What has The Blade Runner truly taught us? commentary by Sara Szarka at Spillwords.com

What has The Blade Runner truly taught us?

 What has The Blade Runner truly taught us?

written by: Sara Szarka

 

I’ve seen things you people wouldn’t believe. Attack ships on fire off the shoulder of Orion. I watched C-beams glitter in the dark near the Tannhäuser Gate. All those moments will be lost in time, like tears in rain.”

The iconic monologue delivered by Rutger Hauer in the 1982 Ridley Scott film has left us speechless and contemplating on the above words.

Tears and the act of crying is a very natural response to various events in our lives. As sensitive and unchallenged this subject is, upon looking around in our close environment we find people who are unable of crying. We find others, who constantly cry. We understand that people have very personal connections and interpretations of this physical response of pouring liquid.

In the complex world of metaphors, there exists a brilliant one which is crying in rain.
If we disassemble this picture we can detect quite strong references, meanings, and understandings of one’s nature. To enable the flow of tears itself, suggest a brave and natural way of functioning, which statement goes against the general valuation that states: only the weak cry. In order to release the dam we are ought to open channels and destroy obstacles that are in the way. For many, these ways are shut by a traumatic or a personal experience which is keeping the brooks dry.

However, to assess further the metaphor of one’s cry under the rain, we start to drift and wonder what it could suggest exactly. Why would Rowan Atkinson who portrays the jolliest man alive say “I love walking in the rain because no one can see me crying.”?

Let’s think of rain itself as a substance that swallows, carries away, cleanses, hides and covers. Let’s think of crying as a manifestation of a contradictory emotion. A sort of visage that should not fit on that specific person’s face who is associated with the act of crying.

Mr. Bean has to represent happiness, jokes, and comedy. How is it then, possible for this character to cry and show ostensible weakness? By including something that is sort of a transition between joy and sorrow. A curtain of rain which seals and channels.

Roy Batty represents cruelty, purpose orientation and harshness. How is it possible then for this character to reveal its humane side and show feebleness? By applying a layer of conducting substance which drains his asperity and turns it into a benevolent aspect.

Regardless of the nature of the individual, let that be joyful, cruel, determined or fallen apart, all have the right of period to halt and allow the eruption of emotions into the surface. And so, by finding refuge under an imaginary rain cover, we can allow ourselves to appear fragile regardless of who we actually are.

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