Blade Runner and Frankenstein

Oscar Wilde, like many other great writers and composers, was able to find a universal meaning from different contextual influences and ideas. The film Blade Runner, directed by Ridley Scott and the novel Frankenstein written by Mary Shelley are both significant, powerful texts that not only transcend time, but they are also able to present a grim view of the future where man’s attempts to conquer the secrets of life through science lead to destruction, devastation and obliteration.
Visually, Blade Runner was revolutionary in the cinematic theatre, but more noteworthy was the main issues and concerns of the day, of the 1980’s, that he thought were dangerous to the wellbeing of society then... and today. Mary Shelley also probed the advances in science through her readings of Davey and Godwin, but more significantly, she was able to give many perspectives on the attitudes and beliefs of her society and thus provoked tension and thought.
Ridley Scott’s film Blade Runner delivers a discerning outlook on the degradation and self destructive nature of humanity in a futuristic Los Angeles in 2019, where technological scientific advancement and consumerism have tainted morality and spirituality. Scott uses a panoramic, panning shot of a city in the opening scene to present to the audience a depiction of an abaddon or a living highly industrialised hell with darkness perpetuating the landscape. In contrast, a large neo-classical building that resembles that of a Mayan temple oversees the underbelly part of the city. The stylistic features of film-noir and crime-fiction are likewise evident throughout the film.
The crude violence and dialogue, the pursuit to retire replicants by the experienced, but jaded detective in Deckard, and the strong presence of shadows, silhouettes and smoke throughout the film contrasts with the awesome and overwhelming power of science. Mary Shelley likewise warns us of the dangers of using science to usurp god, of breaking moral boundaries,...