Blade Runner and Postmodernity

Sensibility  in  Postmodernity  Implied  in  Blade  Runner  Movie1     by  Christa  Sabathaly       The   postmodern   aesthetic   implies   a   contemporary   cultural   reading   of   the   sensibility  of  the  period  of  postmodernity.  Discuss  with  Blade  Runner  movie!     To   answer   the   question   above,   initially   one   is   compelled   to   seek   within   the   lines   the   real   key   understanding   should   be   obtained   in   order   to   solve   such   trivia.  Hence,  one  is  faced  to  dissect  the  notion  of    “postmodernity”  before  going   on   any   further.   However,   being   inside   the   social-­‐political-­‐economic   dimension   already   called   ‘postmodernity’   by   default   would   create   a   gap   between   one’s   understanding   of   what   is   the   sensibility   of   the   period,   and   what   it   is   not,   since   one   is  not  experiencing  the  stage  of  “what  is  not  postmodern”  or  even  “transition  to   postmodernity”.     Nevertheless,   Harvey   argues   that   “aesthetic   and   cultural   practices   are   peculiarly   susceptible   to   the   changing   experience   of   space   and   time   precisely   because  they  entail  the  construction  of  spatial  representations  and  artefacts  out   of   the   flow   of   human   experience.”   (1989,   p.327).   In   other   words,   Harvey   is   suggesting   that   work   of   art   is   one   way   to   read   the   socio-­‐economic   ideology   carried  within  the  respective  period  of  time  since  it  is  replicating  the  minds  and   experience  of  its  current  inhabitants.  In  conclusion,  the  best  way  to  answer  the   question   is   actually   already   given   by   the   instruction   following   the   main   part.     That   is   to   discuss   postmodernity,   alongside   with   a   cultural   practice   of   it   which   is   the  movie  called  Blade  Runner.     This  paper  will  discuss  upon  sensibility  of  postmodernity  which  features   is  implied  on  Blade  Runner.  They  are  :  blurring  of  the  meta-­‐narratives,  sense  of   placelessnes,   dystopia,   pastiche,     and   the   embedded   consumer   culture.   However,   this   paper   will   not   necessarily   argues   on   whether   the   movie   itself   is   a                                                                                                                                1  as  an  essay  to  complete  ‘Contemporary  Cultural  &  Media  Theories  module’  on  a  MA  of  Media   Culture  Course  at  University  of  Northumbria,  Newcastle,  UK  (January  2011)  

 

postmodernist   art.   But   first   of   all,   it   should   critically   question   the   capability   of   the   film   to   reflect   such   postmodern   condition.   As   it   was   coined   by   Thurlow   (2003),  Blade  Runner  is  ‘not  a  brilliant  portrayal  of  postmodernity’.   The   business   of   hermeneutics   towards   Blade   Runner   has   been   going   on   ever   since   its   conception   in   1982.   Many   critics   have   said   that   Blade   Runner   contains   one   of   cinema’s   most   astonishingly   design   futures   at   that   time.   One   of   the   very   important   claim   comes   from   the   famous   geographer   David   Harvey   which   said   that   “   …Blade   Runner   hold   up   to   us,   as   in   a   mirror,   many   of   the   essential  features  of  the  condition  of  postmodernity.”  (Harvey,  1989,  p.  323)   However,  solely  linking  the  simultaneous  time  frame  of  the  movie  release   with   the   end   of   Fordism   epoch   would   be   a   shortcoming   to   say   that   the   movie   really  implies  a  contemporary  cultural  reading  of  postmodernity.  On  the  notion   of  postmodernity  itself,  one  cannot  help  to  wonder  whether  director  Ridley  Scott   and   film   crew   has   the   intention   &   sobriety   to   imply   postmodern   features   themselves,   or   was   it   merely   a   stylization?   Is   this   really   the   fruit   of   the   same   force   that   brought   Hassan   to   painting   and   music,   Jencks   on   architecture,   Lyotard   on  science,  and  Habermas  touch  on  philosophy?   True,  every  frame  of  this  film  teems  with  detail,  and  it  was  this  complex   visual  “layering”,  as  director  Scott  called  it  back  in  the  1980s  (Sammon,  2007).  At   that   time,   the   style   brought   by   the   movie   was   actually   not   the   most   preferable   stylization  by  the  existing  major  audience.   “However,   Blade   Runner   also   contained   dark,   morally   challenging   observations  about  mankind  and  society,  as  well  as  an  ambiguous   hero.   Such   downbeat   elements   –   along   with   the   film’s   oblique   storytelling  methods  –  created  confusion  in  some  1982  audiences,   especially   those   who’d   strolled   into   theaters   expecting   to   see   an   upbeat   Harrison   Ford   quipping   his   way   through   a   light-­‐hearted,   Star   Wars-­‐type   of   entertainment.   What   viewers   encountered   instead  was  a  dark,  serious  and  provocative  work  of  art.  Therefore,   Blade   Runner   did   very   little   initial   business,   and   the   film   quickly   disappeared  from  view.”  (Sammon,  2007  p.  2)    

