Finally a movie as good as "Bladerunner" and "The Matrix"

Rating: 9/10 (19 June 2002)

Others both within IMDB and in external reviews have done a better job than I ever could in commenting on this film. I would only add a few things I liked and didn't like, and something important I thought the film left out.
Positive: the incredible production design and art direction, which I thought reminiscent of Tim Burton's vision of Gotham City in the original "Batman"; the original concept similarly and virtually simultaneously addressed by "The Matrix;" and the understated acting that didn't get in the way (with one exception, noted below).
Negative: whoever was responsible (Director Alex Proyas, probably) for the acting mannerisms used by Kiefer Sutherland (an actor I liked in the excellent TV drama "24") obviously needs some time in solitary confinement so he can rethink his decision. Sutherland's character alone got in the way of the script and broke through my Willing Suspension of Disbelief; he was an over-the-top cross between our image of Dr. Mengele and the spectacled Nazi in "Raiders of the Lost Ark". I also thought the final duel between the hero and villain could have had 30-45 seconds cut out to better effect.
Summary: a combination of the film noir exhibited by "Bladerunner" and much of the plot of "The Matrix," I give it a 9. It would have earned a 10 from me had Sutherland's acting been less affected and obtrusive.
A Major Issue Not Addressed: The film was an effort to answer the question, "Do Memories Make The Person?" It left us with a different question most of us already believe we know the answer to, which is, slightly reworded, "Power Corrupts, but does Absolute Power Always Corrupt Absolutely?" Can a good person with good intentions surmount "The Dark Side" inherent within all of our ID's? Perhaps the end of "Dark City" could have been similar to the one in "Sphere" had it only appeared first.