My problem with "Bladerunner"

With the new Bladerunner movie coming out, I watched the original for the first time.

Let me start off by saying a few things. First, I recognize the film's merits. I enjoyed the movie and there were many things that I really enjoyed about it. It's one of my SO's favorite movies so I went into it with some high hopes. It was beautifully shot, I love the atmosphere..... Basically I know there's a lot of good in this movie.

I also know that I'm going to be in the minority. I've only seen this brought up one other time on reddit, and all of the comments were "I don't agree". I expect people won't be happy with my thoughts but I'd urge you to stick it out and READ THE WHOLE POST before disagreeing.

My source of contention with this movie is the apartment scene where Rachel and Deckard "make love" for the first time. Namely, my issue is the aggressive (some would say violent) actions Deckard takes and the "convincing" he must do in order to sleep with her.

Let's view this from a writer's perspective, because it's important to think about why this scene was done this way. I believe (and I think others would agree) that the writers' intention was to feel as though Rachel wanted to be with Deckard but for some reason wouldn't let herself. Maybe she didn't want to face the truth about being a replicant, maybe she didn't want to face her true emotions, maybe she was afraid of Deckard retiring her, maybe she knew this was a "forbidden love". Watching the movie, you're supposed to feel that "Rachel wants to be with him, she just won't let herself!"

Therein lies the problem of this movie. For a moment, don't think about the backstory and imagine watching this scene independent from its source. It features a man who refuses to let a woman leave her apartment, literally throws her against his window, and tells her what to say until she repeats him, giving the illusion of consent. If your buddy described doing this to a woman, you would likely say "Wait what the fuck dude? You can't do that to someone"

My issue is not the scene by itself, it's the intention behind it. It is not inherently wrong to feature a problematic protagonist and it would be okay to say "Look he's clearly a troubled guy. It's obvious he doesn't treat women very well."

The problem is intent. You're not supposed to watch and think "what the fuck?" you're supposed to think "Really romantic, he finally convinced her to face reality, she really needed that wakeup call and now they can end up together!"

I enjoyed the movie but couldn't get the bad taste out of my mouth after that scene. I've only ever seen redditors argue "but she actually wanted it, he convinced her to experience her true feelings", which again, is my issue with the movie.

I know people enjoy this movie, and it's okay to enjoy things that aren't 100% appropriate. But I think it's time for people to admit that this part of the movie is harmful for our perception of assault and rape, and it needs to be addressed.

Edit: Thanks to all that have joined and added to the conversation! Most everyone who has replied is adding great points either agreeing or disagreeing with me. Ultimately, I made this post in an attempt to have a conversation about some of the more troubling aspects of the movie (and ad many have pointed out - the time period) and that's been achieved so far. Thanks for all who contribute :)

Submitted October 01, 2017 at 09:00PM by hannowagno http://ift.tt/2x6JJTi