Tannhauser Gate: Everything You Should Know About The Last Speech of Blade Runner Movie

By Staff Writer 8 Min Read

In 1982, a movie made history because of a simple but heart-touching scene where we found the Tannhauser gate. The iconic actor Rutger Hauer set a millstone for the character (replicant Roy Batty).

This character guides us to know about the moment we are talking about (the gate). In the climax, we heard about it! Yes, when he was recounting his experience and said about the C beams glittering in the dark near the gate.

This is the moment, we discover a new era of possibilities that guide us to imagine a new sequel of this movie, new storylines, and many more. Let’s explore what this gate is all about in this review.

What is Tannhauser Gate In Blade Runner?

Almost everyone knows about the sci-fi movie named Blade Runner. There are lots of scenes and dialogue that touched our hearts in almost every way.

In one scene we knew about this gate when Roy Batty said his dying words “I’ve seen things you people wouldn’t believe… Attack ships on fire off the shoulder of Orion. I watched C-beams glitter in the dark near the Tannhauser Gate. All those moments will be lost in time, like tears in rain. Time to die.”

This speech was included by David. But it’s written as a draft script. After some cuts, we got the final one in the movie.

C Beams
Picture: C Beams

Behind the Scene:

As a cyberpunk Sci-fi movie lover, I always love to talk about Blade Runner, especially the character named Rutger Hauer. At the end of the movie, we were shocked after knowing about a mysterious word named Tannhauser gate.

We saw Rutger Hauer save antihero Rick Deckhard played by Harrison Ford. Otherwise, he is on the way to certain death. Batty’s four-year life cycle is about to end in this movie and he is near to death. So, he changes his mind and saves Deckard despite trying to kill Batty.

This was the moment we loved most because it was the moment of mercy. Before Batty passes away, he gives a speech that is memorable for every fan. He said what he saw that we people don’t believe.

Attack ships on fire off the shoulder of Orion and he also said he watched C-beams glitter. But this glitter he found in the dark near the gate.  At the final moment, he also said, all these moments will vanish soon in time. He compared it with tears in the rain and it’s time to die.

The important but astonishing fact about this speech is, Hauer improvised these lines and this happened on set on the day of filming! Could you believe it?

This speech was approved by Ridley Scott instantly. There was no intention to put these lines in the main script. So, it was picked from the scratches but it was quite clunky.

Roy Batty
Picture: Roy Batty

What was the actual script?

Yes, there are few dissimilarities in the line with the originally scripted one. From the draft dated 23 February 1981 we figured out the line and here it is.

I’ve seen things…

(Long pause)

seen things you little people

wouldn’t believe… Attack ships

on fire off the shoulder of Orion

bright as magnesium… I rode on

the back decks of a blinker and

watched c-beams glitter in the dark

near the Tannhauser Gate.

(Pause)

all those moments… they’ll be gone.

After this dying speech, every person wants to know what the heck the Tannhauser Gate is? Somehow we found some references. At first, we figured it out from a band and their songs.

The second reference is the iconic video game named “Homeworld”. But the strong reference we found in this game was a mission set in a region of space. This region was named “Tannhauser Gate”. This is the gate that we heard in the climax of Blade Runner.

Roy Batty in Blade Runner
Picture: Roy Batty in Blade Runner

Characters of the Iconic Scene:

In this final moment of Blade Runner, there are only two key characters sharing the screen. Let’s know more about them.

Roy Batty

This person plays the role of the leader of a renegade replicant group. This group hijacked a shuttle. So, he is a Nexus-6 combat model replicant that is defined by the number N6MAA10816.

Deckard

We knew him as a Blade runner. Works in the Los Angeles Police Department. He was assigned to retire four replicants, including Roy batty.

Picture: Deckard
Picture: Deckard

FAQ:

What is Tannhauser gate?

The theory says that this gate is a warp station. This station is facilitated with a travel mechanism that is also faster than the light. This gate connects the world with off-world colonies.

Were Tears in the Rain improvised?

In the final moment of dialogue delivering, Roy Batty and Rutger Hauer admit that some portions of this speech were improvised that make the most moving death soliloquy in cinematic history.

Why is Blade Runner so Famous?

With the iconic production design, Blade Runner got so much attention. Based on the philosophical themes with a fictional storyline, this movie tells us about the nature of man that never replicated.

Why does Roy save Deckard?

Deckard could have killed Batty but Batty saved him. Deckard indeed needed to be killed. Batty realized that every life is precious. That’s why he saved Deckard.

Why is it always raining in Blade Runner?

As we see, in the Blade runner movie most of the time it is raining. It was obvious to illustrate the effects of LA’s dangerously high levels of pollution.

Conclusion:

As we know, Batty is not a human at all. He is a machine that was designed for the war. He has lots of battle scars and we figured out the origin of such scars.

When we heard the word Tannhauser gate in the final speech from the batty, all the fans assumed that this gate is a location of a pivotal battle. We can match another word C Beams with this gate. Maybe it’s a deadly weapon that is used in this location.

Everything batty said in the final moment connected us with his recognizable human sentiment. That’s why this speech and all the vital words make a historical but emotional moment in the climax of Blood Runner.

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