Indeed,   a   ‘different’   type   of   approach,   if   not   to   say   ‘provocative’   was   carried   out   by   director   Ridley   Scott   in   the   movie   per   se.   By   this   point   I   would   suggest  that  Blade  Runner    was  quite  an  attempt  of  what  postmodernity  looked   like,   even   so   the   society   at   that   time   was   not   necessarily   impressed   or   agreed   on   the   futuristic   view   brought   by   this   Hollywood   blockbuster.   Which   means,   upon   the  departing  question  whether  this  film  is  capable  of  implying  such  postmodern   condition,   the   answer   is   yes.   However,   one   should   be   careful   in   detecting   such   cultural   reading   as   it   was   not   a   full   portrayal   of   postmodernity,   rather   of   an   attempt    to  envision  postmodernity.     Blade  Runner,  was  first  released  in  1982.  It  was  an  adaptation  of  a  science   fiction   novel   titled   “Do   Androids   Dream   of   Electric   Sheep?”   authored   by   Philip   K.   Dick   published   in   1968.   The   central   character   of   this   movie   is   called   Rick   Deckard   (played   by   Harrison   Ford)   which   mission   was   to   track   down   and   deceased   four   “Replicants”.   They   have   escaped   to   earth   and   they   want   to   hunt   their   creator   (the   man   behind   a   giant   corporation   called   Tyrell)   in   pursue   of   a   prolonged  life  span.  Eventually  in  the  movie  there  are    two  major  events;  one,  is   the  story  of  Deckard/assassin  who  falls  in  love  with  Rachel/a  beautiful  Replicant   never  knowing  that  she  is  a  Replican.  Two,  is  the  story  of  Roy,  the  leader  of  the   rebellious  Replicant  who  murdered  Tyrell  but  finally  was  desperate  and  letting   himself    being  defeated  by  Deckard.      There  are  particular  scenes  and  mood  sketches  from  the  movie  that  can   be   analyzed   as   reflecting   the   postmodern   conditions.   From   this   point   on,   we   will   discuss  key  features  of  postmodernity  detected  by  postmodernist  thinkers  which   are  also  depicted  in  the  movie.  This  paper  suggests  to  discuss  five  key  features  of   postmodernity   :   decay   of   meta-­‐narrative,   placelessness,   pastiche,   dystopia,   and   consumer  culture.  Each  will  be  discussed  in  the  following  sections,  respectively.     DECAY  OF  META-­‐NARRATIVE     As  it  was  laid  out  in  the  text  shown  in  the  beginning  of  the  movie,    “The    NEXUS   6   Replicants   were   superior   in   strength   and   agility,   and   at   least   equal   in   intelligence,  

to  

the  

genetic  

engineers  

who  

created  

them.”  

(http://www.scribd.com/doc/37758498/Blade-­‐Runner-­‐Script#,   no   date),   the   very  first  scene  was  to  tell  about  the  story  of  Replicants;  as  they  are  a  replica  of  

humans.  In  one  sense,  with  an  opening  narrative  per  se,  it  gives  us  a  quick  hint  to   say   that   Tyrell   Corporation   is   trying   to   ‘Play   God’,   in   enacting   such   way   of   recreating  something  that  resembles  human.    But  how  could  this  be  a  potential   implication  postmodern  version  of  meta-­‐narrative?   Master-­‐narratives,   or   grand   narratives,   or   meta-­‐narratives,   are   stories   beyond   stories   that   shape   people’s   sense   of   themselves   in   the   world   (Roberts,   1995   p.   116).   These   stories   are   accepted   and   received   in   the   modernity   world   as   then   people   believed   in   spirituality   as   well   as   progress   through   science   and   technology  (Roberts,  1995  p.  95).    In  other  world,  master-­‐narratives  can  be  any   stories   that   held   up   a   sunshine   face   such   as   :   a   “better   tomorrow”,   “God   will   rescue”,  “we  can  achieve  everything  as  long  as  we  believe”,  and  so  forth.     Jean-­‐Francois   Lyotard     in   his   book   called   ‘The   Postmodern   Condition’   provides  a  key  insight  in  this  belief  which  bridge  us  to  postmodern  condition.    He   said   that   one   of   the   definition   in   postmodern   conditions   is   “the   overturning   or   erosion   of   master   narratives   “   (Lyotard,   quoted   in   Roberts,   1995   p.   115).   Furthermore,  Eagleton  in  his  postmodernism  description  would  also  concludes,     “Post-­‐modernism   signals   the   death   of   such   ‘metanarratives’   whose   secretly   terroristic   function   was   to   ground   and   legitimate   the   illusion   of   a   ‘universal’   human  history.”  (quoted  in  Harvey,  1989,  p.9)   However,   the   notion   of     ‘trying   to   be   God-­‐like’   in   Blade   Runner   can   not   be   fully   understood   as   a   one   way   ticket   to   the   meta-­‐narrative   decay,   before   we   fully   comprehend  the  ‘character  spin’  the  movie  gives  at  the  end.    It  turns  out  that,  the   good   intention   of   Tyrell   Corporations   forming   a   new   God-­‐like   life  resulted   into   a   classic   “Frankenstein   monster   turning   to   its   master   destruction”   as   Thurlow   (2003)   puts   it,   at   the   point   where   Roy,   the   leading   Replicant   eventually   kill   his   creator,  Tyrell  himself.     Henceforth,  what  the  film  actually  did  was  cancelling  its  own  initial  idea   of   recreating   life   by   means   of   technological   preoccupations.   So   far,   it   does   challenge  the  idea  of  life,  but  never  to  be  brave  enough  to  give  a  conclusion  to  a   recreation  of  life.  It  gives  us  an  equation  of  possibilities,  thus  it  subtract  itself  to  a   zero.    As  if,  it  was  saying  that  questioning  life  is  indeed  inevitable,  but  it  will  be   pointless   after   all!     At   this   point,   I   suggest   that   the   film   did   reflect   blurring   of   the   meta-­‐narrative.  

