Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #5395 in DVD
• Released on: 2007-12-03
• Rating: Suitable for 15 years and over
• Aspect ratio: 2.40:1
• Formats: Box set, PAL, Special Edition
• Original language: English
• Subtitled in: English, German, Spanish
• Number of discs: 5
• Running time: 113 minutes

Amazon.co.uk Review
To call this cut of Blade Runner ‘long awaited’ would be a heavy, heavy understatement. It’s taken 25 years since the first release of one of the science-fiction genre’s flagship films to get this far, and understandably, Blade Runner: The Final Cut has proved to be one of the most eagerly awaited DVD releases of all time.

And it’s been well worth the wait. Director Ridley Scott’s decision to head back to the edit suite and cut together one last version of his flat-out classic film has been heavily rewarded, with a genuinely definitive version of an iconic, visually stunning and downright intelligent piece of cinema. Make no mistake: this is by distance the best version of Blade Runner. And it’s never looked better, either.

The core of Blade Runner, of course, remains the same, with Harrison Ford’s Deckard (the Blade Runner of the title) on the trail of four ‘replicants’, cloned humans that are now illegal. And he does so across an amazing cityscape that’s proven to be well ahead of its time, with astounding visuals that defied the supposed limits of special effects back in 1982.

Backed up with a staggering extra features package that varies depending on which version of this Blade Runner release you opt for (two-, four- and five-disc versions are available), the highlight nonetheless remains the stunning film itself. Remastered and restored, it remains a testament to a number of creative people whose thinking was simply a country mile in advance of that of their contemporaries. An unmissable purchase. --Jon Foster

DVD Description
Celebrating the 25th anniversary of iconic sci-fi masterpiece Blade Runner, the 5-Disc Ultimate Collectors' Edition is the definitive Blade Runner collection. Packaged in a lenticular collectible tin with art cards and even a letter from director Ridley Scott, the Collectors' Edition brings together for the first time all five versions of the film, including Blade Runner: The Final Cut, which saw Ridley Scott go back into post production to create the long-awaited definitive version of the classic film.

The 5-Disc Ultimate Collectors' Edition also includes an entire disc with hours of enhanced content, including new featurettes and galleries devoted to more than 45 minutes of deleted and alternate scenes recently discovered in deep storage and approved by Ridley Scott. There is also background on author Philip K. Dick, script development, abandoned sequences, conceptual design, anaylsis of the overall impact of the film and how it lead to the birth of cyberpunk.

Harrison Ford, Rutger Hauer, Edward James Olmos, Joanna Cassidy, Sean Young and Daryl Hannah are among some 80 stars, filmmakers and others who participate in the extensive bonus features. Among the highlights is "Dangerous Days", a brand new, feature-length documentary by award-winning DVD producer Charles de Lauzirika, with an extensive look into every aspect of Blade Runner: its literary genesis, its challenging production and its controversial legacy. The definitive documentary to accompany the definitive film collection.

Also being released at the same time:
Blade Runner: The Final Cut (2-Disc Special Edition)
Blade Runner: The Final Cut [Blu-ray]
Blade Runner: The Final Cut [HD DVD]

Synopsis
It is 2019 and genetically made beings known as replicants exist as slaves and prostitutes in the off-planet colonies. Despite possessing such human traits as intelligence and virtual emotion, they are limited by a four-year life span which forces them to question their mortality. Four escaped replicants, led by Roy Batty (Rutger Hauer, THE HITCHER), arrive in Los Angeles to confront their designer, Eldon Tyrell (Joe Turkel). Hot on their trail is world-weary assassin--or 'blade runner'--Rick Deckard (Harrison Ford, INDIANA JONES), who has come out of retirement especially for this case. His objective is to hunt down and liquidate the four renegade androids before they have a chance to exact revenge on their cruel human oppressors. In the course of his search, Deckard becomes romantically entangled with Tyrell's lovely assistant Rachael (Sean Young)--who may not be all that she seems--and a dramatic face-off with Batty is inevitable. Director Ridley Scott's hauntingly prescient vision of the not-too-distant future is a stark revelation: a dark, polluted, overcrowded dystopia dominated by cloud-piercing buildings and looming neon billboards, the air dense with acid rain and flying traffic. Based on the novel DO ANDROIDS DREAM OF ELECTRIC SHEEP? by Philip K Dick, BLADE RUNNER boasts astonishingly rich art direction, juxtaposing ingenious technological gadgetry with yellowing photographs and fetishist objets d'art as it touches on questions of time, memory, identity, and mortality.

