It's true. It's all true.

Rating: 7/10 (21 March 2000)

I concur with every single positive comment made at this site concerning Dark City. It is an absolutely ingenious movie - certainly visually, but in Hollywood these days that's the easy part (even hack filmmakers can create movies that at least LOOK good); the real treat is how well the story fits together. It's gripping on the level of pure plot mechanics as a Kafkaesque nightmare, and it also works well on the philosophical level as a speculation upon the fundamental nature of identity. This latter part is somewhat undercut and ill-served by, IMO, a too abrupt finale which also falls back on typical Hollywood "climactic showdown" conventions; a more muted and ambiguous ending would have been preferable. Still, this is only a slight mar, and the picture is absolutely marvelous. It is often compared to Blade Runner and Brazil but, while I respect and appreciate both those movies, I found myself much more gripped and intrigued by Dark City.