The Misogyny of ‘Blade Runner’ (1982).
TRIGGER WARNINGS: Sexual assault, rape.
So many men (and a couple of women) have recommended the original Blade Runner to me as a Science-Fiction masterpiece. It’s been on my list to be watched for some time, and after seeing that Netflix had it, I dived in at last.
The concept, as expected, was fantastic; Harrison Ford played himself in the form of Deckard (he did it very well), and we are gifted with a mysterious villain in Roy (Rutger Hauer), who radiated dark charm. It was tense and gripping, which was no surprise, as the film is famous for its moral complexity.
A major critique of mine, however, is that the female cast was predictably lacking in diversity for the era, with most of the women being clothed as little as possible. There was even a scene where a (replicant) woman, after attacking Deckard, ran out into the street in nothing but underwear, thigh-highs, and a see-through raincoat. My senses were already on a moderate alert after Deckard had been creeping around in her dressing room where she worked as a stripper, putting on a fake accent and asking to look around whilst she was naked and alone. Personally, I wouldn’t be surprised if a human woman had panicked and attacked in self-defence, given how inappropriate that was.
Zhora (Joanna Cassidy).
Then, I got to the “romance” scene. For the film's first hour, Deckard had not so subtly been harassing Rachael (Sean Young), a replicant in a vulnerable state after learning that she is not human. He was fighting tooth and nail for a nightcap, or whatever they called it in the 80s. You could tell she was the love interest because she was the only one dressed conservatively (see for reference the misogynistic Madonna-Whore complex). Deckard fell asleep drunk, with an undrunk shot in his hand (a good start) until Rachael woke him up by playing the piano. I thought this was sweet until Deckard crept up behind her and got far too close for comfort. Clearly, the two other times he had come onto her and she had rejected him weren’t enough, and he kissed her neck and face with no response. She got up to leave, but even that was not enough to stop him from harassing her, so what did he do? He chased after her as she ran for the door and physically stopped her from leaving by forcing it shut. Then, he grabbed her by the shoulders and pushed her against a wall, pinned her there and forcefully kissed her whilst she was shaking.
Deckard (Harrison Ford) and Rachael (Sean Young).
This shocked me so badly that I had to pause the film and start writing this article. My heart was racing with anxiety (and no, not the good kind). As someone who has experienced sexual assault, I felt I was watching something that looked and felt very similar to my own experience. The sexy saxophone music being played over the top, however, would try to convince me that this assault was some display of romance. I sat with a tight chest for some time, working up the courage to continue watching, but I managed it in the end. I felt sick whilst viewing the last few seconds of that scene where I’d paused- when Deckard ordered Rachael to kiss him. Following that, he raped her. It took a while for the discomfort in my gut to go away, even after the scene had finished.
I thought I was out of the woods, back to the thrilling action, until I watched Roy tongue-kiss his dead girlfriend, but then I suppose we expect horrific behaviour from him, as he is framed as the unhinged villain (which we all know he’s not, really). Now, as Blade Runners are slave hunters, we already know that Deckard is no real hero. But it’s important to note that he is played by Harrison Ford- the go-to ruffian hero of the 70s and 80s. It is such casting that implies that we are supposed to root for Deckard, but I was unable to do so once I had reevaluated him as a rapist.
I think many of us can agree that Roy deserved victory against Deckard and his biological clock, and it pained me to see him fail, delivering one of the most iconic lines of cinema as he passed. If you weren’t at least somewhat rooting for Roy to overcome his status as a slave and defeat those who built such a system, I don’t trust you. Furthermore, Deckard not only coming out of their altercation alive but also “getting the girl” that he had forced into sex pissed me off to no end. For any fans of 80s films, you will know that it is not uncommon for characters played by Harrison Ford at that time to display a complete lack of regard for consent when interacting with women on screen (Star Wars, Indiana Jones). Despite the misogyny of all of these characters, one fact rings true through it all: if you’re watching a film from the 80s starring Harrison Ford, no matter how badly his character treats women, he will always get the girl.
Excuse me while I vomit.
Research
Miyashita, N. (2023, July 19). You’ve Heard Of The Madonna-Whore Complex, But Do You Really Know What It Means? Refinery29. Retrieved April 14, 2024, from https://www.refinery29.com/en-au/what-is-madonna-whore-complex
Pop Culture Detective. (2017, Mar 30). Predatory Romance in Harrison Ford Movies [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wWoP8VpbpYI