One of the many memorable scenes in Ridley Scott's dystopian classic Blade Runner sees Rick Deckard (a spectacularly moody Harrison Ford) ring the house of a murder victim, introducing himself as a friend of the deceased as cover. His adversary, Pris (Daryl Hannah in her breakthrough role), takes the call, before abruptly bringing their VidPhone conversation to an end. "That's no way to treat a friend," Ford murmurs.
And Blade Runner fans - of whom there are many - could be forgiven for recalling those portentous words this week. Almost 30 years after Scott first introduced us to 2019 Los Angeles, starved of sunlight and populated by illegal androids (called replicants), a sequel has been confirmed. The original has become a cult favourite - an old friend that cineastes return to over and over again. And, judging by the concerned reaction on film sites around the world, those people are appalled that the power of this masterly science-fiction film might be lessened by this sequel.
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Their reaction is ironic because almost nobody stood up for Blade Runner on its release in 1982 - not even Scott himself, who was furious with the studio for inserting narration and a happy ending to make the film easier to follow. But, over the years, the tale of Deckard's gloomy hunt for the replicants has gained critical and cultural momentum, despite its initial cool reception.
The 10th-anniversary Director's Cut and the 25th-anniversary Final Cut restored Scott's early vision. But even in its original guise, Blade Runner was a groundbreaking film, a combination of science and detective fiction set in a claustrophobic urban landscape cluttered by skyscrapers, neon advertisements and flying cars. No surprise, then, that in 1993, Blade Runner was preserved forever in the United States National Film Registry - an honour given to select films that are deemed "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant".
So anyone who wants to take on this legacy clearly has to tread carefully. But there is a glimmer of hope for those who feared that "Blade Runner 2" - the project has no official title yet, nor even a screenplay - was likely to be as disappointing as another 1982 techno-themed cult classic recently given the sequel treatment: Tron Legacy. Not only has the film company with the rights to Blade Runner promised it won't resort to a straight remake, it has persuaded Scott himself to direct the new film.
"We are elated Ridley Scott will shepherd this iconic story into a new, exciting direction ... it gives people a level of comfort about how serious we are," the producers Broderick Johnson and Andrew Kosove told Reuters.
It'll certainly be fascinating to see what that "new, exciting direction" turns out to be, not least because this time there's no source text to adapt. Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?, Philip K Dick's 1968 novel on which much of Blade Runner is based, is a stand-alone book. Indeed, it's a measure of how influential the film version has been that, since 1982, Dick's bibliography has become de rigueur for excitable film studios keen to adapt his dystopian stories. Total Recall, Minority Report, A Scanner Darkly, Paycheck and this year's The Adjustment Bureau are all based on his work.
There is such a thing as being too influential, however. The look of Blade Runner - the monolithic cities, the postindustrial decay, the combination of high tech and scuzzy humanity that would go on to be called "cyberpunk" - has become the classic visual template for science-fiction films. The Matrix, The Terminator, The Fifth Element and many more have cheerfully stolen ideas from Blade Runner.
Unfortunately for Scott, once he's found a good enough story to tell (and we presume he will pass on the awful "authorised" Blade Runner books written after Dick's death), he also has to make it look distinctive all over again. As Kosove said: "We want to make sure we don't look like we're borrowing from the movies that borrowed from it."
And with Scott on board, that could easily mean a sequel that has only a passing resemblance to the original. After all, while grappling with the return to his other sci-fi masterpiece, Alien, he ditched the idea of a straight prequel and instead embarked on Prometheus, which, he told MTV News recently, had "strands of Alien's DNA" but was essentially a new story.
Prometheus is set for release next year, with "Blade Runner 2" following the year after. By which point Ridley Scott will be 75, and if he pulls off another groundbreaking futuristic tale, he will have deserved his retirement. But even if he doesn't, nothing can diminish the majesty of the original Blade Runner. Nobody is forcing anyone to watch a sequel. Which is something the apoplectic message board community would do well to remember.
Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? by Philip K Dick is re-released by Gollancz tomorrow
How the bonus system works
The two riders are among several riders in the UAE to receive the top payment of £10,000 under the Thank You Fund of £16 million (Dh80m), which was announced in conjunction with Deliveroo's £8 billion (Dh40bn) stock market listing earlier this year.
The £10,000 (Dh50,000) payment is made to those riders who have completed the highest number of orders in each market.
There are also riders who will receive payments of £1,000 (Dh5,000) and £500 (Dh2,500).
All riders who have worked with Deliveroo for at least one year and completed 2,000 orders will receive £200 (Dh1,000), the company said when it announced the scheme.
What is the FNC?
The Federal National Council is one of five federal authorities established by the UAE constitution. It held its first session on December 2, 1972, a year to the day after Federation.
