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Underground > Film, TV & Theatre >

Dark City

09:53 / 18.09.01

Now this was a pleasant surprise. Watching Robocop on Channel 5 the other night, after the credits there was a 'coming up next' advert for something called 'Dark City'. Looked like a pilot episode for a TV series. Found a blank video, started recording, went to bed.

Forgot about it until tonight.

Superb. Like a PKD-penned film noir proto-Matrix. Everyone else has probably seen it before, leading to the question, "where was I when this was released?"

09:53 / 18.09.01

I think this came out at about the same time as The Matrix (Hollywood almost always works in twos) but got buried by it, because Dark City is perhaps less accessible to the mainstream. And The Matrix had Keanu Reaves.

09:53 / 18.09.01

it was released about a year before the matrix, i think. i remember seeing the trailer for it and thinking it looked dumb. (and it has kiefer sutherland, who for no reason i can think of, i've always disliked) but i saw it some time later on video, just as i was getting into magic for the first time. after the first 20 minutes or so, i completely started freaking out. i just knew that absolutely everything in this movie was TRUE. of course, i've calmed down since then, but dark city is definitely one of my favorite stories ever.

deletia

09:53 / 18.09.01

Three little words.

English.
Character.
Actors.

No sci-fi film can succeed without English character actors. Dark City, a reasonably entertaining if overlong and tiresomely plotted film, is made mighty by the presence of Richard O'Brien and Ian Richardson (who arguably isn't a character actor at all, but makes up for it by being *wery* English).

Plus, Jennifer Connoly's eyebrows are oddly hypnotic.

09:53 / 18.09.01

Buildings sprouting like flowers.
"Shut it down."
Jennifer Connolly.
The revelation of what lies outside the city.
And more.

I think it's one of the better SF films made in a long time; granted, it's far from perfect, but it's got enough good ideas and performances in there to keep the interest, I feel. Certainly worth watching.

DBC

Our Lady of The Two Towers

10:28 / 18.09.01

When the... when the... when the... when the rhumba rhythm starts to play... Oh hang on, that was the 'Kiss' advert wasn't it? I've got a feeling Dark City might have been straight to videod over here, or as near as damnit. I always advise new viewers to watch it without sound for the first few minutes, that way you don't have Kiether Sutherland explaining the ENTIRE PLOT of the film. And his stupid voice is the only thing I dislike about it (and the moral at the end of the film).

Who says Channel 5 only show crap?

13:17 / 18.09.01

I don’t mean to twist the knife or anything, but Dark City was even better on the big screen. It nearly out-Bladerunnered Bladerunner in pure scifi meets film noir style. And I agree, it was totally a PKD story. Strange that the most PKD movies that make it to the screen aren’t the adaptations of his novels. “Existenz” was another very PKD film; anyone catch that?

I saw a film biography of PKD a few months back at Facets in Chicago. Interesting, though not exactly high art. Any of you lot know the one I’m talking about? Long animations of PKD typing?

13:40 / 18.09.01

naw, loz, i saw it at the cinema here. it came out in 98, i think.

i like it better every time i see it. we would've watched it, had we not had a living-room full of people drinking vodka martinis...

13:52 / 18.09.01

quote:Originally posted by Chuckling Duck:
Strange that the most PKD movies that make it to the screen aren’t the adaptations of his novels. “Existenz” was another very PKD film; anyone catch that?

Longish thread on eXistenZ here.

14:10 / 18.09.01

Any movie with Jennifer Conelly is good in my books. One more thing to add to my list of why we must perfect clonnig. And the movie was good too. Ah canadian cinema gotta love it.

14:28 / 18.09.01

I dug Dark City.

Dark City came out at almost exactly the same time that Titanic was released which is one of the reasons why it was almost completely ignored (at least here on the U.S. west coast).

While I agree that it was PKD-ish, that's only because Dark City and PKD were both majorly influenced by the Nag Hammadi texts.

Dark City is about as blatant of a modern interpretation of Gnostic myth as you can get.

03:50 / 20.09.01

I really liked this movie. However, I don't think it was eithetr PKD or gnostic influenced. It was one of those great 'what if' movies that had and needs no precedent. I think that's clear from the movie.

