.
This movie is one of my all time favorites.
Your daughter is precious
I swear, this movie gets better the more I watch it
That's why they made it...
That’s what a great movie does
This is excellent. Thank you. My favorite scene of the movie has always been the “You look like a good Joe,” scene with the giant Joi. It’s crushing and heartbreaking and so so goddamn powerful. Watching Joe for the remainder of the movie is incredible, because he’s morphed into a character with true identity and noble intent. The final scene is beautiful every time.
Mine too. It's one of the defining moments in the film. Don't know why it didn't win best picture.
Yes, the "Tears in Rain" music as he dies in the clean white snow is touching.
Ashraf Anam or not even got nominated for best picture at all. I found this better than The Shape of Water
KutWrite Followed by the bit with Deckard. I find myself losing my breath a bit every time, much like Deckard does as he puts his hand to the glass. It’s almost too perfect of an ending.
@@AshrafAnam People don't like thinking when watching films.
I also love the irony between K and Rachel. While K, who is a manufactured replicant, with implanted thoughts, is living a real life. Rachel, who is a real person, with real human thoughts, is living a manufactured life. Locked away behind glass. I just like that irony and contrast between the two characters.
Wait, Rachel was a replicant wasnt she?
@@artnevermore2082 She is, but Blade Runner is always questioning that, that is the core and theme of the story.
"What is a human?"
"What is meant to be human?"
Blade Runner is heavily inspired by "Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?" which contains the same question.
@@unknownguyindo4356 I know the theme, I asked it because this guy wrote : "rachel, who is a real person" couldnt understand that.
@@artnevermore2082 Yes, but Jack made an error. He means Stelline, Rachel's daughter.
This film asks so many profound questions like “what makes someone human?” “Is our perception of human life real?” “ Can a machine feel love?”
God when I watched this the first time I loved it! Then someone in the audience said "Was that supposed to be good?" I genuinely felt like slapping him.
D L Not really, seen it in a few movie reviews as well, they’ve thought the exact same thing as me.
@@rossl5908 you need to calm the fuck down, it's not like the film killed your girlfriend. Apparently because I like something I'm a moron? Calm down, love. Get some sleep.
Ur lucky u got to see it in theatres, I love the movie wish I could’ve experienced it in theatres
@@legenwaitforitdary3508 Same
Some people really don’t understand Blade Runner, they want it to be a badass action movie, with no complex details, or themes because they don’t wanna think they just want to sit, and watch a movie to comfort them, not make them emotional, or anything more then joy, but even people that watched the original acted that same way since it didn’t do well in the box office since most wanted something like Alien, because it’s all they expected of Ridley Scott, at the time.
This movie is absolutely beautiful. One of the best movies to come out in a decade.
Raphael no the best ! This is the best film of all time
*century
The way they flipped the main character syndrome on its head it’s utterly brilliant. I have watched this film over 20 times and it’s never tiring it’s so well done it’s always awe inspiring. Very well said
It hurts because the audience projects themselves on to the main character. So when the main character is no-one, we feel it personally.
@@himesilva Eh, I don't think this is true. The movie tricks you into thinking he is no-one, when in reality he is crucial to the plot and resolution. He just isn't the "chosen one". This is not a binary solution... Chosen One or no one. People like the video creator and reviewers calling him "unimportant" is intentionally hyperbolic for views. Without K, the events of the film cannot happen. Contrast with Deckard in the original. Without him, all of the Nexus androids still murder and die. Deckard is much less important than K to the plot of their respective films.
Joe is no one who gets a glimpse of being someone. Finding out he’s no one, he puts his ego aside for others so that they can become greater. His sacrifice, by accident through his life, inadvertently makes him someone.
Subvert the audience expectations so wonderfully.
As a wise man once said, "a man chooses, a slave obeys."
And a Legend chooses to obey
Andrew Ryan was kind of a dick though haha
@@FrostBlackbird ironically the whole point of bioshock was to show that Andrew Ryan was wrong and was a hypocrite that betrayed his own principles.
If it were so straight forward these days... most of us will live and die as men within our own slavery, victims of the illusion of free choice.
