Dark City

Dark City (1998) is another one of those noir postmodern dystopian futuristic science fiction films. It’s directed by Alex Proyas who also did The Crow and I, Robot. We get a stellar cast that includes William Hurt, Kiefer Sutherland, Jennifer Connolly, Ian Richardson, and Rufus Sewell in the lead. We’re also treated with cinematic references to Metropolis, M, Nosferatu, The Twilight Zone, Blade Runner, Terry Gilliam’s Brazil and even his short The Crimson Permanent Assurance, not to mention the Rocky Horror Show and Who Framed Roger Rabbit. There are literary references to Plato’s “Allegory of the Cave,” to Franz Kafka, Jorge Luis Borges, and Frederik Pohl. With a set up like that, it’s hard to go wrong! The plot involves parasitical extraterrestrials maliciously manipulating human memories as well as the perpetually nocturnal urban landscape in an attempt at discovering the essential nature of the human soul in hopes of saving their own species. If that doesn’t tickle your fancy, don’t watch it! Hahahaha!