Subject: Review: Dark City (1998)

From: "Scott J. Promish" <[email-masked]>
Date: 4 Mar 1998 17:45:27 GMT

DARK CITY  (1998)

Review (c) 1998 Scott J. Promish

DARK CITY takes place in a metropolis of clockwork people that is
haunted by a pale race of humanoids called Strangers.  As the
misleadingly bland title implies, it is a city of eternal night.  A man
named John Murdoch wakes up in his hotel room with amnesia and a dead
whore next to his bed.  As we find out, this is the latest in a series
of murders, and Murdoch becomes a wanted man.  

The Strangers are after him as well, for Murdoch is not like the other
citizens.  He doesn’t sleep when everyone else does, and he possesses
the Strangers’ ability to “tune,” or psychically manipulate matter. 
Such a rogue element cannot be allowed to interfere with the Strangers’
plans, and he must be eliminated.

Who is Murdoch really?  What are the Strangers?  And why doesn’t anyone
remember ever being outside the city?  These are the mysteries we are
presented with.  The story is remniscent of some classic episodes of
‘The Twilight Zone’, one in particular which I won’t name for fear of
indirectly giving spoilers.

The actors are good in roles that unfortunately don’t offer much
character development or depth (which is the film's only real flaw.) 
Kiefer Sutherland stands out the most as a scientist employed by the
Strangers to aid them in their experiments.  His broken speech pattern
sounds awkward at first, but after a couple appearances it begins to
seem natural.   Rufus Sewell (COLD COMFORT FARM) is likable as the hero
of the piece.  The human characters are rounded out by Jennifer Connelly
as Murdoch’s wife Emma, and William Hurt as the inspector on Murdoch’s
case.  The Strangers are suitably eerie, with the major roles being
filled by Ian Richardson (BRAZIL) and Richard O’Brien (THE ROCKY HORROR
PICTURE SHOW.)  The film is directed by Alex Proyas, who debuted in 1994
with a very good adaptation of James O’Barr’s graphic novel series THE
CROW.

Visually, the film is stunning.  The sets resemble a 1940’s-era America,
with a distinctly industrialized bent.  Most everything is cast in a
greenish brown light (blue/black for scenes in the Strangers’ lair), and
evokes the look of THE CITY OF LOST CHILDREN.  The effects are amazing
during the tuning sessions; brick and metal buildings grow like
vegetation, and melt and merge like clay.  It’s like sitting inside a
Dali painting.

DARK CITY is a satisfying fantasy, a surreal study of identity, memory
and reality that still has me thinking about it and liking it even more
after I’ve seen it.  Recommended especially if you get off on
philosophy.

[Review written 3 March 1998]