Next up is the 5 Disc Ultimate Collector's Edition. Even though I didn't go for the Blu (which I now consider to be unfortunate, though I had good reasons at the time) I did drop the cash for the “Ultimate” edition which I will now lay out for you in time-devouring detail.

 

Video:

2.35 widescreen:

Various product listings say the presentation is this ratio or that. I'm telling you what mine says it is. The image looks really good here. It's still noticeably inferior to the 1080p high-def image, but it's just as noticeably improved over the previously existing quality. After seeing my original DVD copy for so long by the time I got the “Final Cut,” I felt like I had been seeing it on VHS the whole time and was now finally just now actually seeing it on DVD. The clarity and sharpness is greatly improved. The colors look more vibrant while still retaining the grimness of the environment.

 

Audio:

5.1 Dolby Digital:

Finally! Surround sound! It is excellent, strong and clear. The previous 2.0 mix was acceptable, but this takes it to the next level. There is considerably more bass in this mix. It sounds much more robust now. I still can't say that the surround sound immersion blows me away, in fact it can sometimes seem lacking, but there are other times when it comes out nicely.

 

Packaging:

The packaging is so impressive that I'm actually going to be talking about most of it in the extra features section below. I want to mention here the box that holds the DVD's themselves. It is the typical folder-in-a-box design although the style and look of the artwork is at a level not typically seen. My one complaint about this design is that the trays stack the DVD's on top of each other - 2 per tray (except the one odd one, of course). What is up with this? Even spending a month's paycheck on a movie I can't get away from these stupid stacked-DVD trays. The package is already huge so stacking 2 DVD's is not going to save a whole lot of space! Thin clamshell cases would have been ideal for this. With that kind of design the DVD sleeve could have been worked into the case it comes in instead of being a separate item. Oh but I could go on forever about ideas that sound good but to what end? They just need to hire me to design these things properly.

 

Included inside is a book. It contains a rundown of the contents of each disc as well as chapter listings and some nice images.

 

The interface features some animation and music. The graphics don't blow me away as much as some of the other elements of the release, but they are not bad at all.

 

Extras:

I'm going to break this up into two sections. Since there is so much more than DVD's in this set I'm going to have a “physical extras” section. After that will be “disc contents” which will cover everything on each disc for easy breakdown comparison of the different sized packages.

 

Physical:

-Replica Case: First of all it all comes in a big plastic box shaped like an attache case.  Let me rephrase that, it is not just shaped like one, it essentially is one.  The lid opens like any regular case and fastens securely.  It even has a folding handle.  It features the movie title in big red letters and some other things that signify it as a movie box, but it also has some details that make it look a lot like a prop replica. 

When you open then case the items are divided into two groups - lid and case - separated by a clear plastic divider. Everything is held securely in place so you don't have to worry about things falling out when you close the case.  The bottom portion is foam so nothing slides around.  It should take no effort at all to keep everything in pristine condition (which is why I'm surprised that the DVD trays don't show that same level of care).

 

-Art Files: The art folio is made up of several large full-color cards inside a manila folder.  The folder, of course, is a special Blade Runner design.  The images range from concept art to storyboard images.  Some of them look very nice, but some aren’t all that impressive at least not for this kind of presentation.

 

-Motion Block: The motion film clip is a lot like the lenticular cards that move when you tilt them except that this is a plastic block (like a paperweight). The number of images and image quality are higher than the regular cards.  The image is a pan across Deckard's head (from the end of the movie).  It is an exceptionally nice looking piece although if I were choosing a clip for it I would probably go for the spinner approaching the police station.

 

-Replicas: I haven't known too many DVD releases that come with toys.  That's really what sold me on buying the limited edition set.  OK, OK, they are not really toys, they are "replicas" (yeah, right, they are toys if we are being truly honest about it).  Both are extremely fun to have for a geek’s gazing pleasure.  I challenge anyone willing to shell out the money for this package to resist removing these for display on a desk.  They simply look far too good to leave in the box.

-Origami Unicorn: One is a model of the origami unicorn.  It's all shiny and pretty but it shows fingerprints well.  It comes with its own "made in China" sticker.  I'm not sure why I found that amusing.  I guess it doesn't take much for me sometimes.

-Spinner: The other is the spinner - the hovering police car.  It's looks a lot like a Hot Wheels car.  The back wheels spin and the doors open.

 

-Letter From Ridley: This is the clear plastic divider I mentioned earlier. The letter is printed on the plastic.

 

Disc Contents:

Here's how this works: Disc 1 comes in all versions of the Final Cut release. Discs 1-2 come in the 2 disc release. 1-4 come in the 4 disc release. So take a look at what each disc contains, and you'll know what you're getting in any given package.

