Pseudo-noir eyecandy.

Rating: Null/10 (17 November 1998)

If you thought _The Crow_ was anything more than a mopey action flick that was trying too hard, you'll be impressed with _Dark City._ Which is not to say that the movie is without merit, it's just that the plot got less and less interesting to yours truly as the movie went on, the special effects got goofier, and the explanation of the city and its happenings were a huge letdown at the end. The less sober you are when you watch this movie, the better off you'll be, because it's not as "weird" as it sets out to be.
The noir-ish elements in the first half of the movie were really enjoyable to look at, and when you couple the Batman set leftovers with a musical score that *did* impress me quite a bit (sufficiently that I'd be willing to buy it on cd), it's all an entertaining bit of spooky eyecandy. Spooky buildings, spooky floating pasty guys in black that look like a :Wumpscut: fan club meeting under a giant clock, spooky diners, etc. Cute. But as I got more sober and the movie wore on, the unfolding plot started to get intolerably silly. Our hero's developing psychokinesis is just stupid, the location of the city relative to the rest of the world will make you roll your eyes, and the Big Fight Scene at the end is laughably poor.
So, my verdict: If rent it, get smashed with your girl/boyfriend and throw it on, you'll be pretty amused if this is your kind of thing and your expectations aren't too high. If you expect plot instead of eyecandy, you'll be left pretty unsatisfied. Look, listen, but don't think too hard.
5.5/10 (but 7/10 for the musical score!)