Don’t pull his finger.
Dark City (1998) is a puzzling movie. Structurally, it’s quite compelling, withholding vital information from the audience, letting them try to work out what’s going on as the protagonist’s world of 1950s America starts out mystifyingly, as he finds himself sitting in a bathtub in a scuzzy hotel room, with no name and nearly no memories, and a dead woman in the corner. The phone rings, he’s warned strangers are coming and he must not be caught, and so he’s off and running.
And then the story starts twisting out of control. Literally. He lucks into learning his wallet is at the automat, and so he learns his name, John Murdock, but little else. And then, while inspecting a billboard that reminds him of something, he runs into three “strangers”, who ask him to sleep and then pull knives. John escapes, but exhibits an interesting power of his own.
In the meantime, the world and its people are changing around him as the Strangers continue their enigmatic experiment on the humans. Each person he runs into adds a bit more to the puzzle, but may also knock a piece loose. The building of the mystery is well done, and despite the fact I’ve seen Dark City a number of times, I find it compelling.
Which makes the fact that the ending is less than compelling an intrigue in itself. I think the problem lies in the setup, because the Strangers, and eventually John himself, end up possessing immense powers with which they do battle. But if the Strangers have these immense powers, why are they having trouble resolving the problem motivating their research? And in the end, after John triumphs, it’s not at all clear what thematic questions were to be closed or raised. He fixes the world, saves the wife he doesn’t remember (nor does she remember him), and fixes the world.
See this for the excellent use of visuals, the atmosphere, and the good structure. I like the acting, too. Don’t look for the ending to be satisfying, though.
