Ridley Scott’s sci-fi classic Blade Runner came out in 1982, but was set in the-then far off future of November, 2019. The actual date the movie takes place came and went late last year; the internet had a field day making jokes about how much the time we live in wound up looking nothing like the film.
No flying cars, no replicants, no off-world colonies – and no futuristic looking Los Angeles as depicted in the opening shots of the movie. As it turns out, we just had to wait a little while.
One title card and some music from the original score later, and suddenly it feels like the opening shots coming to life. We’re not sure but we wouldn’t be surprised if Harrison Ford was down there somewhere too. For comparison’s sake, here’s the original Blade Runner opening scene down below:
Although owning and setting off fireworks is illegal in L.A. County, that clearly didn’t stop a metric ton of people from acquiring them and shooting them off on Independence Day anyway. As you can see from the aerial footage, hundreds of fireworks were going off all over the city that night, regardless of the ban. (If the last few months have proven anything, it’s that most Americans don’t care much for things like rules.)
Warner Bros
Combine all that with some of the more recent skyscrapers that Los Angeles has constructed with a more futuristic look; suddenly the skyline of L.A. looks quite a bit like that of Blade Runner’s. In the movie, the city has factories all over the place spouting off giant fireballs into the skyline. With these fireworks, and the original film’s evocative score from Vangelis, it really does feel like the future Ridley Scott dreamed up. Now, if only we could get those flying cars…
Featured Image: Warner Brothers
