Blade Runner and Philip K Dick 9/22

    The 1982 film-noir Blade Runner was directly inspired by Philip K. Dick's 1968 dystopian science fiction novel Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?. In Blade Runner, androids were developed to be used as slave labor for mankind. However, the androids called "replicants" were outlawed on Earth after a few instances of replicants attacking humans. As a failsafe, replicants were designed to have only a four-year life span to prevent them from advancing and gaining the ability to process complex human emotions. 

    The replicants during this time are hoping to find the key to extending their lifespan within the remaining underworld where only misfits remain. Blade Runners, who have bounties out for the remaining misfits, have a mental test consisting a series of emotion-evoking questions to help distinguish a replicant from a human. A replicant, designed without the ability to feel emotion, would be unable to pass the test, however, Rachael nearly defies those standards. Although the main character, Blade Runner Deckard, dedicated his time toward hunting replicants, he falls in love with Rachael. Rachael was a part of an experiment by the creator of replicants which implanted memories within her to help her seem more indistinguishable from humans. 

    Whilst falling in love with Rachael, Deckard seeks out his mission and kills replicants. In a riveting battle to the death between Deckard and the main antagonist, Batty, reveals a major theme throughout the movie and within the novel. Moments before Deckard would have fallen to his death, the Blade Runner understands the fear one endures when living life as a slave. Batty dies as a result of a system shut down as his four-year life span comes to an end. In addition, Batty seemed to have spared Deckard's life perhaps because he, as well, figured out what it was to be human. Batty accepts the fact that his life span has expired, but faces the tragedy that all his memories and accomplishments will be lost in time. In his final words, he references his legacy as “tears in rain.” 

    Deckard is dreaming of a unicorn galloping in the woods in a brief scene within the movie, similar to the symbolism of an electric sheep in Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?. Deckard is never seen telling anyone about the unicorn. In the final scene of the film, however, Gaff, a veteran Blade Runner, seems to know more than he lets on. While Deckard and Gaff depart following the completion of his mission, Gaff gifts Deckard an origami unicorn. This alludes to the fact that Deckard is potentially a replicant himself. Rachael asks Deckard if he’s taken his own emotional scale test to see if he’s a replicant, and he uncomfortably ignores her. Throughout the film as well, scenes of Deckard with reflective pupils, which identify a replicant, is seen. 

    In Philip K. Dick's Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? the character that most closely relates to Deckard is named Rick, who falls in love with android Rachael. First, Rick is asked to use his test to decide whether Rachael is android or human. When Rachael tests as an android, Rachael's uncle, the company president, persuades Rick that the test is wrong and therefore unreliable. This is a serious obstacle to any further "android-hunting". However, Rick eventually realizes that Rachael truly is an android. Later, Rachael offers to help Rick hunt androids, whilst being one herself, claiming she'd have useful insights into their thoughts and behavior. In turn, Rick denies the offer and sends her away to proceed to his mission in finding the last three androids; to which he discovers they've been hiding in an apartment, similar to that of the misfits in Blade Runner.

    Where the two pieces differ, however, is one of the androids, Pris, is a duplicate of Rachael. The apartment owner, Isidore is infatuated with her and android intelligence explaining his offer of shelter despite Pris and her two companions treating him poorly. When Rick arrives to the hideout, Mercer, a veteran Bladerunner similar to Gaff, appears and warns him that Pris is waiting for his arrival. Rick is immediately caught off guard by Pris’s resemblance to Rachael, but ends up killing her following up with the other two androids more easily.