Dark City (Limited Edition) 4K UHD Review

Arrow Video

4K UHD Release: June 24th, 2025

Video: 2.39:1/2160p/Color

Audio: English Dolby Atmos, English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1, English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0

Subtitles: English SDH

Run Time: 111:09 (director's cut), 100:32 (theatrical cut)

Director: Alex Proyas

A man (Rufus Sewell) awakens in the tub in a hotel room, blood on his forehead. Stumbling out of the bathroom, he finds clothes, a suitcase, and a dead body. He makes his way downtown to an automat where he is told he's left his wallet, which tells him something he doesn't know: his name is John Murdoch. Following the clues he himself appears to have left behind, he discovers a strange mystery involving Dr. Daniel Schreber (Kiefer Sutherland), who claims he can help; a woman named Emma Murdoch (Jennifer Connelly), who says he stormed out on their marriage after she admitted to having an affair; a detective named Frank Bumstead (William Hurt) who is simply trying to solve the murder, and several before it; and a society of eerie, pale-skinned men that Dr. Schreber calls "The Strangers," led by Mr. Hand (Richard O'Brien), who are chasing John for some nefarious purpose. Meanwhile, the sun never seems to rise in the city, which sends John around in circles with no apparent way out.

Ah, Alex Proyas. Similar to, say, director Brad Silberling, or the Wachowski sisters' work outside of The Matrix, Proyas has left behind a string of visually dazzling cult films but has never quite managed to become a name, despite his ability to put remarkable images on the screen. First there was The Crow, a comic book movie that feels like the next evolutionary step following Tim Burton's Batman, but which was marked by unimaginable tragedy. More recently, Proyas made the wild and wonderful Gods of Egypt, a mythological action/adventure filled with unforgettable fantasy visuals. He had a hit with I, Robot, an adaptation of Isaac Asimov, but the finished product is fairly generic, a studio product that is more interested in Will Smith's quips than whatever imagery Proyas is trying to construct.

In between The Crow and I, Robot, Proyas made Dark City, a collision of sci-fi and film noir that looks like a million bucks and which was ultimately overshadowed by the aforementioned Wachowski sisters, whose Matrix became the genre landmark. Still, Proyas had his champions, including film critic Roger Ebert, who loved Dark City so much he recorded a famous commentary track for the movie. Thanks to home video, Dark City's reputation grew, and eventually the film got a re-release offering up a director's cut that got rid of a few pesky elements like voice-over narration that takes away the mystery, as well as a handful of upgraded special effects. I'll admit, if one put a gun to my head, I'd have to choose The Matrix, but Dark City is a great movie just the same (and frankly, more different than those comparisons would lead one to believe).

For one thing, while The Matrix features solid performances, the film is ultimately more about philosophy and ideas and human passions in a general sense rather than most of its specific characters. It makes sense that Dark City, which is largely about the search for identity, is more character-driven. Murdoch's search for his own past is connected to and ultimately mirrors his oppressors, The Strangers, who are in search of the human soul in order to save their species. They are a collective, lacking individuality, and so they use a power known as tuning to change the mysterious metropolis into new configurations, switching people's identities among one another using Dr. Schreber and his method of injectable, moveable memories to try and identify what makes each one of us tick. Although John has no identity, Sewell still crafts a memorable character out of him, desperate to know what the source of his gnawing dissatisfaction is, and he and Connelly craft a sense of history between themselves even though one of them can't remember any of it. Hurt is even better as Detective Bumstead, who gives his sense of displacement a sense of loneliness and sadness that elevates a role that could've been simple. Best of all, however, is Sutherland, whose strange cadence and enthusiasm make for one of his most memorable creations.

With the story firmly rooted in the concept of humanity, Proyas is free to let his imagination run wild in terms of the world the characters find themselves trapped in, and the results are nothing short of breathtaking. One can see the DNA of Fritz Lang's Metropolis, Jean-Luc Godard's Alphaville, Terry Gilliam's Brazil, and many other movies in the grimy skylines and noir-inspired costumes of the film, and that's before the movie descends into the Strangers' underground lair, which vaguely inspires memories of Hellraiser with its sea of pale-faced zombies dressed in leather outfits. Sometimes one looks at concept art for a film and there's a distance between what was envisioned and what was ultimately put on screen, but the finished version of Dark City retains the sense of unbridled imagination that concept artists are free to indulge themselves in.

