Giving opinions for several years and showing like a fine vintage
Giving opinions for several years and showing like a fine vintage
Member since:11.07.2000
Reviews:625
Members who trust:55
Dark City was the follow up film to The Crow for director Alex Proyas. It's a very original and atmosphiric sci-fi noir. The story involves a man who wakes up not knowing his past. Through his searching he finds that there is a mysterious group who every night revolves the lives of the city's residents so every day they are someone different. If you haven't seen it then I suggest you rent it now.
There are two ways you can get this on dvd. The first is to buy the R2 version distributed by EIV. I strongly advise against this. Everything they have done with this dvd is wrong. The packaging is horrible but the features are so bad compared to those on the R1 version. The R2 comes with a thin maing of which is full of the usual promotional fluff. The other extra is a trailer. To add insult they've stuck a dated po-logic soundtrack onto the film instead of the full digital treatment it deserves. I would only get this version if you can only play R2 or find it for around £10.
I personally own the R1 version by New Line. Their dvd output is probably the best on the market and while this disk isn't the best they've done it's certainly a good effort.
The film is presented in 2.35.1 anamorphic widescreen and boy is the transfer good. All the blacks and dark noir tones are excellently presented. Flip the disk and you've got a pan and scan version of the film as well if you're that way inclined. The film has a dolby digital 5.1 soundtrack in either french or english. It does a good job of creating the atmosphere of the city and really kicks in toward the end of the film.
Now the extras are the meat everyone is interested in.
There are two audio commentaries. The first features director, writers, the director of photography and the production designer. Because of the multiple opinions it can sometimes be difficult to know who is talking but the comments are extremely intersting and give good insight into the films creation.
The second track features american film critic Roger Ebert who is a srtong supporter of the film. His track is also informative as he talks through the comparisons between Dark City and some of the noir classics.
There are the usual cast and crew notes with some other trailers thrown in. Of course you get the normal trailer as well.
There is an interactive game on the disk which is nice but doesn't hold the interest for long.
The disk is finished off by some detailed production notes highlighting comparisons to Metropolis and also some production artwork which shows off the grand designs for the city.
This dvd was produced when extras were still not common for most releases. A great film and great dvd go hand in hand and perhaps someday this film may be seen in the same cult status as Blade Runner.
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![Dark City [DVD] [1998]](http://picnica.ciao.com/uk/78548028.jpg "Dark City [DVD] [1998]")
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