8. Blade Runner (1982)

Blade Runner is the original cyberpunk movie. It’s also one of the most inspired science fiction films to ever make it out of Hollywood. Of course, it’s hard to talk about any single version of Blade Runner, as its director, Ridley Scott, is a perfectionist and has released numerous different editions from the theatrical cut, to the laserdisc cut, to the so called Final Cut. Whatever version you see though, you can’t really go wrong. The plot follows Rick Deckard, a “blade runner” whose job consists of tracking down and “retiring” (killing) bioengineered beings called Replicants. Blade Runner is a neo-noir film, and is basically a futuristic detective tale. It’s also a tale about what can be considered human, in an era where high technology reigns. Blade Runner’s visuals are just phenomenal, and the lighting in particular sparkles in this new world. Blade Runner will make you wonder what’s real and when life begins. It also has the greatest soliloquy in movie history, Tears in Rain, spoken by Roy, the Replicant leader.