Andrew ryan isn't wise
Wow, amazing take on this masterpiece! Funny, but I saw so many "reviews" from people that complained about Joe not taking down Wallace or leading the uprising to victory, etc. They simply didn't get it and this analysis is a perfect example as to why that wouldn't have worked. You did a really awesome job on this! Subscribed.
I’m really glad that the third act of Blade Runner 2049 didn’t take the cliched Hollywood formula where the hero ends up being the chosen one who would later lead a rebellion to take down the big bad guy. Sometimes, less is more.
"but I saw so many "reviews" from people that complained about Joe not taking down Wallace or leading the uprising to victory, etc. wtf?
I really liked the story but I actually felt sick by the never ending use of saturated blue and orange screens
But no one takes down Wallace, the villain is left utterly unscathed and potentially victorious - as the film's story concludes long before the wider plot reaches any form of resolution.
@@6Churches c'est la vie
it's 1:30am right now & i shed a tear for the first time in 6 months watching this video. i didn't cry when i dropped out of school, when i got broken up with by the boyfriend i loved, when i was going through weeks of psychosis at a time. this is what fucking did it for me. masterpiece of an analysis, simple but so moving for me.
Joe is very important because the story isn’t about finding a replicant who was born, it was about what it means to be human “or have a soul.”
The “chosen one” was a misdirection in thinking that birth creates a soul. But the movie is arguing that is the wrong criteria, it’s arbitrary if you were born or made. Hell, his boss mentions it early in the movie: “you’re functioning perfectly fine without a soul.”
You got the choice part right though. When he died, he finally realized his choices makes him human, coming from the womb is meaningless in determining who had a soul.
Humans cannot create souls. Humans cannot create life. Humans cannot be God.
Bladerunner 2049 is a profoundly sad movie, but a beautiful one.
I couldn’t agree anymore, but both movies honestly have ripped at my heartstrings.
it is sad, and it hurts.
Joe starts out not important.
Along the way, he discovers he might actually be important.
In the end, Joe finds out he's not important -- he's just average.
It is important to realize this.
I love this film.
And then he discovers that average people can become important, too, if they make the right choices.
@@jrd33 not only that, but he realizes that he can give his life to a cause he believes in, reuniting a father with his daughter.
He then decides to do something important, rebelling against his "programming"
K is one of the most tragic heroes I’ve ever seen written for screen. At first, he believes himself to be nothing but a bladerunner replicant with some vague memories he is sure are implanted. He serves his purpose apathetically. He then begins to believe that he is more than that, the last hope of his kind, a child born from replicant. It wasn’t until he lost his holographic lover and was saved by the group of replicants that he was told of his actual purpose; nothing more than a decoy implanted with the memories of Deckhard and Rachel’s real child, a daughter no less. His Joi had been entertaining his fantasy about being the son of Rick Deckhard and being more than just another replicant because she was simply telling him “everything he wanted to hear” just like her programming as nothing other than a product. The illusion of any kind of organic bond between the one person he truly cared for is then shattered, so even the memory of her after death is now tainted forever. He then saves Deckhard against the will of the rebel replicants, with everyone assuming him dead and thus allowing him to be free once again. All of this while being mortally wounded. After, he is finally able to take Deckhard to his daughter before dying alone on a step in the snow, knowing that in spite of his purposeless existence, he was able to perpetrate a truly human act in the end. Heartbreaking.
you dont need to be spoecial to be a hero you just need a motive.
Never considered juxtaposition of fire (Anna Stelline’s furnace memory, birthday cake, bonfire of Joe rebirth) and water (Niander Wallace’s room full of water reflections, battle with Luv near the water, ocean almost devouring the father figure of Deckard) before watched your video.
This and your beautiful narration (both visual and textual) made me cry a bit. Tears of appreciation for infinite beauty. Thanks for that!
oh, no!
*tears in rain starts playing*
D'X
"I've seen things you people won't believe..."
ngl almost cried in the theatre when it started playing
Dude, it's even more painful to hear today.
Yeah super sad
I saw this when it came out, just as I saw the original all those years ago. But I was pissed & disappointed there was no 'Roy', no homage, no 'nod'. There was room to have the same person play another replicant, or even a multitude. I kept expecting to see his face in a field worker or a trash collector.... but nothing. Instead... Ryan Gosling's face- ASLEEP in the flying car. The ONLY flying car in all of modern L.A. , massive confusing plot holes (how was that HER memory if she could never be around people?) & I'm sorry but weird blind Jared Leto as creepy pedo-Jesus was the unnecessary character. So.... yeah people 'fell in love' with the guy wearing Ryan Gosling's face, not some average unimportant Joe. I didn't want to hate it.
