'Blade Runner 2049' director Denis Villeneuve defends portrayal of women in film
The director said he was sensitive to how he portrays women, adding that this is his ninth film and six of them have women in the lead role.
Los Angeles: Director Denis Villeneuve has responded to the criticism he faced over the portrayal of women in his film 'Blade Runner 2049'.
The film was released this year and was a sequel to Ridley Scott's original movie starring Harrison Ford.
Ford reprised his role of Rick Deckard in the sequel, which also featured actor Ryan Gosling as Agent K.
Critics claimed that world in the film was hostile to women and criticised the representation of its female characters.
"I am very sensitive to how I portray women in movies. This is my ninth feature film and six of them have women in the lead role," he said in an interview to Vanity Fair.
"The first 'Blade Runner' was quite rough on the women; something about the film noir aesthetic. But I tried to bring depth to all the characters. For Joi, the holographic character, you see how she evolves. It's interesting, I think," he added.
The 'Arrival' director also said that cinema shows a mirror to the society and feels 'Blade Runner 2049' was about the present and not the future.
"What is cinema? Cinema is a mirror on society. Blade Runner is not about tomorrow; it's about today. And I'm sorry, but the world is not kind on women," he said.
"There's a sense in American cinema: you want to portray an ideal world. You want to portray a utopia. That's goodÂ- dreams for a better world, to advocate for something better, yes. But if you look at my movies, they are exploring today's shadows. The first 'Blade Runner' is the biggest dystopian statement of the last half century. I did the follow-up to that, so yes, it's a dystopian vision of today, which magnifies all the faults. That's what I'Â'll say about that," he added.