7.9 | / 10 |
Users | 4.1 | |
Reviewer | 4.5 | |
Overall | 4.2 |
Upon awakening with a start in an icy bathtub in a strange room — with a woman's dead body inconveniently nearby — John Murdoch can't remember how he got there. With a police detective hot on his trail and a psychiatrist skulking around, Murdoch discovers that the key to his mystery is the presence of strange extraterrestrial creatures, the Strangers, who are experimenting with the memories of the humans in his city — from which there may be no escape. Ambitious sci-fi noir, with rich production design and a dense, Kafkaesque concept.
Starring: Rufus Sewell, Kiefer Sutherland, Jennifer Connelly, William Hurt, Richard O'Brien (I)Thriller | 100% |
Sci-Fi | 70% |
Mystery | 41% |
Film-Noir | 31% |
Video codec: VC-1
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 2.36:1
Original aspect ratio: 2.39:1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 7.1 (48kHz, 24-bit)
English SDH, Spanish
50GB Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Digital copy (on disc)
Region A (locked)
Movie | 5.0 | |
Video | 4.0 | |
Audio | 4.5 | |
Extras | 4.0 | |
Overall | 4.5 |
Every sci-fi generation has a gold-standard that deserves recognition for its dense layering and memorable impact on movie-going audiences. Depending on your age, that film could be 2001: A Space Odyssey, Close Encounters of the Third Kind, Blade Runner, or any other visionary masterpiece that moved you in some way. In my case, that experience arrived in the form of a film I’d heard little about, but managed to garner a double-feature engagement with The Devil’s Advocate at my local second-run theater. Granted this was twelve years ago, but I still remember my first viewing of Dark City like it was yesterday. Stepping out of the auditorium with a giant grin on my face, I made it my mission to recommend the film to everyone with even the slightest interest in cerebral science fiction. I know it may seem bold to place Dark City among the ranks of science fiction’s elite, but I truly believe this masterpiece deserves widespread recognition for delivering one of the greatest initial viewings of all time.
The visuals speak for themselves.
Presented in 1080p utilizing the VC-1 codec (at an average bitrate of 23Mbps), Dark City is destined to remain one of the most controversial Blu-ray transfers on the market. Given the number of times I revisited the film on DVD, this newly-minted high-definition offering delivers a tremendous upgrade in coloring, black levels, and contrast, but the most profound improvement arrives in the form of increased clarity. I know I'm facing a hoard of videophiles preparing to decry any mention of exceptional clarity on this release, so before I go any further I should make light of New Line's continued employment of digital noise reduction to remove film grain. Similar to the release of Pan's Labyrinth (another exceptional film), the overall nature of the transfer appears plenty sharp, but upon closer inspection reveals a subtle drop in texturing across medium-distanced facial close-ups and intricacies on the fine stitching of clothing. Furthermore, slight halos occasionally surface around sharp transitions between dark and light aspects of the transfer, but their presence will only become noticeable if you're studying the transfer with the intention of finding flaws. If we get down to specifics, I noticed one scene where aliasing became noticeable within the parallel lines of the drawn shades over a brightly lit window (1:16:10).
Despite my opinion of the transfer's highly-competent visual experience, I'm aware the application of DNR will be a deal-breaker to some Blu-ray enthusiasts. As such, I've attempted to incorporate a wide variety of screenshots to give each viewer the opportunity to decide for themselves.
Regardless of your opinion regarding New Line's remastering of the transfer, there's little reason to complain when given a lossless 7.1 audio mix. The primary strength of the track lies in the musical score by composer Trevor Jones, who effectively builds a subtle base of tension, before beating us down with thunderous overtones. As the film initially opens, viewers are intimately aware of John's Murdock's state of despair and confusion, but those emotions are twice as powerful with the dichotomy of fast moving stringed instruments and ominous brass-horned crescendo's. The roar of the orchestra usually accompanies the appearance of the mysterious "Strangers" as they glide into view, building the sense of foreboding with every step. A perfect example of this effect is the opening scene when the black-clothed figures emerge from the elevator of John's apartment building. If you already own Dark City or have access to a copy, watch that scene and either mute the volume or imagine the effectiveness of the visuals if the musical score didn't play a role.
As much as I enjoyed the arrangements throughout Dark City, there are certain stretches where the score becomes repetitive. The two jazzy numbers performed by Jennifer Connelly certainly help, but the film could use a bit more variety to spice things up. Additionally, there's a tendency for dialog to become lost at times, since most characters speak at low volume levels and compete with the musical numbers that dominate the background during all but a handful of scenes. I wouldn't consider it a deficiency of the audio track (since I found it easy to make out every word spoken), but in an ideal world the dialog would possess a richness that matches the proficiency of other elements in the mix.
Considering the primary supplement on the disc is the inclusion of the director's cut of the film (while still incorporating the original theatrical edition), I can't complain extensively about New Line's decision to provide the special features in 480p. Having said that, the main reason I've graded the supplement section a 4/5 is due to the lack of high definition content.
Commentary Tracks:
Director's Cut: There are three full-length commentary tracks on the director's cut alone. The first is a candid offering from Alex Proyas, who delves into the themes he was striving for and provides an in-depth analysis of each scene. The second track features David Goyer and Lem Dobbs (screenwriters), who discuss many of the same elements addressed by Proyas. The third track features film critic Roger Ebert, who gives an extensive dissertation on film history and the connections you can make between Dark City and other classics (easily the best commentary of the bunch).
Theatrical Cut: The same commentary tracks included on the original DVD release are included on the menu of the theatrical option. The first track features Alex Proyas, David Goyer, Lem Dobbs, Dariusz Wolski (cinematographer), and Patrick Tatopoulos (production designer), while the second features an earlier commentary by Roger Ebert (different than the one provided on the director's cut). I spot-checked these commentaries to ensure correct functionality, but chose not to revisit them individually.
Introduction by Alex Proyas (DTS 2.0, 4:50 min): Roger Ebert and Alex Proyas set expectations for the director's cut and reflect on the cult status of the film.
Memories of Shell Beach (DTS 2.0, 42:54 min): Beginning with an introduction to the creation of the story, this featurette delves into all facets of the production, and eventually provides a ten minute discussion of the film's reception.
The Architecture of Dreams (DTS 2.0, 33:40 min): What begins as an overly cerebral study on postmodernism eventually works its way into a discussion of the science fiction genre and the extensive use of thematic elements in Dark City.
The Metropolis Comparison (text-based): This collection of articles and reviews delves superficially into the connections between Dark City and Fritz Lang's Metropolis.
Neil Gaiman on Dark City (text-based): Gaiman offers a two paragraph assessment of the film.
Rounding out the extras, we have a high-definition trailer for the film (extremely well constructed with zero dialog).
Like Blade Runner before it, Dark City is a film that many dismissed during the original theatrical run, but earned tremendous respect in the years to follow. The science fiction community needed a breakout production to renew the faith of genre fans everywhere, and that's exactly what Alex Proyas set out to do. If you haven't seen Dark City, there's never been a better time than the present, especially in light of the superior director's cut offering on this release. For all fans of mind-bending sci-fi entertainment, Dark City earns my highest recommendation.
2008
2014
The Final Cut
1982
2009
1998
2009
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2018
1996
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2002
1984
2009
Selfless
2015
2015
2017
Unrated Director’s Cut
2009
2007
2009