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this post was submitted on 24 Sep 2023
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Here's a list of tons of leftist movies.
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The prevalence of Japanese stuff in Bladerunner 2049 is an artifact of cultural worries in 1983 with the first movie. It seems odd now, but in the early 80s Japan was briefly seen as the primary economic rival to the US. There was a genuine fear for a bit that the Yen would take prevalence over the dollar in some sectors, namely tech. Go look at magazine covers from the late 70s and early 80s. They couldn't shut up about how Japan would rule the world soon.
So why is there so much Japanese stuff but no Japanese people? Because at it's core it's xenophobic. It edges on being outright racist, by presenting Japan as like a cultural colonizer in the futuristic LA. I don't remember any of the Japanese stuff in the PKD story, it wasn't until the 80s did the ambient western worries start.
They'd culminate with the Plaza accords, which was a currency manipulation measure to ensure the dollar wouldn't have to compete as heavily with the yen. And that lead to Japan's asset bubble era and subsequent recession.