The  blurring,  or  ‘the  erosion  of  master-­‐narrative’  (Lyotard,  1979),  is  again   implying  a  set  action  of  moldering  faith,  downsizing  belief,  but  not  at  all  of  a  total   rebel  of  religiosity  as  such.  As  Jameson  would  say,     “In  psychological  terms,  we  may  say  that  as  a  service  economy  we   are  henceforth  so  far  removed  from  the  realities  of  production  and   work   that   we   inhabit   a   dream   world   of   artificial   stimuli   and   televised   experience:   never   in   any   previous   civilization   have   the   great   metaphysical   preoccupations,   the   fundamental   questions   of   being,   and   the   meaning   of   life,   seemed   so   utterly   remote   and   pointless.”  (Jameson,  quoted  in  Anderson,  1998,  p.51)     PLACELESSNESS    

A  question  to  the  meaning  of  life    is  hardly  the  only  question  popping  out  

in   a   postmodern   condition.   A   postmodernist   being   would   most   probably   suffer   a   crises   of   identity   (where   is   my   place   in   this   world?   What   future   can     I   have?)   arise   out   of   a   strong   phase   of   time-­‐space   compression,   a   term   conducted   by   Harvey   (1989).     In   describing   postmodernity,   sociologist   Zygmunt   Bauman   rephrases  this  time-­‐space  confusion,     “It   means   the   speed   with   which   things   change   and   the   pace   with   which   moods   succeed   each   other   so   that   they   have   no   time   to   ossify   into   things.   It   means   attention   drawn   in   all   directions   at   once   so   that   it   cannot   stop   on   anything   for   long   and   nothing   gets   a   really  close  look.”  (Bauman,  1992,  p.  vii).    

The  preceding  citation  gets  us  into  the  very  mood  of  the  movie.  A  sense  of  

placelessness.    Rachel,  the  woman  Replicant  who  were  close  to  the  main  human   character,   Deckard,   questions   her   identities.   Whether   she   is   a   human   or   Replicant,  how  long  she  would  live,  and  so  forth.  Paradoxically,  at  the  beginning   of  the  movie  she  can  answer  around  100  questions  flawlessly  posed  to  her  about   her  life.  Convinced  but  confused  at  the  same  time,  is  probably  the  symptom  not   only  Rachel,  but  most  of  the  people  in  our  contemporary  world  have  shared.      

The   consistent   malady   was   also   suffered   by   Deckard,   with   his   sense   of  

detachment   to   anything.   Pictured   as   a   cold   individual,   audience   was   to   be   silenced  with  his  mysterious  figure  and  never  to  be  invited  on  looking  to  any  of   his  past  but  a  former  glorious  Blade  Runner  getting  back  in  action.  His  rejection  

to  Rachel  at  her  first  visit  to  his  apartment;  depicts  a  sense  of  fear  of  relationship.   Moreover,   he   questioned   himself   with   the   line   “Replicants   weren't   supposed   to   havefeelings.  Neither  were  Blade  Runners.  What  the  hell  was  happening  to  me?”   (http://www.scribd.com/doc/37758498/Blade-­‐Runner-­‐Script#,  no  date).     To  make  things  more  complicated,  many  said  that  Deckard’s  gloominess   is   carried   until   the   end   of   the   movie.   At   the   ending   scene   where   Deckard   and   Rachel   left   together,   professor   of   History   of   Art   &   Architecture,     Dietrich   Neumann   comments   “We   are   left   by   uneasy   feeling   that   Deckard   might   be   the   Replicant   himself”   (Neumann,   1996   p.   150).   Neumann   also   regards   that   a   few   years   later   Blade   Runner   was   re-­‐edited   in   a   “director’s   cut”   version   in   which   Deckard   can   easily   be   identified   as   a   Replicant   and   his   film   noir     style   voice   over   was  eliminated.     In  this  sense,  the  powerful  confusion  or  placelessness  felt  by  Deckard  has   been   successfully   transcends   to   its   audience,   and   that   is   including   the   director   himself.  Postmodern  society,  as  Alvin  Toffler  once  mentioned,  is    a  “throwaway   society”  in  which  he  dubbed,  “It  meant  more  than  just  throwing  away  produced   goods   (creating   a   monumental   waste-­‐disposal   problem),   but   also   being   able   to   throw   away   values,   life-­‐style,   stable   relationships,   and   attachment   to   things,   buildings,  places,  people,  and  received  ways  of  doing  and  being.“  (1970,  quoted   in  Harvey,  1989)    

