If you like SF films, especially Matrix and Blade Runner, then you need to see the director’s cut of Dark City. It’s based on an original story from director Alex Proyas (The Crow, I Robot) and stars Rufus Sewell, Kiefer Sutherland, William Hurt and Jennifer Connelly plus Richard “Rocky Horror Show” O’Brien and Bruce Spence (Mad Max 2 & 3). The movie came out in 1998 and has some similar themes to The Matrix, which appeared a year later. The new director’s cut restores 10 minutes of footage and removes the narration. I’ve read that some of the CGI was “improved” for the new edition as well.

This movie flew completely under my personal radar when it was first released. Watched it last night and positively loved it. Though I have to say that the climatic fight between Sewell and O’Brien reminded me a bit too much of the cheesy wizards’ battle between Boris Karloff and Vincent Price in The Raven (which is really a lot of fun and you should see it if you haven’t already, especially for a wacky Peter Lorre and a very young Jack Nicholson – what, you didn’t know that there was a movie that has Karloff, Price, Lorre AND Jack Nicholson in the same film?). (Kiefer Sutherland is definitely channeling Peter Lorre in this.)

As for the plot … because it’s not entirely explained until 2/3rds of the way through the film, let’s consider this a SPOILER and please skip if you don’t want to know, though I’m not going to say anything at all about the ending …..

Okay, still here? Here’s some (but not all) of the set-up for the film. A race of people are kind of like Borg, with a group mind and group memories. They are dying out and they are studying humans to find out what makes them individual, secretly controlling everything going on in an unnamed city. Every night at midnight, they freeze time, everyone falls asleep and they rebuild the city and swap peoples’ personalities and memories. Today you’re a factory worker living in a dump, tomorrow you’re a millionaire in a mansion with a completely different set of memories and a different wife. We are not told how long this has been going on. We have no idea how many times people have had their memories wiped and refilled. Every now and then someone wakes up before they should and gets a glimpse of what’s going on ……

A neat concept and nice visual effects to go with it and more than a little reminiscent of The Matrix, eh? Especially because these “strangers” all dress alike and can float around. No “bullet time” or HK influenced action sequences – the influence here is more film noir crossed with Blade Runner – but stylish and entertaining nonetheless.

Hongkie Town
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