Future Noir: The Making of Blade Runner by Paul M. Sammon

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


A fun book, but only for the most ardent of Blade Runner fans. The attention to detail is admirable, but occasionally off, and not always that interesting. It also seems, though it may just be me, that Sammons is in too much awe of his subject. No, not Blade Runner, but it's director, Ridley Scott. I think he too often gives him the benefit of the doubt. Lastly, there are two or three paragraphs devoted to its literary offshoot, cyberpunk, that doesn't even mention William Gibson (though it at least quotes Bruce Sterling). Considering how detailed the book is and how much it discusses the influence of the movie on other movies, I certainly thought this topic deserved a much longer section. At the very least, more than a few paragraphs! But I'm mostly nitpicking. I did enjoy reading it and re-exploring the film as I did so. During the 100 page chapter that breaks down the movie scene by scene, I often found myself returning to the source to look for all the hidden details I'd never noticed before. Again, only for hardcore fans, but a nice supplement for those who fit that category.




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