The   sense   of   placelessness   and   detachment   were   also   being   strongly  

supported  by  the  so-­‐called  “film-­‐noir”   style,  in  return  gives  the    movie  a  rather   dystopic  nuance  of  postmodernity.  As  Thurlow  put  it,  “Blade  Runner  offers  a  not   uncommon   dystopic   projection   of   the   future;   its   portrayal   of   an   urban   environment  embodies  many  contemporary  fears  and  anxieties  about  the  ‘good   old   days’   as   well   as   the   confusing   nowadays,   and   the   uncertain   days   to   come”.   Within   the   above   statement,   Thurlow   is   saying   that   the   filmmakers   are     responding   to   the   changing   world   of   postmodern   in   a   rather   pessimistic   view   which  was  being  the  trend  or  “not  uncommon  dystopic  projection“  of  filmmaking   at  that  time.         DYSTOPIA   Before   going   any   further,   let’s   have   a   look   in   the   notion   of   “utopia”   and   “dystopia”.    Many  have  said  that  ‘utopia’  is  arguably  a  common  characteristic  in  

the  modernist  age.    Sir  Thomas  More  as  the  initiator  of  the  term  ‘utopia’  is  fully   aware   that   such   notion   was   basically   non-­‐existent   for   the   very   semiotic   of   its   meaning.  In  Greek  ‘eu-­‐topia’  means  ‘good  place’  and  ‘ou-­‐topia’  means  ‘no  place’   (quoted   in   Roberts,   1995).     Utopia   means   a   good   place,   but   it   was   also   non-­‐ existent.  There  is  no  place  such  as  a  good  place.  However,  attempts  ‘in  search  of   utopia’  were  the  main  menu  on  the  age  of  modernity.       For   Jameson,   the   danger   of   Utopia   is   actually   in   the   assumption   of   uniformity,  where  everybody  is  happy  in  the  same  way.  He  argues  that  “people   only  work  socially  because  they  have  been  taught  to  repress    antisocial  impulses,   and  a  world  in  which  everybody  had  been  utterly  purged  of  antisocial  thoughts   would  be  a  world  completely  defined  by  repression.”  (quoted  in  Roberts,  p.  108).     With   the   same   tone,   Bauman   points   that   modernity   is   an   order   system   which   devalued   and   demonized   the   raw   human   condition   (Bauman,   1992).     He   said   that;     “   The   disenchantment   of   the   world   was   the   ideology   of   its   subordination;  simultaneously  a  declaration  of  intent  to  make  the   world  docile  to  those  who  would  have  won  the  right  to  will,  and  a   legitimation   of   practices   guided   solely   by   that   will   to   the   uncontested  standard  of  propriety”    (Bauman,  1992,  p.x)   Hence,   the   only   happiness   sought   in   modernism   is   probably   the   differentiated,   segregated,   and   hierarchic   population   of   the   Panoptican-­‐Jeremy   Bentham’s  grand  metaphor  of  an  orderly,  reason-­‐led  society.     Postmodernity,   in   which   argued   as   the   continuation   or   remedy   as   modernity  (Harvey,  1989)  came  with  a  set  of  values,  or  avalues  trying  to  hinder   the   “illness”   modernity   has   brought.   One   of   them,   is   the   complete   reverse   of   utopia.   This   term   is   known   by   ‘dystopia’,   or   ‘political   unconsciousness’’   as   Jameson’s  would  say,  as  an  impulse  of  utopia.     Returning  back  to  our  departure  point,  I  wouldn't  mind  to  say  that  Blade   Runner   mainly   puts   on   a   dystopic   face.   The   urban   decay   on   the   face   of   Los   Angeles,   the   constant   acidic   rain,   the   technological   debris   coloring   the   whole   scene,  and  so  forth.     However,  on  the  very  plot  of  the  story,  Rachel’s  and  Deckard’s  love  groom   and   blow   eventually.   This   very   event   gives   that   thin   layer   of   utopian   fantasy   that   is   romance.   Although   the   romanticism   in   the   movie   is   more   of   a   surface   styling  