This was honestly a amazing analysis. I feel a lot of people should realize (I included) that you don’t have to be somebody, to actually be somebody. That is, you can have great significance and success, to the point of changing someone’s life, without having to be relevant to anyone else around you.
I love a hero like him because it shows that you dont have to be significant to everyone else. You can create or find meaning in the choices you make moving forward, not by what happened to you, outside of your realm of control, in the past, or where you come from.
There's some similarities between Cowboy Bebop and Blade Runner. Themes of existentialism and questioning one's own purpose. Well told stories, too.
That's because the author/writer of Cowboy Bebop is a HUGE Blade Runner fan. He even did the animation 'Blackout' that helps bridge the gap of the two films. And supposedly working on a Blade Runner anime. Blade Runner was the godfather to neo-dystopia/cyberpunk as a genre almost as much as The Lord of the Rings is the godfather to western fantasy as a genre.
Which funnily enough, LOTR and Blade Runner are probably my two absolute favorite film series and fictional worlds. True masterpieces.
Right down to the final shot of K on the stairs vs Spike on the stairs. Time to die, Space Cowboy.
See you around, Space Cowboy.
@@savagewraith Same, Blade Runner and Fellowship are easily in my top 5 films. I just rewatched the original BR and it's still stunning although I've seen it over 5 times now. The book is good too
Lol when I saw this movie I had the feeling and thought of "ha, this could perfectly be a cowboy bebop episode", thanks for share
When I found out joe was a nobody I liked him even more. Such a great character
He's literally me.
I dont think hes absolutely nobody because. He holds quite a powerful presence.
To me Joe definitely matters. He became self aware and rose above his “programming”. Most humans never even come close to that. He chose to take control of his own destiny and serve something greater than himself even sacrificing his very life/existence. He was truly “more human than human”. It’s the example every religion lays out: suppress your ego to serve something greater than yourself and in so doing realize your true potential and find the deeper meaning of existence. If that doesn’t matter I don’t know what does.
This movie was so brilliant with layer upon layer of complexity, symbolism, and morality. Sadly, a work of this magnitude is not to be accepted by the masses in this day and age.
I like this, but if you dig deeper, did he rise above his programming? He was intentionally implanted with a real memory. I get the impression from the film that this had purpose and would lead him to find the girl's father. His programming wasn't the same as the other androids, so maybe he is fulfilling it as she intended.
I loved the existential point Joe’s story made. He spent so long looking for a greater meaning to his life that had already been given to him by others, just to find it was never there. It was only when he accepted that and focused on what he could choose to do for himself that nobody chose for him that he gave his life some sense of meaning. Whether or not anyone else ever perceived him as meaningful, even if his existence was indeed like “teardrops in the rain,” he got to find meaning for himself in the end.
It’s breathtaking lonely yet profoundly inspiring, for him to find something so significant in the smallness of his life. We have countless stories with heroes we wish we could be, so it was nice to have one with a “hero” we actually can be, even if only to ourselves.
The irony is in being unimportant he becomes very important and relatable.
The book Pale Fire by Nabokov at the scene where Joi want K to read it for her, it's about an artist who has a near-death experience in which he dreams of a tall white fountain. After that he reads on the newspaper that a woman has the same experience. And he spends years try to find that woman but turn out the image that she saw wasn't a tall white fountain but a tall white mountain. Well, what i interpret from that story is, it doesnt matter if others value your journey, your internal feelings, or even who you are, it's you matter to yourself. I think it's the reason why K choose to help Deckard instead of join the replicant army. He did what he redeemed righteous.
Can you suggest any books on the same theme.
Great analysis! And yes, although he didn‘t turn out to be the chosen one, his journey to find the right answers gave his existence an undeniable claim to being an individual with dreams and hopes - and how human is that?
"Because the truth is humanity isn't only or even mostly defined by the emptiness we all often feel but also importantly by how we decide to try to and fill it."
Such beautiful words.
