When Blade Runner hit theaters back in 1982, it was the definition of polarizing. Poorly received by movie audiences and disliked by a large percentage of critics, the film floundered at the box office. Strange, one could say, since it starred Harrison Ford and was directed by Ridley Scott. Plus cyberpunk was in vogue. The film did get re-evaluated years later and has been released in numerous and very different cuts since.

Now in 2017, a follow up film entitled Blade Runner 2049 has been released. Unlike the original, it was an immediate critical success. But besides diehard fans, little interest has been shown, with many saying it was too long and in some ways too pretentious. Not surprisingly it too has failed at the box office.

Dark Discussions takes a look at this two film franchise. With their interesting take on what it is to be “human” and their incredible visuals, both movies are indeed important films in science fiction history. Whether they are great movies depends on the viewer, but either way, both are films that will continue to have much buzz around them for sometime.