than   a   central   idea;   it   gives   us   a   clue   that   probably   this   film   is   just   another   Hollywood   story,   which   ended   up   in   an   upbeat   sunshiny   face   of   hope   and   that   utopian  promise  of  “everything’s  going  to  be  all  right,  if  not  today,  then  it  will  be,   tomorrow”.   Here,   I   would   say   that   Blade   Runner   did   gives   us   a   glimpse   of   dystopic   face,   but   it   was   colored   in   typical   Hollywoodization   romance   which   weakens  its  effect  to  maximally  reflect  one  of  the  postmodern  character.           PASTICHE   Again   one   feature   that   is   mostly   talked   about   in   this   film   is   the   whole   architectural  of  the  movie.  As  pointed  out  by  Jameson,    “It  is  in  the  architectural   layout  of  Blade  Runner  that  pastiche  is  most  dramatically  visible  and  where  the   connection  of  postmodernism  to  postindustrialism  is  evident”  (quoted  in  Bruno,   1987).   It   is   said   here   that   pastiche   had   a   strong   connection   to   postmodernism.   Now   what   is   pastiche?   How   is   it   connected   to   postmodernity/sm   condition?   In   which   part   of   the   movie   is   pastiche?   We   will   answer   this   questions   in   this   particular  section.   Pastiche  itself  is  widely  used  in  critical  term;  it  could  mean  an  idealisation   of  a  style,  a  second  –  rate  imitation,  a  form  of  influence,  a  way  of  learning  one’s   art,  a  useful  rhetorical  craft,  and  so  forth  (Dyer,  2007).    Until  recently,  Ingeborg   Hoesterey  argues  “pastiche”  as  a  defining  principle  of  postmodern  art  in  general.   She  even  said  that  there  is  a  ‘pastiche  structuration’  in  Blade  Runner  (Dyer,  2007,   p.16).   Historically,   pastiche   comes   from   Italian   ‘pasticcio’   which   meant   a   pie   that   mixes   things   together   that   the   identities   of   the   different   ingredient   remain   largely  intact.     This   stylization   of   art,   is   performed   greatly   by   an   artist   named   Andy   Warhol  which  is  said  to  be  the  Father  of  Pop  Art.  Jameson  was  not  a  fan  of  this   entry,   for   him   pop   art   emerge   as   the   gate   to   the   juxtaposition   between   high-­‐ modern  and  postmodern  (high  brow  and  low  brow).  He  once  compared  the  two   pieces   of   art   and   commented,     “Van   Gogh’s   peasant   boots,   emblems   of   earthy   labour   redeem   in   a   pyre   color,   and   one   of   Warhol’s   sets   of   pumps,   vitreous   simulacra   without   tone   or   ground   suspended   in   an   icy   void”   (quoted   in   Anderson,1998,  p.60).       Pastiche   is   a   form   of   art   rich   with   repetition,   and   thus   the   light   of  

authenticity   dims   out.   Bauman   (1992)   adds   that   many   theorist   and   Marxist   critics  sees  that  a  postmodern  era  is  which  when  reproduction  takes  over  from   authentic   production.   Hence   for   Baudrillard,   postmodern   culture   is   indeed   dominated   by   simulacrum,   or   representation,   or   copies,   or   anything   but   the   original  one  (quoted  in  Bauman,  1992).     However,  in  the  world  of  such  cluttered  production  of  art  and  narratives,   criss-­‐crossing     and   overlapping   each   other;   can   there   still   be   anything   less   of   a   reproduction?  In  one  sense,  our  distance  with  reality  has  created  a  push  factor  to   the   notion   of   reproduction,   which   in   turn   our   technological   sophistication   has   also    provide  us  the  power  to  do  so.    For  instance,  if  I  really  like  the  painting  of   Mona   Lisa,   but   in   any   political   or   economical   power   am   I   impossible   to   have   them,   is   it   wrong   to   buy   the   replication   in   a   souvenir   shop   where   it   is   cheaper   and   accessible?     Having   in   possession   the   knock-­‐off   painting,   however   I   would   still   gladly   pay   the   price   to   see   the   original   Mona   Lisa,   whenever   I   get   the   chance   to.   In   any   sense,   a   replication   will   never   substitute,     let   alone   outweigh   its   original  piece,  as  long  as  one  can  still  differ  the  real  and  the  replica.  Which  in  the   contemporary  world,  that  is  exactly  the  problem.     Jameson  also  writes,  “depth  is  replaced  by  surface,  or  by  multiple  surface   (what   it’s   often   called   intertextuality   is   in   that   sense   no   longer   a   matter   of   depth)”(1991,   quoted   on   Allen,   2000).   What   he   meant   by   this,   sometimes   repetition/reproduction/representation   is   just   a   way   of   styling   a   work   of   art   without   any   recognition   to   the   real.   In   that   sense,   the   connection   between   the   real  and  the  replica  is  cut  off,    the  dialectical  interdependence  is  erased;  leaving   the  replica  as  a  symbol  of  nihilism,  of  not  acknowledging  the  original  piece.  The   practice   is   just   like   a   spin-­‐doctoring   of   history,   or   even   plagiarism   or   forgery.     Moreover  Jameson  argues,       “  Pastiche  is,  like  parody,  the  imitation  of  a  peculiar  mask.  Speech   in   a   dead   language:   but   it   is   a   neutral   practice   of   such   mimicry,   without   any   of   parody’s   ulterior   motives,   amputated   the   satiric   impulse,   devoid   of   laughter   and   of   any   conviction   that,   alongside   the   abnormal   tongue   you   have   momentarily   borrowed,   some   healthy   linguistic   normality   still   exists.   Pastiche   is   thus   blank   parody,   a   statue   with   blind   eyes..   the   producers   of   culture   have   nowhere  to  turn  but  to  the  past  imitation  of  the  dead  styles,  speech  