It has 40 members, eight of whom are women. The members represent the UAE population through each of the emirates. Abu Dhabi and Dubai have eight members each, Sharjah and Ras al Khaimah six, and Ajman, Fujairah and Umm Al Quwain have four.
They bring Emirati issues to the council for debate and put those concerns to ministers summoned for questioning.
The FNC’s main functions include passing, amending or rejecting federal draft laws, discussing international treaties and agreements, and offering recommendations on general subjects raised during sessions.
Federal draft laws must first pass through the FNC for recommendations when members can amend the laws to suit the needs of citizens. The draft laws are then forwarded to the Cabinet for consideration and approval.
Since 2006, half of the members have been elected by UAE citizens to serve four-year terms and the other half are appointed by the Ruler’s Courts of the seven emirates.
In the 2015 elections, 78 of the 252 candidates were women. Women also represented 48 per cent of all voters and 67 per cent of the voters were under the age of 40.
Three ways to limit your social media use
Clinical psychologist, Dr Saliha Afridi at The Lighthouse Arabia suggests three easy things you can do every day to cut back on the time you spend online.
1. Put the social media app in a folder on the second or third screen of your phone so it has to remain a conscious decision to open, rather than something your fingers gravitate towards without consideration.
2. Schedule a time to use social media instead of consistently throughout the day. I recommend setting aside certain times of the day or week when you upload pictures or share information.
3. Take a mental snapshot rather than a photo on your phone. Instead of sharing it with your social world, try to absorb the moment, connect with your feeling, experience the moment with all five of your senses. You will have a memory of that moment more vividly and for far longer than if you take a picture of it.
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Director: Alfonso Cuaron
Stars: Cate Blanchett, Kevin Kline, Lesley Manville
Rating: 4/5
In Search of Mary Shelley: The Girl Who Wrote Frankenstein
By Fiona Sampson
Profile
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Play-off fixtures
Two-legged ties to be played November 9-11 and November 12-14
- Northern Ireland v Switzerland
- Croatia v Greece
- Denmark v Ireland
- Sweden v Italy
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Almnssa
Started: August 2020
Founder: Areej Selmi
Based: Gaza
Sectors: Internet, e-commerce
Investments: Grants/private funding
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COMPANY PROFILE
Name: HyperSpace
Started: 2020
Founders: Alexander Heller, Rama Allen and Desi Gonzalez
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Entertainment
Number of staff: 210
Investment raised: $75 million from investors including Galaxy Interactive, Riyadh Season, Sega Ventures and Apis Venture Partners
Singham Again
Director: Rohit Shetty
Stars: Ajay Devgn, Kareena Kapoor Khan, Ranveer Singh, Akshay Kumar, Tiger Shroff, Deepika Padukone
Rating: 3/5
The specs
Engine: 77.4kW all-wheel-drive dual motor
Power: 320bhp
Torque: 605Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Price: From Dh219,000
On sale: Now
Nayanthara: Beyond The Fairy Tale
Starring: Nayanthara, Vignesh Shivan, Radhika Sarathkumar, Nagarjuna Akkineni
Director: Amith Krishnan
Rating: 3.5/5
From Zero
Artist: Linkin Park
Label: Warner Records
Number of tracks: 11
Rating: 4/5
Russia's Muslim Heartlands
Dominic Rubin, Oxford
Citadel: Honey Bunny first episode
Directors: Raj & DK
Stars: Varun Dhawan, Samantha Ruth Prabhu, Kashvi Majmundar, Kay Kay Menon
Rating: 4/5
Electoral College Victory
Trump has so far secured 295 Electoral College votes, according to the Associated Press, exceeding the 270 needed to win. Only Nevada and Arizona remain to be called, and both swing states are leaning Republican. Trump swept all five remaining swing states, North Carolina, Georgia, Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin, sealing his path to victory and giving him a strong mandate.
Popular Vote Tally
The count is ongoing, but Trump currently leads with nearly 51 per cent of the popular vote to Harris’s 47.6 per cent. Trump has over 72.2 million votes, while Harris trails with approximately 67.4 million.
Company%20Profile
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Stamp duty timeline
December 2014: Former UK finance minister George Osbourne reforms stamp duty, replacing the slab system with a blended rate scheme, with the top rate increasing to 12 per cent from 10 per cent:
Up to £125,000 - 0%; £125,000 to £250,000 – 2%; £250,000 to £925,000 – 5%; £925,000 to £1.5m: 10%; Over £1.5m – 12%
April 2016: New 3% surcharge applied to any buy-to-let properties or additional homes purchased.
July 2020: Rishi Sunak unveils SDLT holiday, with no tax to pay on the first £500,000, with buyers saving up to £15,000.
March 2021: Mr Sunak decides the fate of SDLT holiday at his March 3 budget, with expectations he will extend the perk unti June.
April 2021: 2% SDLT surcharge added to property transactions made by overseas buyers.
KEY%20DATES%20IN%20AMAZON'S%20HISTORY
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