Disco is My Class War

06:56 / 20.09.01

Hmmmm. i really *hated* Dark City. Maybe it was because there were approximately no women in it other than the awesomely pneumatic but frankly wooden Jennifer Connelly.

And to me, the explanation of what was 'outside' only served to justify sets that really looked a whole lot like cardboard.

I liked the Matrix better, actually. I *like* glitz. And black leather.

The Return Of Rothkoid

07:33 / 20.09.01

quote:Originally posted by Chuckling Duck:
I don’t mean to twist the knife or anything, but Dark City was even better on the big screen.Agreed. I thought the plot dragged, but the designs were lovely. However, I have a real problem with trying to take Colin Friels seriously in fucking anything, so that hindered it from the outset.

I think Dark City and The Matrix were meant to come out around the same time, but the latter's production took a lot longer than imagined - both were done in Sydney, more or less - though some of Dark City seemed a bit more ripped off than The Matrix did.

Rosa: You're forgetting Melissa George! Come on! She pointed out that this was her non-soap/adult role by getting her kit off - much to the delight of Picture and People mags, undoubtedly...

Some gossip, on the production: apparently, William Hurt is a rather high-level alcoholic, insensible between takes, though perfectly clear when required on cam. Respect. Kiefer got snapped coming out of a "Gentleman's Retreat" - I think that's actually the name of the place, though could be wrong - on Pitt St, and consequently ended up in a tabloid looking sheepish. And my mate was working for the production company that made the film ended up going out drinking one evening with Jennifer Connelly, Rufus Sewell and Richard O'Brien. And he didn't call me. Bastard.

And Haus is right. The eyebrows have it. As did the surprising amount of upper-lip hair.

The Return Of Rothkoid

07:44 / 20.09.01

Another Interesting Fact: apparently, the sets in the opening chase scene of The Matrix were used in Dark City, too.

Well done, Fox Studios!

The Knowledge +1

11:37 / 20.09.01

It's also directed by Alex Proyas, the Egyptian guy who's responsible for the first Crow movie.

Groovy.

12:04 / 20.09.01

And isn't it co-written by David Goyer, who co-wrote some Starman and JSA comics, and also wrote the Blade film ?

DBC

14:13 / 20.09.01

Managed to catch this on the big screen, a lovely spectacle. More Noir than something very Noir indeed.

I agree that the first five minutes should have really been left out, I think thats studio execs worrying that the 'public' might not get the film without someone hold their hand.

Favourite bits were the ones with the mad detective, the one who can't sleep so draws all those spirals on his walls, 'I've found a way out'. Very H.P Lovecraft.

And Jennifer Connely, well she was in labyrinth...nuff said really

15:06 / 20.09.01

>>>I agree that the first five minutes should have really been left out, I think thats studio execs worrying that the 'public' might not get the film without someone hold their hand.<<<

Proyas states on the DVD commentary track that the introductory voiceover was imposed by the studio, and he didn't want it at all.

Our Lady of The Two Towers

17:53 / 20.09.01

So THATS where I saw her before...

And she was supposed to be wooden, I thought that was supposed to be the rational for driving John into the arms of prostitutes, or didn't you notice the purposely cliched policemen either?

10:15 / 21.09.01

And another little Dark City titbit that you may or may not be interested in. There is music playing in the background for the whole film. The music never stops. I noticed this because the first time I watched it I was pissed and couldn't keep my eyes open and was waiting for the music to stop so that I could go to sleep. I never did fall asleep. Next morning, once sober I had to watch the whole film and loved it! I think the continuous music adds to the unsettled atmosphere of the film and works well since you don't notice it when engrossed in the film.

When it was on Channel 5 the other night I watched it on a 28inch Widescreen TV for the first time. I was amazed at how much more detail you notice in the film. Big TV's are great!

18:12 / 23.09.01

I thought it was pretty cool how the main hero looked just like the Beyonder from Marvel's "Secret Wars" crossover of the 80's. He even had the same superpowers.

20:26 / 23.09.01

Have to agree Dark City's a great movie, even if a little voice in the back of my head keeps repeating it is only an overblown Twilight Zone/Outer Limits episode.

What's really great about the lot is the atmosphere - you are willing to overlook a lot of holes (including the initial voice-over) just because it's so good at conveying the atmosphere.

Hmmmm.... I'll have to lay down a few bucks at the local video shop to grab a copy.