through   all   the   masks   and   voices   stored   up   in   the   imaginary   museum  of  a  now  global  culture.”  (quoted  in  Allen,  2000,  p.  184)   In  conclusion,  pastiche  feature  of  depthlessness  can  be  one  signifier  of  the   postmodernism   culture,   especially   when   the   “pastiche”   is   treated   merely   as   an   aesthetization  in  a  work  of  art,  without  acknowledgement,  it  is  save  to  say  that   such  work  would  imply  a  postmodern  culture.     As   Dietrich   Neumann   (1996)   puts   it,   the   city   of   Los   Angeles   in   Blade   Runner,   is   portrayed   as   a   polluted-­‐crime   ridden   city   which   has   long   been   abandoned  by  the  wealthy  middle  class  for  a  better  life  on  the  other  planet.  The   city   look   like   it   has   been   inhabited   mostly   by   outcasts   and   criminals   under   constant   surveillance   by   armed   police   cars   and   helicopters.   Is   this   a   fresh   concept  of  how  the  delirious  city  could  become  one  day?  Not  really.  The  picture   of   such   decayed   city   were   already   pictured   in   Fritz   Lang’s   Metropolis,   without   any   acknowledgement   from   Ridley   Scott,   when   such   statement   is   first   to   be   recognized   by   an   English   author,   H.G.   Wells.     Moreover,   Neumann   (1996)   also   wrote  about  the  extensive  degree  of  its  similarity,   “Ridley  Scott  wanted  a  ‘film  set  forty  years  hence,  made  in  the  style   of   forty   years   ago’   (Ostrow   1981).   This   premise   is   not   the   only   connection   to   Metropolis,   to   which   Blade   Runner   owes   much   in   terms   of   ideas   for   individual   settings   and   the   imaginary   of   the   city.   Most  importantly,  it  shows  a  city  with  history,  with  buildings  that   have   been   there   for   a   long   time   and   have   survived   beneath   gargantum  modern  high-­‐rises.  In  Metropolis,  these  survivors  were   the   cathedral,   the   house   of   the   inventor,   and   the   ancient   catatombs….   The   men   who   create   androids-­‐Rotwang   in   Metropolis,   Sebastian   in   Blade   Runner-­‐are   the   characters   most   deeply  rooted  in  history,  the  ones  who  live  in  the  oldest  buildings:   a  medieval  hut  in  Metropolis,  and  the  Bradbury  Building  in  Blade   Runner.”   Not  only  it  has  shown  a  great  deal  of  pastiche  in  the  stylistic  of  the  film  set,   Blade  Runner  has  also  surfaced  the  city  atmosphere  with  a  cultural  pastiche  in  a   sense   that   the   movie   is   also   an   exhibition   of   international   urban   density.   Towering  building  with  high  tech-­‐oriental  advertising,  exotic  fast  food  prepared   for   street   hawkers   and   not   only   that,   one   of   the   cast   in   the   movie,   Gaff   -­‐-­‐   the  

officer   playing   a   key   role   in   the   film   is   an   Asian   guy.   These   kind   of   symbolization   presented   in   the   movie   could   also   be   read   as   :   a   world   opening   jobs   for   international   players,   receptive   of   foreign   commodities,   and   highly   advance   in   ‘desperately   seeking   attention’   advertisement.   In   which,   all   of   this   symptoms   resulted   to   one   very   keystone   feature   of   postmodernity   they   all   are   descended   from  the  consumer  culture.       CONSUMER  CULTURE    

Many   believe   that   postmodernity   is   a   continuation   of   modernity   and  

therefore  is  inheriting  a  chronic  dependency  towards  objects  or  materials.    It  is   also  by  the  same  force,  that  modernity  eventually  needs  to  come  up  with  a  new   world  setting    which  we  later  call  postmodernity.  There  are  some  debates  when   exactly  this  transition  undergo,  but  in  terms  of  timing,  Celia  Lury  (1996)  would   call   modernity   as   an   era   of   “Fordism”   and   postmodernity   is   the   era   following   after  it,  or  “Post-­‐Fordims”.     In  other  text,    Jameson  would  say  that  the  emergence  of  the  postmodern   is  the  early  seventies.  He  argued  that  the  advent  of  postmodernity  rightly  located   towards   the   beginning   of   the   seventies,   in   fact   reflected   a   contemporaneous   break   with   the   post-­‐war   model   of   capitalist   development   (quoted   in   Anderson,   1998,   p.79).   This   section   will   carry   a   discussion   on   consumer   culture,   its   relevance  with  Fordism,  capital  accumulation,  and  how  it  all  comes  down  to  an   estuary  titled  ‘postmodernity’.     In   describing   the   distance   between   Fordism   and   Post-­‐Fordism   era,   Lury   (1996)   mention   three   differentiating   characteristics   which   are   :   production,   consumption,   and   commodities.   In   Fordism,   economy   was   dominated   by   mass   production.   The   technology   of   production   at   that   time   was   accounted   to   the   assembly   line   of   labors   which   will   operate   in   a   very   standardized   manner.   One   person  is  only  doing  a  particular,  repetitive  task.  However,  this  kind  of    ‘equally   shared’  duty  then  composed  a  strong  sense  of  solidarity  and  class  identity.     In  terms  of  output  or  commodities,  they  are  then  very  little  differentiated.   With   a   relatively   little   consumer   choice,   consumption   is   driven   by   producers.   Hence,   a   condition   as   such   did   not   go   on   forever.   The   postwar   boom,   an   era   characterized   by   the   rise   of   the   “middle-­‐classes”,     shattered   the   collapse   of   Fordism  and  in  the  1973  transition  in  the  regime  of  accumulation  began  (Harvey,  

1989,   p.140).   European   and   Japanese   market   recoveries   were   completed,   challenging  the  hegemony  of  United  State’s  Fordism.     Since  market  is  now  again  back  in  full  capacity,  people  start  to  find  new   spaces  to  sell  their  things.  International  trade  begins  to  flourish,  but  the  market   still  cannot  fully  absorb  production  excess.  Build  upon  a  rigidity  of  long-­‐term  and   large  scale  fixed  capital  investment,  it  seemed  that  the  only  action  it  can  be  taken   has  got  something  to  do  that  initially  started  waves  of  labor  strikes.      

