"None of us remember that... what we once were... what we might have been."

Rating: 7/10 (9 September 1999)

24 May 2014:
Dark City was one of the first films I ever reviewed on the IMDb, awarding it 4/10 and slating it under the summary title "Hellraiser meets the Maltese Falcon for an MTV generation".
Rewatching it, I'm not sure what my issues really were, other than perhaps being slightly underwhelmed. After all, the plot - creatures alter your mind and your world while you're asleep - perhaps sounds more original and sinister on paper.
Yet while it perhaps doesn't live up to its full potential, and has some issues with exposition and the odd corny line, it's still a very good film. One of my main criticisms was that the influences it has can all too clearly be felt, and, while this is still perhaps true, it has enough of its own identity to be worthwhile.
It's possible that the extended director's cut aids enjoyment (ironically another criticism I had back in '99 was "ultimately the film's only saving grace is its brevity.") and keeps some of the mystery later.
If there is one criticism is that there's a layer of Burtonesque artifice throughout, and you're never in any doubt that you're watching something shot entirely on sets. This is partly the point, of course, but I can't help but feel it could have had more effect if it had been shot with a little more realism to accentuate the oddities of the script. Also unfortunate is the very mainstream Hollywood orchestral soundtrack, whereas something weirder may have helped.
But overall, this is a decent film, well worth a second chance.