This is what i love about blade runner, you’re never at the center of the world, it always feels like there’s so much more to know than what’s in the movies, even with Deckard, never felt like he was the main character but a piece of the bigger puzzle
I remember walking out of the cinema the first time I saw this thinking that the twist that Joe is insignificant was weak and that I would have prefered if he was the Chosen One. Later I realised how K's insignificance is central to the whole point of the film, but my initial frustration with the twist shows it's utter brilliance. I felt like the hero had been *stolen* from me, I felt truly robbed which made me upset as I left. I was brought into K's pain by feeling his rejection.
This movie is a frickin' masterclass in filmmaking.
Give me a protagonist like this any time compared to one of the big super-hero fantasy types with incredible powers.
It occurred to me that Joe/K and Roy Batty both share elements in common, including doing something decent and "human" before they died. It's a nice connection between the two movies.
Man this movie is so underrated it breaks my heart. The fact that we can relate to the main protagonist so much and how this movie unfolds the feeling of being alone is one of a kind.
I saw this movie 22 times when it was in theaters back in 2017. Not kidding. I still have my ticket stubs. I loved the 3D and the RPX Premium sound.
This movie really is s feast for the senses and mind. The sound editing and score are unbelievably good.
We need more of this kind of story telling. This was a beautiful movie. His 'insignificance' makes his sacrifice all the more compelling.
The more times I watched it, the more I grew to respect this movie. The more I understood it.
Such a beautifully tragic character, a guy who wanted to be someone special who ended up being nobody at all. A guy who, in the end, dies alone.. but after reuniting someone with his long lost daughter allowing him to feel peace.
This movie is so beautiful to watch, I love the cinematography
A hero that doesn't matter is a person that has found their meaning
This movie's way of building up the hope of mattering. And then completely crushing that hope is what makes it so incredibly special to me. Finding out most people wont be moving the world in a big way and realizing i am a part of that crowd was hard for me when i was younger. So this really speaks to me.
I watched this movie multiple times and every time i understand new things!
"You've done a man's work, sir! "
"It's too bad she won't live, but then again who does?"
This movie is criminally underrated
Seeing this movie in the biggest screen I found was the best gift to myself, it's just visually stunning and the story was so subtle, why this didn't win awards was a shame.
This movie is one of a kind. Not a chosen one,just a person.
I maybe in the minority in this but I think Blade Runner 2049 is a better film than the original and I love the original.
It definitely is the better film. The problem with the Original, with any version, is the pacing and characters. It jumps all over the place, and many of the characters are just there, not explained or much else.
I don’t think you are in the minority , it’s a majority , about 60/40
I whole heartedly agree. The original is fantastic and opens your mind, the sequel takes everything great about the original and expands upon it. What does it mean to be human, to have a soul, to be alive?
Blade runner is in another dimension of emotion and scifi fantasy..
Very nicely done video with some profound dialogue. Good Job.
It felt so odd hearing him being called Joe over and over when I just recognize him as K haha
I think in the movie, he is referred to more as K but by saying to Deckard that his name is Joe that kinda cements his identity
Great video man, I’m amazed you aren’t up there with the other film analysts on TH-cam, keep up the high video quality man, love the work
Was wonderfully done, thank you. Sub'd
The dude speaking freaks me out man, awesome. take care my friend.
Damn I must have Alzheimers cause I don't remember what I got 9.4 k likes for. Can you remember?
Not at all. As a fan of the original, I fully expected to be disappointed, but was actually thrilled. Denis Villanueve has given us a masterpiece. Most importantly, I think Philip K. Dick would have loved it. It is filled with PKD concepts and images. The "kipple" is shown in the ruins of San Diego and the dark future where we cannot be certain who is real and who is a Replicant echoes not only "Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?" but also "UBIK," "The Penultimate Truth," "The Three Stigmata of Palmer Eldritch" and "Galactic Pot Healer," all of which deal with "unimportant" heroes and hidden truths that are somewhat shattering. Like those novels, Blade Runner 2049 gives us a shattering vision of a defeated quest for humanity. Defeated, but not worthless or hopeless, because even if Joe isn't important, he performs an important service by reuniting Deckard and his daughter, albeit he was probably programmed to do so. He could have walked away when he found out his memories were fake, and perhaps even his love for Joi was fake, but didn't. That, if nothing else, makes him human, because he made a human choice to sacrifice himself for a greater good.
