Roger Ebert called it the best production of 1998. That’s nothing. It was a box office flop raising two hundred thousand more than their bare – bones budget of $ 27 million dollars, but that did not stop him to acquire the fast condition cult film obligatory pilgrimage for fans of science fiction.
A condition well deserved since, although this writer not qualify as the best that saw the light during his debut year -there would be to stop the tape on the Normandy landings in Spielberg or that the “note” signed by the Coen, yes that would place it among the top five, not of 1998 but of science fiction that we saw during the nineties.
If this is so – and it is, I have no doubt – is due to multiple factors that combine to build a hypnotic film, full of nuances and references which greatly enrich its content and are put there so no chance to raise a microcosm in which, if anything stands out above all is the fascinating and amazing staging of Alex Proyas.
His masterpiece
Of the six productions in which so far has involved the Egyptian – born filmmaker- of Greek parents, to be exact and as much as ‘The Crow’ (‘The Crow’, 1994) is splendid and ‘I, Robot’ ( ‘I, Robot, 2004) has its moments, none can compare to the almost perfect personality who holds the work of the director and the strength he gives to the tape in the moments when this is about to leave amazed the viewer to leave.
Very obvious is that these moments are those in which the soundtrack Trevor Jones offers his most powerful record with two of the best songs of his career, joining John Murdoch, the character who plays with unequal fortune Rufus Sewell- in their confrontations with strangers or when the film comes first to the “tuning” these dark and gray beings do to shape the city at will.
Needless to say, all of them, which stands for Spectacle is a final climax in which Proyas skin showing, among other things, that narrative clarity and quick assembly is left – a curious fact is that there is a change of plane in film more or less every two seconds … not that I will have cash, are not antithetical terms carefully and can be left matador the viewer without neglecting an exemplary exhibition of what happens on screen.
Of course, if I have the film in such high esteem as I’ve said before, it is because the footprint Proyas in the rest of the footage is as fascinating as that which can be traced in his scenes summit. A footprint that runs rhythm litany and impregnated extremely oppressive environment in which the action takes place, that city always in darkness and always changing that is all and none, belonging to many times but it is out of context historical and serves as a testing ground to strangers.
‘Dark City’, fascinating mazes
Circular distributed like that labyrinth in which the splendid character of Kiefer Sutherland holds their mice – a very clear hint of what will leave us dumbfounded at the end of the second actors, the dark city that names the film and that movement spiral it is derived is one of the recurring motifs of a tape playing with many different symbolizes for, he said before, adding layers of message to the mere fact of science fiction with playing the main form.
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Perhaps one of the most brilliant analogies that makes ‘Dark City’ though who knows if desired shape or not is which is carried out with respect to the myth of Plato’s cave, with the city by the time of that dark shadow populated place serving a prison occupants who do not know what living is not the “reality”.
Adding to it the clear influences that noir has on the whole set something already showed in ‘The cuervo’- is essential before the end of this entry applaud the spectacular effort the production design department makes to the oppression is the most remarkable quality of a metropolis which, if some other epithet can be characterized, is “Kafkaesque”.
At this oppression across borders of stone walls and accentuate the public, help the superb performances of the entire cast well, everything but Sewell, who has moments that border on the ridiculous, with Jennifer Connelly and William Hurt highlighting as those who are better able to condense the infinite melancholy that surrounds the city dwellers.
Influenced and influential his imprint is felt, and much, ‘Matrix’ (‘The Matrix’, Andy & Larry Wachoswi, 1999) – ‘Dark City’ is one of those productions that the more you see, the more details best feelings you extract and print. That said the best five films of science fiction that came to be released during the ten years between 1999 to 1990. Visithttp://generationguy.com/for more tips.