Finally,   the   last   resort   to   annihilate   the   problem   and   the   protests,   is     to    

play  around  with  state’s  monetary  policy.  They  start  to  print  money  in  the  stake   of   whatever   rate   is   needed   to   stabilize   the   economy.   A   practice   we   know   as   “flexible   accumulation”.   However,   did   it   really   stabilize   the   economy?   It   did-­‐ temporarily,   but   soon   enough   it   also   started   the   inflationary   wave   which   cancelled  out  the  postwar  boom.  Harvey  was  suspicious  at  this  event  as  he  said,   “Behind   all   these   specific   rigidities   lay   a   rather   unwieldy   and   seemingly   fixed   configuration   of   political   power   and   reciprocal   relations   that   bound   big   labour,   big   capital,   and   big   government   into   what   increasingly   appeared   as   a   dysfunctional   embrace   of   such   narrowly   defined   vested   interests   as   to   undermine   rather   than  secure  capital  accumulation”  (Harvey,  1989,  p.  142)    

Hence,   the   1970s   and   1980s   were   the   period   of   experimental   efforts   in  

social-­‐political-­‐economy  sectors.  Attempts  which  in  short  run  cures  the  problem,   in   the   long-­‐run   becomes   a   bigger   problem   themselves.   Until   finally,   the   period   define  itself  with  a  set  of  social  solution,  as  Harvey  (1989,  p.336)  points  out,  “A   rhetoric   justification   of   homeless,   unemployment,   increasing   impoverishment,   disempowerment,  and  the  like  by  appeal  to  supposedly  traditional  values  of  self-­‐ reliance   and   entrepreneurialism   will   just   as   freely   laud   the   shift   from   ethics   to   aesthetics  as  its  dominant  value  system”.     Referring  back  to  Blade  Runner  and  its  “noir”  face  –  streets  with  outlaws   and   aesthicized   by   a   loud   poverty,   the   scenes   are   somehow   suspected   as   portrayal  of  how  it  was  like  during  of  an  urban  decay  as  experienced  in  the  above   statements.     Not   to   mention,   the   giant   corporation   of   Tyrell;   one   monopolistic   company   making   all   those   Replicant   (in   which   they   come   in   short   life   span-­‐4   years  only)  and  how  they  advertised  such  community  advancement  in  aesthetic   pleasure  (“a  better  life  in  other  planet  awaits”)  were  implications  of  the  period  

following  the  aftermath  of  Fordism.    

Indeed,   Lury   (1996)   said   that   Post   Fordism   has   the   tendency   to  

accommodate   consumer   demands.   Consumers   become   increasingly   specialized,   and   there   is   much   greater   differentiation   in   commodities.     In   regard   of   the   relationship   between   materials/objects   in   such   social   impacts,   Marx   analyzed,   “Put   simply,   this   interpretation   suggest   that   it   is   the   changes   in   mode   of   appropriation   associated   with   the   development   of   capital   that   have   led   to   the   emergence   of   a   distinctive   consumer   culture   in   modern   societies.”   (quoted   in   Lury,   1996,   p.40).   Moreover,   he   argues,     in   market   societies,   commodities   not   only  hide  but  come  to  stand  in  for  or  replace  relationship  between  people.      

It  is  suggested  that  modern  day  people  are  spoiled  with  accommodating  

objects,   in   return   become   so   much   materialistic   and   sometimes   putting   other   relationship   behind.     People   become   so   obsessed   in   search   of   material   until   they   are   putting   aside   values   like   religiosity,   family,   and   friends.     In   other   words,   residing  the  transcendental  and  horizontal  relation.  There  is  only  one  way  path   that  goes  back  to  oneself,  one  that  is  a  self-­‐fulfilling,  self-­‐containing,  self-­‐reliance;   culture  we  call  ‘individualism’.      

This  kind  of  social  feature,  extensions  of  consumer  culture,  I  suggest  was  

truly   a   driving   force   of   postmodernity.   However,   these   obvious   social   forces   was   not   really   been   explored   in   the   movie.     Yes,   somehow   it   highlights   the   increasingly   aestheticized   mode   of   poverty   and   advertising,   also   a   sense   of   international  process  of  goods,  but  it  does  not  open  up  the  depth  of  depthlessness   carried  out  by  very  driving  force  of  postmodernity  itself  –  the  consumer  culture.     It   does   not   give   us   clear   mirage   on   how   individuals   are   completely   lost   in   a   vortex   of   truth,   standard   and   ideals.     Rather,   the   concept   of   “Blade   Runner”   itself   is   submissively     a   recreation   of   repression;   a   group   of   people   trying   to   create   order   in   chaos   (or   what   they   perceived   to   be   chaos),   whereas   the   other   group  that  is  not  in  their  set  of  values  should  be  abolished,  in  the  pursuit  of  the   majority’s  happiness.  Positioning  Deckard  as  the  main  protagonist  of  the  movie,   successfully   murdering   the   targeted   Replicants   is   a   triumph   on   order   and   enforcement.     In   which,   both   feature   are   long   outdated   in   the   dictionary   of   postmodernity.     Therefore,   in   any   attempt   of   trying   to   dig   through   the   very   heart   of   postmodernity,   one   should   be   careful   of   its   unique   imbrications   with   the   latter  