 

Disc 1:

The new Final Cut version of the movie (available in all versions of the Final Cut release).

 

-Commentaries:

-Director: First up is by Ridley Scott.  He gets into a lot of the how and why of Blade Runner and gives an explanation of the ending. 

-Producers, screenwriter: This one is mostly slow.  It talks a lot about who wrote what specifically, gets into using the buildings on location, talks about the poor reception from audiences upon its release, and gets into influences and legal concerns. 

-Futurist, production designer, art director, effects supervisors: Somebody keeps saying things are “obvious” when they are far from it.  Other than that this is still the dullest of all the commentaries.

 

-Introduction by Ridley Scott (0:37) Also on this disc is an intro by Ridley. It’s a brief description of what was done to the movie for this version.  The movie begins automatically after it.

 

Disc 2:

Documentary (available in all but the single disc versions of the new release).

 

-Dangerous Days (3:34:09) This is a HUGE (3.5 hours!) behind-the-scenes documentary. Virtually every living major cast and crew member takes part, plus people with other ties to the movie, and some that have ties to deceased members of the crew.  It’s divided into multiple chapters so it’s very easy to spread the viewing out if you don’t want to sit for that long for a documentary. It deals with virtually every aspect of the production including early problems that nearly killed the project, the drama during the shooting, cut scenes, problems with the ending, retractions, and other things not to mention the expected things like pre-production, casting, special effects, etc. Subtitles in a few different languages are available.

 

-Previews: There are a few previews also on this disc offered in a menu.

 

Disc 3:

Archival versions (available in the 4 and 5 disc versions of the new release.  I can't find anything that says for sure if these are presented in HD in the Bu and HD DVD packages as well as the newer anniversary Blus. The “Director's Cut” is available by itself in the older release I mentioned earlier, but to the best of my knowledge the other versions are not available on DVD anywhere else).

 

-Intros: Each version has an into by Ridley that talks about some of the things that set it apart from the others. Each movie starts after its intro finishes.

-Theatrical Cut Intro (0:34) Comments on the narration and happy ending.

-International Cut Intro (0:28) The similarity and differences from the original.

-Director's Cut Intro (0:37) The major differences from those that came before.

 

Disc 4:

Various extras (available in the 4 and 5 disc versions of the new release.) There is a play all options for the disc under “Access” though it omits a lot (mostly anything that's part of a group that has a play all option like audio clips, deleted scenes, promos, etc.)

 

-The Electric Dreamer (14:23) Starting off the disc are a couple of clips focused on the author and book.  This one looks at Philip K. Dick’s background, career, brushes with Hollywood, and briefly mentions his religion. 

 

-Sacrificial Sheep (15:10) This other one looks more at the book comparing it and its ideas to the movie.

 

-The Blade Runner Interviews: Following these is a collection of audio clips that are taken from interviews with Dick. He talks about the book and his impressions of the movie which changed over time. This much poor quality audio could very easily be boring, but Dick's thoughts are fascinating. If you use the play all option the written intro will display first.  

-Introduction (0:30) A text intro explaining the background of the interviews. The play all begins automatically after 30 seconds even if you selected the intro by itself.

-Inspiration For Electric Sheep (1:55) Dick's thoughts on the concepts including real-life Nazi inspirations.

-The Meaning of Electric Sheep (1:12) The paradox of humans vs. androids.

-Wanting to Write the Script (0:39) His script writing history.

-Hollywood (1:28) His negativity towards the movie industry.

-Not Asked to Write the Script (0:23) Answering the question about writing the script.

-Adapting Books to Movies (1:20) The disconnect between movies and books.

-Being Left Out of the Production (3:01) Surprise at his omission and talking to Ray Bradbury.

-Problems with the First Screenplay (1:13) Thoughts on what was wrong with it.

-Hating Hampton Fancher's Script (2:02) Rewriting it many times and the character of Deckard.

-Lashing Out Against Blade Runner (1:06) Speaking out in hopes of getting tapped for feedback.

-Meeting Ridley Scott (3:48) Cordial disagreements.

-Loving David Peoples' Script (1:26) Publicly reversing his opinion on the script.

-Viewing Blade Runner Footage (2:31) His thoughts on the details and the impact.

-Harrison Ford (0:56) Harrison's grasp of his character.

 

-Signs of the Times (13:41) After that huge documentary on disc 2 is there anything left for other behind-the-scenes features?  They manage to find more material. First is graphic design. It looks at the style and approach, shows off various concepts and designs, and provides an idea of just how immense this job was.

 

-Fashion Forward (20:42) Next is wardrobe. These are typically mildly interesting at best, but this one is better than most. It gets into the various designs and inspirations and offers the actors’ thoughts on them.