Customer Reviews

This is the one to buy - especially at this price!
For the price amazon uk are charging for this i say that even if its not precisely the same as following its still worth it and recommend any fan of BR to get this version particularly if it does have the much fabled work print which is worth its weight in gold!

The following detail appears on the USA Amazon site for this same set the 5 disc ultimate edition

By calvinnme "Texan refugee" (Fredericksburg, Va)

Disc 1 - Ridley Scott's All-New "Final Cut" Version of the film - Restored and remastered with added and extended scenes, added lines, new and cleaner special effects and all new 5.1 Dolby Digital Audio. Also included is commentary by Ridley Scott and a host of others that worked behind the camera.

Disc 2 - Documentary - Dangerous Days: Making of Blade Runner - A feature-length documentary about the film including viewpoints and insights from the cast and crew. Included are details on every stage of production of the film including special effects, casting, and even the film's literary roots and its place in the sci-fi genre.

Disc 3 - 1982 Theatrical Version - The original that contains Deckard's narration and has Deckard and Rachel's (Sean Young) "happy ending" escape scene.

1982 International Version - Also used on U.S. home video, laserdisc and cable releases up to 1992. This version is not rated, and contains some extended action scenes in contrast to the Theatrical Version.

1992 Director's Cut - Omits Deckard's voiceover narration and removes the "happy ending" finale. It adds the famous "unicorn" sequence, which is a vision that Deckard has which suggests that he is also a replicant.

Disc 4 - BONUS Disc "Enhancement Archive" - Eight featurettes, image galleries, radio interview with the author, and screen tests for the part of Rachel.

Disc 5 - Workprint Version - This rare version of the film is considered by some to be the most radically different of all the Blade Runner cuts. It has an altered opening scene, no Deckard narration until the final scenes, no "unicorn" sequence, no Deckard/Rachel "happy ending," altered lines between Rutger Hauer and his creator Tyrell (Joe Turkell), and alternate music.

Also included is commentary by Paul M. Sammon, author of Future Noir: The Making of Blade Runner and a featurette - "All Our Variant Futures: From Workprint to Final Cut".

All of the information on the features comes directly from a press release from Warner Home Video

What DVD was invented for
This five disc edition is quite simply the best DVD set on any single film I own. Initially, I was going to go for the 2 disc version - the film and the 'making of' but went 'large' due to the very reasonable price. I mean, did I really want a load of discs with the same film, that I probably wouldn't watch? No such fears - three versions of the film are on just one of the discs, cleverly 'branched' together. Disc one has an amazing print of the film - words fail me . . . 'definitive' is right. Two discs have superb 'makings of', which truly are interesting, even to people like me who are fatigued by modern 'makings of' which largely consist of guys playing with computers ('Bored of the Rings'). In Blade Runner, we see some great sets, model shots, the lot. The final disc has an early print of the film - a very different take. When you have seen the whole set, you realise that the entire Blade Runner world is within. A bit like Deckard's photo machine that lets you see around corners, nothing is missed - there's even an 'outtake and alternative' version of the movie, which is astonishing and kind of disorientating. No doubt some day a fan will assemble one long six-hour version from all the footage within. I'm not kidding - there's that much to browse through.
I'm amazed that most of the reviews here focus on the packaging (and those 'free' gifts you look at once) - has nobody actually been blown away by the content?? Don't hesitate.

It has just arrived...and oh boy is it good..
I just recieved my region two version of this release. I won't go into the case vs tin arguement, plenty said on that already. The five disks are nothing short of amazing. I saw this movie when I was fourteen in 1982. I have been a blade runner fan ever since. Everything since then has never matched the amazing visuals and excitement of that first time even the directors cut didn't do it, then this arrives. I can't describe to you just how luscious this transfer is. The film leaps off of the screen at you. The colour, the detail & the scale of the production is there to appreciate once again. The only problem is that a set of such beautifully transfered films makes me feel short changed by the quality of my other DVD's which haven't been so carefully transferred. This set really shows the capability of the format to it's finest. Buy it. Don't hesitate.