Before The Matrix There Was Dark City

A group of shapeshifting aliens called the “strangers,” who can bend walls into doors and turn day into night, “manufacture” a world of lie, the Dark City, all for the purpose of research. This will soon be discovered by a man who lives in the city and who is believed to be mad. This man who is initially clueless of his identity after waking up beside a dead prostitute is later pursued by an investigator for murder (which the man isn’t sure he committed) and by the “strangers” for their experiment. Later he will discover that he, too, has the ability to shapeshift and will challenge the “strangers.”

Dark City may be similar to The Matrix in some ways, e.g., manufactured world, upsetting the balance of power, and, yes, trench coats. In the latter, though, the “manufactured world” is that of a computer simulation.

I love The Matrix - it's smart and thought-provoking. The underrated Dark City, however, is more significant and is a better film compared to The Matrix.

Dark City and The Matrix were shown in 1998 and 1999, respectively. Take note, Dark City was first.

I saw Dark City in a theater in Columbus, Ohio in 1998. I got a copy of its DVD in only in 2007. Since then, I’ve been watching the film on DVD several times now. Last week I watched it again for the third time. This is one of the films that I never get tired of watching over and again.

Dark City (1998). Director: Alex Proyas. Cast: Kiefer Sutherland, Rufus Sewell, William Hurt, Jennifer Connelly