 

-Screen Tests (8:55) A couple of screen tests look at some of the top runners for Rachel and Pris. The intro to this section makes it sound like Darrell and Sean’s tests will be included, but they aren’t. Included here are only the people that didn't make it along with some reflections from them.

 

-The Light that Burns (20:04) This one focuses on the history and work of the late cinematographer.

 

-Deleted & Alternate Scenes: A collection of 24 deleted scenes shows off some of the material shown in the documentaries in an easy-to-access, separated form. As many as there are here they still don’t include every scene that exists (though right off the top of my head I can't remember what is absent). Most of these are alternate bits of Deckard's narration though many also include some different or additional shots. The most interesting of these are perhaps those that give additional background on various characters. An alternate opening sequence has graphics of dripping water. A couple show Holden in the hospital. Another shows more of the back-alley streets in the city. One spends more time with Deckard and Zorah backstage. A couple more show additional sexuality between Deckard and Rachel including him looking up her skirt and copping a feel. There’s a play all option and an intro for the group. My player has trouble accessing this one menu for some reason so I will have to update this list with the precise details later.

 

-1982 Promotional Featurettes (old, archival bits with a play all option for the group):

-On the Set (14:21) This old 80’s clip claims to be an “on set” bit.  It’s really just a walk through the story with a monotone narrator.  It’s not very good and has weak presentation quality.

-Convention Reel (13:16) A convention presentation features some 70’s music, some fly-on-the-wall kind of shots of production, some explanations by the designers, and other things. It appears to be a presentation FOR a convention, it's not OF one.

-Behind-the-Scenes Outtakes (8:44) The outtakes aren’t what I expected.  Usually these are funny flubs and unused takes from filming. They are typically some of the more humorous moments of a DVD. This collection isn’t comedic at all, they’re just shots of the set and people. There isn’t even any audio. It's a little bit of a disappointment even though it does offer some interesting fly-on-the-wall glimpses.

 

-Trailers & TV Spots (These cover the vintage and the new with a play all option. I’ve seen other trailers on other releases that aren’t included here):

-1981 Teaser Trailer (1:42) The original teaser is not very good. If I had seen this I wouldn’t have had any interest in the movie.

-1982 Theatrical Trailer (3:38) The theatrical one is better but is weak in the music department. 

-1982 TV Spot (0:33) The TV spot is the best of these, but it gives the wrong kind of impression about the movie’s themes. No wonder the movie didn’t perform well upon its release; the advertising campaign was pitiful. 

-1992 Director's Cut Trailer (1:35) This looks like it was played on a TV and recorded on a camcorder. At least is has better atmosphere. 

-2007 Dangerous Days Teaser Trailer (1:36) A good look at the documentary.

-2007 Final Cut Trailer (2:27) This one is finally decent and does the movie justice. 

 

-Promoting Dystopia (9:38) This bit looks at promotional art with comments from the artists that painted the promotional posters. It also talks about the nature of the state of the promotional industry now.

 

-Deck-A-Rep (9:34) The question of whether or not Deckard is a replicant gets its own feature. There are good arguments for both positions. There’s an amusing slip by Olmos calling Deckard a Cylon.

 

-Nexus Generation (21:53) Lastly is a kind of retrospective. It is various people, including some respectable directors and other industry pros, talking about being influenced by the movie and their fandom.

 

Disc 5:

Workprint (available only with the 5 disc version of the Final Cut release and the later anniversary Blus). 

 

-Introduction by Ridley Scott (0:47) Why this exists, some of the things that make it unique, and a heads up about the quality issues.

 

-Commentary: Documentary writer: This commentary is provided by the author of a "Blade Runner" documentary book.  He makes wet sounds with his mouth that I find almost unbearable (I have a very low tolerance for those kinds of sounds).  I had to turn the sound down to where I could barely hear his words to get through listening to this at all.  I'm sure it's just me being weird, but it has to get a mention.  It is interesting enough, though, that I stuck with it to hear all of the comments.  He does tend to over-explain things, but he talks a lot about some specific differences, and, having talked with numerous people involved in the making, gives some special insights not found anywhere else on the DVD’s.

 

-All Our Variant Futures (28:32) The last feature is a fairly lengthy documentary focusing on the different versions of the movie and the DVD.  It looks at the history of the different cuts and what sets them apart from each other, changes for the new version, and new footage shot for the “Final Cut” with side-by-side comparisons to the original scenes.  If you’re a big enough fan to want to see the workprint in addition to the finished movie and like watching extra features at all, you’ll likely find this one extremely interesting.

 

DVD Functions:

-Subititles: A few different languages are offered on some discs though the Languages menu is offered even when there are no options to choose from (almost like a joke at the expense of the original DVD)." Dangerous Days" is the only extra that actually has subtitles.