Rating: 
Summary: Don't be fooled
Review: Don't be fooled by the enthusiastic reviews--the truth is that this movie is completely terrible. Kiefer Sutherland adopts a profoundly annoying accent that makes this otherwise forgettable movie memorably bad. The premise is the same as the Matrix (humans living in some sort of alternative reality universe controlled by superpowerful beings) but the Matrix was cool, stylish, visually pleasing etc... This movie just sucks which is why you probably didn't hear about it when it first came out.
Rating:
Summary: Certainly no MATRIX
Review: I had high hopes for this movie, and when I found a used copy (DVD) for $ I bought it. It began promisingly (though the occasional nudity was pointless, and probably only done to get an R rating). The premise was intriguing, too, but after the hero figured out what's going on and then struck back, it became stupid. It did make me think how horrible it would be to exist in a world that was entirely of one's own creation -- which was the main character's "victorious" position at the end. Maybe if I listen to the commentary tracks I'll have more respect for this film, but it's the first DVD I've bought that I've seriously considered trading in or selling at a used DVD store.
Rating: 
Summary: look no further
Review: if you want to watch a movie that will keep you guessing right up till the final minutes, then this is for you. a stylistic masterpeice, no wonder it got such high praise from siskel and ebert. listen to the commentary track it is an education in film history. the movie fills you with a genuine sence of anxiety that you would get with any good action sci fi flick but the charaters are so well developed that you can really understand and identify with what they are going through emotionally. one thing i didnt like as much was the ending. they explained the movie in the last 20 minutes so if you missed it you might very well have just not seen it at all. but my god what a fun ride it was. see this movie but try to find the biggest screen you can because it was ment to be experienced.
Rating:
Summary: think "matrix" if it was good
Review: This movie is so visually stunning, words cannot describe! Everyone should see this underappreciated masterpiece!How anyone could call Dark City one-dimensional is beyond me. I found it pleasantly subtle and thought-provoking. Much like the Matrix, you walk out of the movie wondering if it could possibly be true on some level. But that's the extent of the "thriller" aspect to the movie. I think people expected to see the Crow with a bunch of creepy pale guys that jumped out of the shadows and scared everyone. It's more film noir than anything. For that reason, those with shallower tastes would find this movie boring. If you have an appreciation for the "classic" style of movie-making, you'll love this movie. And though Dark City is often referrenced to Metropolis, I see more similarity to old detective flics. When watching, you'll be on the edge of your seat throughout. You are never disinterrested. Like many good movies, Dark City's plot walks a knife-edge. It could go too far into the softer side and become cheesy and unrealistic, or it could stray further into the darkside and become unpleasant and pessimistic. I deeply enjoyed this movie. It is visually stunning, thrilling, and it is so pleasant to see a healthfully-budgeted movie turn into such an uplifting departure from the usual Hollywood ... This film gives us hope that for all of the major studio's failures, we can still occasionally spend the seven bucks on something worthwhile!
Rating:
Summary: Sets a new standard for science fiction
Review: Alex Proyas, the man who brought us the movie adaption of The Crow (the first and only good one), returns with his latest incarnation, the fantastic Dark City. Rufus Sewell plays John Murdoch, a man who can't remember who he is, and why he's being accused of murder. But what John does know is something is not right with the city, and the people he meets on his journey looking for his home, change his life forever, and his ultimate discovery changes everything. To say this movie is a mindtrip is saying it lightly. Alex Proyas has a very vivid sense of direction, the sets and cinematography are like none I've ever seen in a movie, not to mention the storyline was the most original story at it's time (The Matrix takes a page from it), add that to great performances from Sewell, Kiefer Sutherland, and William Hurt, and you have a very special movie that only comes along not very often. The special effects are a very nice touch too and add to the experience even more. In my view Dark City is the greatest sci-fi movie ever made, it beats The Matrix, Star Wars, Star Trek, and every sci-fi franchise in great measure. The ending will haunt you for a while and leave you breathless when the climax unfolds. All in all, this is a sci-fi classic that should be seen by everyone whether they love sci-fi movies or not. Thank you Alex Proyas for making a truly legendary film.
