Dark City

It blows my mind when a brillaint and original movie gets overlooked. A great example of this is 1998's Dark City.

An amnesiac named John Murdoch, Rufus Sewell, awakens in a bath tub from a mysterious phone call from Dr. Daniel Schreber, Keifer Sutherland. The Dr. tells him he must get out of the hotel room he is in because there are men after him. While on the phone, the confused John notices a dead woman on the floor. He drops the phone, gathers a few clues in hopes of piecing things together, and flees.

After further investigation, John discovers that he is in an estranged marriage to Emma, Jennifer Connelly. He also finds out that he is the prime suspect in a string of murdered prostitutes. And that there is a group of mysterious strangers that are out to stop John. These strangers are up to some evil deeds and John is the only one who can stop them.

This mix of science fiction, horror, and noir was written and directed by The Crow helmer Alex Proyas. Proyas has created a stylish look to go along with his smart and original screenplay. It's an incrdible mix of Gilliam, Kafka, and 1940's noir.

He has assembled a great cast to bring his story to life. Sutherland is terrific, turning in a Peter Lorre esque performance. William Hurt is also good as the police detective trying to bring John to justice. Oddly enough, Hurt was originally cast in the Sutherland role.And Richard O'Brien, Riff Raff from The Rocky Horror Picture Show, is incredibly creepy as one of the ringleaders of the strangers. Proyas has stated that the look of the strangers was inspired by O'Brien's Riff Raff character.

This is one of the best, and smartest, science fiction films ever.

It's available on dvd and blu ray. The blu ray contains both the theatrical version and the director's cut of the film.