period.   Even   in   an   art-­‐form   widely   recognized   to   contain   such   rich   postmodernity  values,  we  shall  not  fail  to  prevail  that  postmodernity  however  it   is  said  to  become  the  condition  in  the  contemporary  world,  it  is  never  been  said   that   it   cannot   co-­‐exist   with   modernity,   or   the   fact   that   the   very   appearance   of   postmodernity  can  completely  withdraw  an  era  abundant  with  strong  optimism   and  moral  ideals.       CONCLUSION    

 

In  conclusion  to  this  paper,  one  is  to  applaud  Harvey  (1989),  whom  said   that   postmodern   aesthetic   generates   a   genuine   peek   to   the   time   and   space   construction   at   the   current   period.     Hitherto,   debates   on   postmodernity   have   constantly   provoked.   Blade   Runner   gives   us   fresh   insights   with   their   encapsulated   &   eternal   imaginaries-­‐-­‐once   initiating   all   of   those   debates.   Five   of   them  are  discussed  in  this  paper;  meta-­‐narrative  decay,  placelessness,  dystopia,   pastiche,  and  consumer  culture.       The   first   four   features   were   considerably   well   presented   whether   in   the   tonality   or   the   intertextuality   implied   on   the   movie’s   plot.   However,   consumer   culture,   the   very   driving   force,   the   antecedent,   which   takes   a   big   part   in   the   inception   of   postmodernity   was   only   described   vaguely   in   the   movie.   In   extracting   the   values   of   “consumer   culture”   one   is   even   confronted   with   a   possibility  (subject  to  more  research)  of  whether  postmodernity  might  co-­‐exist   with  modernity  after  all,  since  the  film  was  not  so  firm  about  the  withstanding  of   this  character.        

Nevertheless,   As   Blade   Runner   has   been   premiered   nearly   two   decades  

ago,   its   proud   content   has   surpassed   the   initial   means   of   its   producers.   Even   if   it’s   not   the   most   brilliant   portrayal   of   how   postmodern   condition   is,   it   has   succeeded   to   carry   the   breed   of   what   was   perceived   by   the   filmmakers   as   a   futuristic   view,   in   which   then   has   sparked   debates   and   criticism,   but   mostly   an   important  dialectic  on  many  of  the  strong  characteristics  of  postmodernity.    

References   Allen,  G.  (2000).  Intertextuality.  London  :  Routledge   Anderson,  P.  (1998).  The  Origins  of  Postmodernity.  London  :  Verso   Bauman,  Z.  (1992).  Intimations  of  Postmodernity.  London  :  Routledge   Blade  Runner  (1982).  Directed  by  Ridley  Scott  [Film].  Los  Angeles  :  Warner  Bros   Inc.   Blade   Runner   Script.   Available   at   http://www.scribd.com/doc/37758498/Blade-­‐ Runner-­‐Script#    [24  November  2010]     Bruno,  G.    (1987).  ‘Ramble  City  :  Postmodernism  and  Blade  Runner’,  October,  41   (Summer,  

1987),  

pp.  

61-­‐74.  

Available  

at  

http://www.scribd.com/doc/37027974/Giuliana-­‐Bruno-­‐Postmodernism-­‐ and-­‐Blade-­‐Runner  [23  November  2010]   Dyer,  R.  (2007).  Pastiche.  New  York  :  Routledge   Harvey,  D.  (1989).  The  Conditions  of  Postmodernity.  Oxford  :  Basil  Blackwell   Jameson,  F.  (1991)  Postmodernism  Or,  The  Cultural    Logic  of  Late  Capitalism.  New   York  :  Duke  University  Press.   Lury,  C.  (1996).  Consumer  Culture.  Cambridge  :  Polity  Press   Neumann,   D.   (1996).   Film   Architecture   :   Set   Designs   from   Metropolis   to   Blade   Runner.  Munich  :  Prestel-­‐Verlag.   Roberts,  A.  (2000).  Frederic  Jameson.  London  :  Routledge.   Sammon,   P.   (2007).   ‘A   Blade   Runner   History,   A   Book   into   Film   [online].   Available   at:     http://bladerunnerthemovie.warnerbros.com/downloads/pdfs/BR_HIST ORY_PT1.pdf  [24  November  2010)   Thurlow,   C.   (2003)   Blade   Runner   and   the   ‘postmodern   condition.   [online]   (updated  

17  

October  

2003)  

Available  

at  

http://faculty.washington.edu/thurlow/research/bladerunner.html#sect iona    [1  November  2010]