Dark City (1998)

A man struggles with memories of his past, which include a wife he cannot remember and a nightmarish world no one else ever seems to wake up from.

Director:

Alex Proyas

Writers:

Alex Proyas (story), Alex Proyas (screenplay)

Stars:

Rufus Sewell, Kiefer Sutherland, Jennifer Connelly

12 wins & 19 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Rufus Sewell	...	John Murdoch
William Hurt	...	Inspector Frank Bumstead
Kiefer Sutherland	...	Dr. Daniel Schreber
Jennifer Connelly	...	Emma Murdoch
Richard O'Brien	...	Mr Hand
Ian Richardson	...	Mr Book
Bruce Spence	...	Mr Wall
Colin Friels	...	Walenski
John Bluthal	...	Karl Harris
Mitchell Butel	...	Husselbeck
Melissa George	...	May
Frank Gallacher	...	Stromboli
Ritchie Singer	...	Hotel Manager / Vendor
Justin Monjo	...	Taxi Driver
Nicholas Bell	...	Mr Rain

Storyline

John Murdoch awakens alone in a strange hotel to find that he has lost his memory and is wanted for a series of brutal and bizarre murders. While trying to piece together his past, he stumbles upon a fiendish underworld controlled by a group of beings known as The Strangers who possess the ability to put people to sleep and alter the city and its inhabitants. Now Murdoch must find a way to stop them before they take control of his mind and destroy him.

---

Plot Keywords:

neo noir | alien race | memory | experiment | beach | 

---

Taglines:

They built the city to see what makes us tick. Last night one of us went off.

---

Genres:

Fantasy | Mystery | Sci-Fi | Thriller

---

Certificate:

M

Did You Know?

Trivia

Alex Proyas brings up how the film's look was influenced to an extent by other science fiction films, but the story was influenced by science fiction literature. Proyas notes the two films that influenced him to become a film maker were Lawrence of Arabia and 2001: A Space Odyssey. "They weren't filmed plays. They were movies," Proyas says. "You couldn't express those any other way than in cinematic terms."

---

Goofs

(at around 17 mins) When Murdoch is on the Shell Beach billboard and collapses after reading the newspaper clippings he found in his coat pocket, a stranger appears/disappears/reappears on the steps in the background.

---

Quotes

[first lines]
Dr. Schreber: [voiceover] First there was darkness. Then came the strangers. They were a race as old as time itself. They had mastered the ultimate technology. The ability to alter physical reality by will alone. They called this ability "Tuning". But they were dying. Their civilization was in decline, and so they abandoned their world seeking a cure for their own mortality. Their endless journey brought them to a small, blue world in the farthest corner of the galaxy. Our world. Here they ...

---

Alternate Versions

SPOILER: In the director's cut, there is additional footage showing that the hooker John meets at the automat has a daughter. When Emma and Inspector Bumstead go to the hooker's apartment, Emma finds the daughter under a bed with a drawing showing the Strangers killing her mother.

---

Connections

Referenced in The Darkest Timeline with Ken Jeong & Joel McHale: Meanwhile at the Hearst Castle (2020)

---

Soundtracks

Sway
Written by Norman Gimbel and Pablo Beltrán Ruiz
Sung by Anita Kelsey

User Reviews

What sci-fi and what a woman

Love it or hate it... and I love it, but Jennifer Connelly is an alluring hottie. Look at the slim waist and those eyes. The hair is the hair of a goddess. I would never disappear on her.

Details

Official Sites:

WarnerBros.com

Country:

Australia

Language:

English

Release Date:

15 October 1998 (New Zealand)

Also Known As:

Ciudad en tinieblas

Filming Locations:

California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$27,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$5,576,953, 1 March 1998

Gross USA:

$14,378,331

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$27,200,316

Company Credits

Production Co:

Mystery Clock Cinema, New Line Cinema

Technical Specs

Runtime:

100 min 111 min (director's cut)

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital SDDS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.39 : 1