Wow. And yet, Not Wow.

Rating: Null/10 (10 August 2004)

WARNING! This review contains SPOILERS for Dark City, as well as for The Matrix.
When a film tries to create its own reality, totally removed from the things we take for granted, it treads a very thin line in my book. If it succeeds in making the illusion interesting, believable, and consistent within its own realm, I find it to be my favorite kind of film to watch. But if it does not succeed, I feel really cheated. Dark City very nearly falls into the latter category.
The concept of constantly having one's identity altered and switched is something I've thought about all my life, and it is presented here in a manner that is equal parts confusing, fascinating, and terrifying. And the characters: John Murdoch, left painfully more aware of his surroundings by the loss of his memory; The Strangers, seemingly all-powerful, all-knowing, and all mysterious; Dr. Shreber, just as mysterious, almost as knowing, but ultimately powerless; all of them combine (along with the amazing, and often quite chilling visuals) to tell the story almost perfectly.

Almost. As I see it, there is one big problem: The part of the story that deals with memories is terrific. But the concept of "tuning" I found to be strained and badly done. For one thing, there's hardly even an attempt to explain why John Murdoch is able to tune (something about higher evolution; but it's glazed over). It's stated, in fact, that it's quite impossible for him to be able to do so, and the fact that he can makes no sense at all. Aside from some cool effects involving the creation and manipulation of buildings, the entire tuning process seems to function as nothing more than a convenient Deus Ex Machina. Whenever Murdoch is in danger, he "accidentally" is able to tune his way out. And then, at the end, he's suddenly given the ability to control his powers, and modifies the world to make it more suitable, creating a sun and an ocean and such, and everyone lives happily ever after (though how he's able to do all of this himself when it takes the entire group of Strangers just to make a few buildings is beyond me). Among my many problems with this scenario is that the upbeat, "happy ever after" ending just doesn't seem to fit with the tone of the rest of the film.
ALSO: This movie is quite often compared with The Matrix. They obviously have a lot in common: A group of people are kept oblivious to their own enslavement by powerful and enigmatic villains who have them imprisoned in a world that is not real. A man who senses something is wrong is made aware of the situation by a mysterious teacher, who then helps him use his incredible (but hitherto unknown) powers to put a stop to the evil and free the people. Heck, even some of the sets are the same.
First of all, The Matrix did not rip off Dark City. These concepts have been around, in lore and in philosophy, for centuries.
Secondly, I believe that The Matrix succeeds where this movie fails, for the simple reason that it takes the religious route, rather than the philosophical one. Now, of course, there are strong philosophical elements in The Matrix's religious issues, and strong religious elements in Dark City's philosophical issues. But the key difference is this: Dark City's primary concern seems to be with the mind, whereas The Matrix's primary concern seems to be with the soul.
For Murdoch to use his powers, he has to concentrate. For Neo to use his powers, he has to believe. The concern of the Dark City inhabitants is their distorted, mixed-and-matched memories, which blur their lives. The Matrix inhabitants have perfectly good lives. But it's not enough. They want to be free. True, it is, technically, their minds that are enslaved, but I believe the undertone is clearly that of saving one's soul.
In taking on the form of a religious allegory, the sudden happy ending of The Matrix (only talking about the original, of course) is not unexpected or out of tune with the rest of the movie, but rather marks the fulfillment of prophesy and the ushering in of a promised new life. And Neo's sudden realization of the full extent of his own power is not a matter of knowledge, but a matter of faith. For me, at least, this makes it a lot more believable and acceptable.
Still, all-in-all, Dark City was quite a good movie, and I very much enjoyed it.