One in dark Alex Proyas' dark and stylish movie about what makes us human. And in fact, cyberpunk anti-utopia, which is not enough, and where a weak person goes against the system, actively seeking the truth. This raises the problem of the role of man in the general mechanism, where he can represent only a small cog, nevertheless affecting the result of the work, and maybe even a completely detached part from the collective unconscious, touching the questions of psychoanalysis and the search for the soul. Many of the ideas here are intertwined quite closely, and the plot looks like Battlefield Earth met The Matrix somewhere in Brazil. Terry Gilliam, which, although generally reflects this film, does not sound too correct, because “The Matrix” came out a year later, and everyone is so hated (And I liked it!) I love it! Battlefield Earth in another year.
The expanded directorial version of the film helps to more reveal the world in which the viewer is trying to immerse, but does not significantly affect the details of the plot, allowing you to observe more interesting and additional details, partly the fate of some minor characters, and more voluminously demonstrate a particular scene. And so watch, of course, such a film is best in the expanded version, which is otherwise not surprising even.
The main character, a suspect in a series of murders, suffers from memory loss, and is literally alone in the dark - in this gloomy and unfriendly city. But John Murdoch is trying to figure out not so much in himself as in what is happening around him. His paranoid mania of persecution and conspiracy theories lead him to new and frightening discoveries about the world in which he exists, where the dark urban jungle limits freedom and will, and the sun has not been seen for too long. In these ideas, the main motive of human consciousness and its meaning is born, and at the same time, questions of reason and feelings in their interrelation and opposition. The standard struggle of good and evil here is similar to the “Matrix”, because the main character is the same “Neo”, looking for answers, pills are replaced with syringes, and identical twin strangers in black are none other than “Smith’s agents”, and, among other things, they cry out their cult “Mr. Anderson Murdoch!”. Reconstructed by the will of reason, the world is the field of action of experimental rats in a cruel experiment, but as befits such a genre – there will always be “one simple person” who will say “enough!”.
So it was, so it will be, and then the plot moves in jumps from template to template, which can be slightly forgiven given the year of release, how a poor visual can be forgiven by looking at a modest budget figure. However, with the graphics here is just not so bad, much more affected by the ruthless throwing raised issues and plot parts. If history goes to the next turn, as about the past until now, no one will remember, everything will suddenly go wedge in another direction, and will wind around and about a few more times. As a result, none of the ideas of the film is competently submitted and not practically disclosed, which leads us to its most important problem: it does not take the spectacle, the plot too, and the semantic part is elementary chewed by an illiterate attitude to the existing potential. Beginning with a detective thriller, everything eventually turns into a stupid si-fi, sometimes mixing with its primitiveness and naivety, but still pleasing with some tradition and restraint in the intended framework.
Such an empty movie will quite pass for entertainment, brightening up a boring evening with its viewing, and for lovers of gloomy films and cinema-utopias, it can at all fall into the soul and cause a desire to reconsider again, like the once failed, but became a cult, equally weak and empty Equilibrium. Movie for 1 time, but deserves this one-time viewing. The main hit of Proyas will forever remain the masterpiece “The Raven”, and everything else sooner or later will be forgotten, like a terrible dream. After all, “Dark City” is like a cocktail, when viewed these days, even though it came out a little earlier than its much more popular counterparts. Cinema now looks like a beautiful parody, where the cheap budget sacrificed style and directorial talent. Proyas can shoot when he wants, and here it really is, the only "but" - the director wants, but does not understand what. Similarly, the viewer, looking at this dilemma of the mind and heart in the end will feel undeservedly deceived, but still certainly have fun watching.
7 IS 10
Original