Rating: 
Summary: The best Sci-Fi film you've never seen
Review: I don't think anyone went to see this at the theatres, which is a shame. It is one of the most intelligent, engrossing Science Fiction films to come out in recent years. The film's visual style is stunning and the acting is first rate. The story, about a man searching for his lost identity who begins to unravel a conspiracy involving everyone in the city where he lives, is very well presented. I recommend this movie to anyone, not just Sci-Fi fans.
Rating: 
Summary: Waste of Time
Review: I gave this movie one star for the incredibly freaky, yet artistic setting of the movie. I gave it another star because the overall story IS good. Unfortunatly, Hollywood has again succeeded in messing up a movie that had potential. This movie was a total and complete waste of my time. It's so confusing that it gave me a headache. Not only that, the characters aren't developed enough, the acting is lousy, and the ending was totally and completly stupid. It didn't scare me; it bored me to tears.
Rating:
Summary: Classic
Review: I remember back in the day, when I first saw this movie with one of my friends, we were in a ratty theater with rats and everything. It was one of the first really bizarre movies I ever saw. And it was excellent. It had all the aspects of a great movies. It made me ponder a while after I saw the movie. Excellent soundtrack also. The filming was some of the best I had ever seen. Years later, when I saw the movie the Matrix, one movie came to mind, Dark City. Dark City has gives that same odd feeling, but a lot better than the matrix. It was excellent, I loved it. It is one of my favorite movies, it is out there, yet it keeps one imagining.
Rating:
Summary: Dark City kicks $^@
Review: I love this film!! Alot of people dont get it. They complain that it has no substance and it leaves them feeling cold. I disagree this film is a send up of my favorite genre of cinema-FILM NOIR!!!! Proyas uses almost every element from that genre in his Dark City. WE have the femme fatale, the miss-guided male lead, the cloaked bad guys and the worn out detective who just wants a break. IF you truly love film noir every in-joke in this film you will catch and the city inside a city idea is brilliant and the Matrix owes it's box office to that fact. I don't know why this film didn't do better at the box office but it is one of the best films ever made and needs to be seen by everyone who loves films
Rating:
Summary: Visually beautiful and well cast movie
Review: I held off on seeing Dark City for quite a while, the previews for it had me believing that it would only be a so-so sort of movie, so I ended up seeing a lot of other movies before finally watching this one. This movie only reinforced my opinion that I should discount everything I see in trailers, since I've seen some really bad movies with good looking trailers, and waited so long to see this one because the trailer didn't seem all that interesting to me. This movie has a lot of sharp images, and a fair amount of special effects, but for once, the effects were an integral part of the story, and didn't seem like they were just tagged onto the movie because they were able to do them. For me, everything was weaved together to create a strong looking, and strong feeling, movie. As far as I'm concerned, there wasn't anything that really could have been taken out of this movie, or considered wasted time. The basic plotline behind the movie is that an alien species, with the ability to distort time and reality(what they call tuning), has come to our world, and is trying to see what it is exactly that makes humans human. This story is told mostly through one man, John Murdoch(played by Rufus Sewell), who wakes up in a bathtub, with no memory, to find that he is wanted for having supposedly committed a series of murders. From this starting point, he goes out into this strange world to find out exactly what the truth really is, and we join him on this journey. I don't want to give away too much of the movie, because a lot of the fun is in the discoveries that John makes along the way, particulary one that he makes about himself about ten or fifteen minutes into the movie. I've heard some people talk about how they felt that the acting was a bit stiff in the movie, but as you come to realize what is happening in this city, the reason behind that begins to come clear. The acting is meant to be somewhat stiff at times because each person is really only becoming a person as each new day starts. That may sound a little confusing if you haven't seen the movie, but once you have, it will become clearer. I would recommend seeing this movie on DVD if you can, not just because of the clarity, but because after you've watched it once, you can watch it again, with the commentary running. There are two commentaries, but I recommend putting on Roger Ebert's of the Sun Times. I don't always agree with him on his movie reviews, but his commentary is very insightful, and I learned a lot of things, and found out a lot more things about the movie that I didn't catch on my first viewing. So, pick this movie up, you won't go wrong.
|
