Dark City

THE CROW director Alex Proyas followed up his stylish debut with this even more stylish slice of sci-fi film noir. It's a complex yet eminently watchable beast, featuring a twisted, world-changing plot and using all manner of innovative ideas to create a true work of science fiction. Where THE MATRIX took a sci-fi principle and used it as a basis for a straightforward action flick, DARK CITY remains about the ideas and their implications all the way through.

The film kicks off as a straightforward murder mystery, featuring the ever underrated Rufus Sewell (in a rare Hollywood good guy role) as a wronged man on the run from the authorities. So far so Hitchcock, but throw in a dogged cop (William Hurt, who's never been better) and a series of repugnant baldies led by the camp but excellent Richard O'Brien, and you have the recipe for one uniquely thrilling film.

There are missteps along the way, including the infamously bad judgement of the studio to include an opening narration which makes redundant all the genuine twists and surprises later on in the story, but for the most part this is an exhilarating slice of film-making and much more mature than the better known Keanu Reeves-starrer. Proyas elicits some fascinating performances from his assembled cast, including an alluring debut for Aussie starlet Melissa George, a creepy turn for British character actor Ian Richardson, a bug-eyed role for MAD MAX 2's Bruce Spence, Jennifer Connelly as a paragon of virtue and the surprisingly excellent Kiefer Sutherland, cast against type as a twitchy doctor whose role owes much to Peter Lorre. The special effects involving the buildings are superb and the film as a whole is a refreshingly original piece of sci-fi done on a grand scale.

I don't have words to say, its amazing. Totally unpredictable. I haven't read even the synopsis. It came out giving me heart attack at the end.

It's absolutely worth watching.

For science fiction fans the late 90s were great years. The most famous and popular of all was The Matrix but Alex Proyas's much more thought-provoking(which is saying something as the Matrix, at least the first movie was very thought provoking itself) film is just as good. No movie can ever have too much atmosphere, and Dark City exudes it from every frame of celluloid. Alex Proyas' world isn't just a playground for his characters to romp in -- it's an ominous place where viewers can get lost. We don't just coolly observe the bizarre, ever-changing skyline; we plunge into the city's benighted depths, following the protagonist as he explores the secrets of this grim place where the sun never shines. Visually, this film isn't just impressive, it's a tour de force. Thankfully, Dark City doesn't have an "all style, no substance" problem, either, because there's a mind-challenging story to go along with the eye candy. Proyas hasn't written this film for the passive viewer. To become involved in Dark City, thinking is mandatory.

John Mudoch (Rufus Sewell) awakes in a bathtub completely naked, with blood dripping down his forehead, unaware of what is happening, he remembers nothing. In the next room he finds a dead body and a blood stained knife. What follows is john trying to piece together what is happening to him and what he unravels is one of the greatest science fiction stories ever put to film. There is a group called the strangers who have an ability to physically change surroundings of them and the people living in the city, they call this ability "tuning". They soon discover that john also has this ability, which is impossible as it would take a normal human a few lifetimes to gain the ability to "tune". Thats the most i can tell without giving away major plot points.

The movie is set in a 1940ish looking city where detectives are hunting John, along with the mysterious strangers. The tall buildings and the knowledge that the strangers could be anywhere in the city gives a menacing ambiance, heightening the tension in the movie and giving off a great effect on the viewer. The special effects in Dark City are stunning and realistic, especially when certain characters use "tuning".

Rufus Sewell gives a good performance as John Murdoch, though i could'nt help feeling he was holding back somewhat. I could think of a few other actors who could have gave a much better performance but he was generally good.

Kiefer Sunderland as Dr. Daniel Schreber was very good and seemed to have put all of his effort into his character, its quite an unusual role for Sunderland but he pulls it off pretty well.

Another performance worth mentioning is Richard O'Brien as Mr Hand, he gives a genuinely creepy performance as one of the main strangers, i thought i would see him and think crystal maze through all of his scenes but he does a pretty good job of playing a convincing character.

Overall the movie leaves a few unanswered questions, leaving the viewer to conduct their own theories about the outcome of events. I have a good grasp of the story as a whole but some people will find bits and pieces confusing. A great film anyways, i gave it an 8 because it tends to drag in some spots, but the end makes up for all doubts.

Dark City is the best film of Alex Proyas. He uses the Gothic and claustrophobic themes commonly and dark colors prevail during the film like "The Crow" .The story doesn't follow a certain order of rule, instead there is some mind games and puzzles in the film, that causes watchers to be active in each minute and motivate to the movie..

The topic is about a man who loses his past and first finds himself in a bath tub, doesn^t know about himself and his life, but he has one ability that no one has, he can be alive when the evil forces stops the time and reshapes the world according to their own demand. The story is so fantastic and Proyas' nightmare world come true in that movie.

I can basically say that it's one of the best science fiction movies ever made, it opens doors to different dimensions and force human brains' capability....

"Mutlu Bahar"