It's eerie, gripping stuff, a sci-fi noir that raises the biggest question of all: How much of our lives are truly ours?
"When was the last time you remember doing something during the day?" It's such a chilling line, and one that teases the mysteries at the heart of Alex Proyas' masterful Dark City. Set in a murky metropolis that echoes the paintings of Edward Hopper, the film stars Rufus Sewell as a man who, after waking in a hotel bathtub with no memories, stumbles upon the puppet masters who have long manipulated his surroundings. The pale, floating beings are called Strangers and their goal is to rebuild their dying alien civilization by unlocking the secrets of the human soul via frequent experimentation. That means injecting their subjects with new memories and rebuilding the city to explore new possibilities. It's eerie, gripping stuff, a sci-fi noir that raises the biggest question of all: How much of our lives are truly ours?