Compact, Intense...

Rating: 8/10 (12 April 1999)

I will say this about "Dark City," it delivers more intensity in 1 and 1/2 hours than "The Matrix" does at over 2 hours. The look of Dark City is impressive, but I also feel the characters are distanced from the audience in a way that harms the overall impact. Even though "The Matrix" is far "hoakier," at least we feel some kind of kinship with the characters. In "Dark City" the characters are overwhelmed by their circumstances, and we never have a chance to feel anything for them. A few flashbacks don't do it. Since we are asked to follow "John" on his journey to discovery, at some point we should care about what he discovers. We don't, we are just curious. The movie ends up proving its own worst fears---the virtual reality of cinema CAN dissolve what makes being human so great---the ability to feel, to understand and care---to follow the path of a soul we are rooting for. Dark City provides no such soul in the character "John.