Could have been flawless if David Bowie was still alive to play Wallace
Like the first one. It came out when I was 11 and I didnt get to see it until it was on VCR tape. Then in, 2017, I got to see it in Reno at a theater near downtown. These are good movies to show the horrors of the illumined ones and their vision for mans futures.
@@ParvulaUniversum not really
No your not I saw it 13 times in the theater. It is a masterpiece that blew me away!
I was lucky enough to see this movie twice on Imax. Overwhelmingly powerful. And every aspect so beautifully rendered. Symbolism everywhere, but not in your face. Philosophy in narrative form, yet nearly wordless. The opening scene alone is jaw dropping.
you nailed this video - fantastic insights
Really good analysis Shane - very moving
interlinked. cells
within cells interlinked within cells interlinked within cells interlinked
You guys are not even close to baseline
dang
Really wasn't expecting to see you here lol
A subversion of the hero's journey...what a masterpiece.
It's his choices that make him special.
A timelessly relevant message. Great video, thank you!
One of my favorite films of the last decade. There is something about tragic characters I prefer in storytelling because it's real and raw. Maybe it has to do with moments in my own life and never seeing the realness of these moments reflected in Hollywood films because they always seek to strive for the greatest ideal version of characters and stories and while that's all well and good, not everyone gets a happy ending. Not everyone gets the girl. Sometimes life beats you down and when you still make the right decision in the face of your absolute destruction and no one even knows, it's a very personal moment. I connected with Joe as he laid there dying because I have done the exact same thing countless times before. Sometimes you sacrifice yourself for someone or something and no one even knows but at least you know you did the right thing. It's a sad but powerful moment that I rarely ever see represented in film.
I really enjoyed your explanation. I think it hits the nail on the head as to why I liked this movie so much. It also motivates me to keep choosing to do the right thing while I’m still on this planet.
You don't need an audience for a story to be a story. All you need is a witness. You are somebody and you are the witness. This world will try to convince you that you, your desires and all you are is insignificant just because they don't find value in it. But what do YOU value? What do you stand for? What's YOUR story? What are you a witness too? That matters. That's important. I hope you keep getting back up too. I know what it's like to be beaten within an inch of your life but you just keep coming back from the grave. Your witness becomes a tale from the crypt then. I just hope you get up each time you're knocked down or each time "life" tries to make you feel like being human is a bad thing. Because trust, everyone has their low points even the "main characters." And guess what, they'll never stop having them either because in order to be the main character you have to remain locked in a perpetual state of conflict or else no one cares about the story. Joe and every Joe out there knows a form of peace that the main character will never know.
@@thecommunity1102 Aww thanks. I forgot about this comment but I am in a far better place now. Well not physically but mentally I'm unbreakable. Also in a fulfilling relationship now but I resolved my personal issues beforehand.
@Justin Jimenez this is so great to hear! Sounds like you're winning. Wishing the best for you and yours. The past few years may have left all of us a little messed up physically. Hope you recover. But I'm glad to hear that you're in a good place mentally. That's more than half the battle right there.
Average Joe. Thank you for making this video. The things that you mentioned are what moved me and forever affected me about this film. I connected with Joe on a level that I haven't connected with a character in a very, very long time and it's because of many of the things you've mentioned in the video. Glad to know I'm not alone...see, there it is, alone. Thanks again.
I'm really glad to hear you connected with the video like that! Thanks for taking the time to leave a comment
K’s experiences remind me of the Tears in the rain monologue
You are the first YT reviewer to "get" this movie. Nailed it. K is all of us, searching for meaning in a sea of mediocrity, conformity, and pointlessness. Ultimately, K finds meaning, in service, and the movie is actually quite hopeful and profound in this regard. So beautiful. Thanks for the review.
It's truly awesome that what Joe desired more than anything was to be intimately connected with another person and was in fact connected through the memory he was given.
"[THIS ANALYSIS IS] the best one!" - Really, so well said. There are lots of great analysis out there, so much symbolism to unpack. But this is the heart ,soul and core message of this story.
That was a excellent review!
What a beautifully written and made video essay. That was wonderful man. Thanks.