It’s been a surreal couple of years as far as entertainment goes, witnessing the return of some of my favorite heroes and heroines of decades past returning for another round on the big and small screen — in TWIN PEAKS, X-FILES, STAR WARS, and now BLADE RUNNER, to name just a few.
Whoever nudged Harrison Ford a few years back and told him he was being too grumpy about Han Solo, Rick Deckard, and Indiana Jones, I give them serious thanks, because he’s clearly gone out of his way to cater to fan demands with revisits to all of these beloved characters (even though no one was pleased that he got his wish to kill off Han Solo). Still, as much as I appreciated the miracle that the creative team behind BLADE RUNNER 2049 pulled off to deliver a satisfying, visually sumptuous sequel, I find myself going back to Ridley Scott’s 1982 original with more and more appreciation (which I already had plenty of). It truly is a remarkable film. An absolute cinematic classic. 
For those not in the know: Based on Philip K. Dick’s 1968 novel DO ANDROIDS DREAM OF ELECTRIC SHEEP?, the original BLADE RUNNER starred Ford as a retired Los Angeles detective in 2019 (the future!!!) tasked with tracking down a quartet of Replicants — perfect androids practically indistinguishable from humans — who are illegally on Earth seeking to meet their maker and extend their expiration date. Scott and screenwriter Hampton Fancher, who also wrote the 2049 sequel, originally conceived of their 1982 project as the first in a series of films incorporating the themes and characters featured in Dick’s groundbreaking novel, and I’m all for it given how well 2049 turned out. Here’s hoping that BLADE RUNNER 2049 recoups enough of its investment that they’ll make another one. Until then, like tears in rain, we’ll all just have to work on our unicorn origami at a noodle bar.
And In the meantime, here are a variety of vintage BLADE RUNNER lobby cards from 1982, in both English and Spanish, to ogle:
Back in the days before the Internet, movie lobby cards were a powerful tool used by Hollywood studios to lure audiences into the darkened theater. They were the last line of enticement — and sometimes the first — alongside carpet-bombing consumers with coming attractions, movie posters, marquees, publicity stunts, movie program books, and newspaper advertisements for their newest big-screen sensation. With no entertainment websites or blogs available to tease audiences with stills from their films, lobby cards served that purpose for the studio publicity machine. These days, movie theater lobbies have eschewed the traditional lobby card for posters, standees, trailers on repeat, experiential activations and more.
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