Dark City

This film is very successful at being very disorienting. I was lost in the excitement of the film. It starts out like a shot out of a gun after a brief narration explaining the current situation. Then it jumps to a sleepin city, save for one man who abruptly wakes in a tub without any clue how he got there and who he is. It seems the more he tried to find out, the more I questioned what in the world was happening. To paraphrase Morpheus, I felt very much like Alice tumbling down the rabbit's hole. It was only after I was able to catch up with the plot just as the amnesiac does that I was able to see how carefully and expertly the filmmakers had constructed the feel of the film. It was otherworldy to be sure, but there was vague familiarity in the dress and locations that resembled that of 40's noir films I had seen. To be so overwhelmed by the speed and oddities of the film is easy. Starting with that first montage of the city at a sleeping standstill, the film sets up the viewer to constantly be attempting to grasp at straws - at things that make sense - but to always feel out of your element as a viewer. The film is crazy. The images I saw were frightening, beautiful and awe-inspiring. The world is bleak, and the future seems even bleaker. The city is covered in shadows and men with dark, brimmed hats, and is lit to accentuate the shady characters and the dark night. Some of the shots of the film are framed so well that I stopped in the midst of my getting lost in those early moments of the film to marvel at the skill that went into putting them together.

And then there are the "Strangers." I'll admit to be frightened by the albino, sharp-toothed, lanky freaks. Especially that little kid one. Scary movies often deem it necessary to have a creepy kid running around, but none have managed to unnerve as much as the tiny, menancing stranger quietly promising violence. The Strangers could make my hair stand up by just standing still or slowly floating about their environment. Their stark white skin against the darkness around them made for memorable images throughout the film.

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The intentions of these beings doesn't seem all that bad - to find out what makes humans unique. But that doesn't stop them from being intimidating. It helps that their horribly ugly creatures who carry big knives and speak in either booming bass tones or weasly noises under their breaths.

It is not difficult to compare this film to The Matrix series. Both deal with the Messiah Myth. One man who has special abilities is called upon to free the world as they know it from their opposers. In each film, these oppressors have created a false world in which they control their subjects. Cut the kung fu, gunplay, and black leather out of The Matrix and they'd be even more noticeably similar. When I was watching the final fight between Murdoch and the chief Stranger, each floating in the air high above the city and trying to hit the other with all they had, I was reminded of Neo's final battle with Mr. Smith. It is notable that Dark City was released before The Matrix.

Only a few minor things bothered me. The only one worth mentioning was when Murdoch uses his tuning ability, a weird power signature (I am such a comic book nerd) is shown eminating from his head. It looks cheesy. As a visual effect, I found it to be noticeably inferior to the otherwise unique and excellent special effects throughout the rest of the film. I understand the purpose of the effect: it shows the tuning, or alternating of reality, was performed by Murdoch and not some unseen force or person or creature. But this was noticeably a different visual approach to tuning because the strangers did not show this kind of power signature until the chief guy broke some out in the end.

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Anyone who says this film is all style without substance must have failed to work through the complexities of the plot.

I also liked the love story, however minor and unnecessary, because I liked the characters involved and was invested in the outcome of their subplot. Because I cared about their subplot, I was more invested in Murdoch's character, whose eyes are the ones we discover the truth behind all the crazy madness.

I'd definitely recommend this to any viewer, though I imagine my opinion of the film may greatly change after a second viewing now that I am aware of the full story.

****