Dark City was famously changed by the studio in an attempt to make the film more palatable for mainstream audiences, trimmed down and given an explanatory voice-over. While the upfront explanation takes away from John Murdoch's journey, I'd argue the more damaging thing is how rushed the theatrical cut feels by comparison -- it's impatient in a way the director's cut is not. No question that the longer version makes for the better experience.

Video

Back in 2008, New Line did its own special edition of Dark City on both DVD and Blu-ray, which marked the debut of Proyas' director's cut. Unfortunately, the picture quality on the Blu-ray left everything to be desired, as it was slathered in grain-demolishing DNR. At some point in the last few years, Warner made the director's cut widely available on digital retailers, and thankfully, they removed the DNR from the online copies. Those who have only seen New Line's Blu-ray will probably find Arrow's upgrade more of a leap forward than I do, having watched the digital streaming version a few times, especially given the film's moody and dark cinematography arguably gives the video less of a chance to shine. That said, this is still a very nice looking new presentation of the movie, featuring strong fine detail reproduction (especially when the film's lighting really allows for a good look at things) and a healthy grain field. Shadows are inky, as intended, and I caught no instances of banding within them. Whether or not there is crush is harder to say, as I imagine the impenetrability of the shadows is a feature, not a bug. Some of the footage used in the director's cut has been sourced from a different 2K master, and the difference in quality is sometimes noticeable, especially on a larger screen, but other portions are integrated seamlessly.

Note from Gabe: I've added some comparison sliders featuring the Blu-ray edition of Arrow's 4K remaster and the original New Line disc. The resolution on the page isn't enough to illustrate the totality, but the differences in color timing, sharpness, DNR, and frame shape.

Audio

While I had no issue with Warner's previous DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 mix (included here, along with a DTS-HD MA 2.0 track), Arrow has gone the extra mile to upgrade the film to a Dolby Atmos mix. Those who have seen Dark City know that it features a great, thrilling score by Trevor Jones and all sorts of wild, sci-fi opportunities to use the soundscape in unique ways (such as the memory injections given to John Murdock, which feature odd soundscapes that move in reverse, or the tuning sequences set in a massive underground cavern filled with Strangers and a giant clock face, or perhaps clock/face). All of these are presented with great panache in the new mix, which makes the film sound better than ever. English SDH captions are also provided.

Extras

For a cult film, New Line and Warner Bros. treated Dark City pretty well in the extras department (even if the transfer left something to be desired). Still, Arrow has gone and produced a few new extras for fans to dig into. All of the new content appears on the first disc of the set.

• Audio commentary by director Alex Proyas - Although Proyas previously recorded an audio commentary (a track which, many will be horrified to note, is nearing its 30th birthday), he has recorded a new one for this release. I have not listened to the commentaries that Proyas previously recorded for many years, so I can't say how much overlap there is between this track and the other ones included on the discs (there are three tracks featuring Proyas in total), but he seems to have no concerns about having already discussed the film at length, diving right into the history of details that he sees on screen and the ideas and themes that went into each of those choices. I suppose the thing that will make this track worth it or not for those who give it a spin is whether or not the perspective that time has given Proyas reveals new observations.

• Audio commentary by film critic/comedian Craig Anderson, professor Bruce Isaacs, and his twin brother Herschel Isaacs - The hosts of the "Film vs. Film" podcast contribute a second new commentary. As one may be able to deduce from the name of the podcast, the crew compares and contrasts Dark City against many of its influences. Also obvious: this is more of a hang-out session casually chatting about the film than a traditional scholar commentary track, even though all three participants are clearly well-versed and informed in film history and the making of the film. Probably the least-essential of the commentaries, but those who enjoy the podcast or who are looking for something a little different will probably enjoy checking it out. (I was pleased to hear them echo my Hellraiser observation.)

• "Return to Dark City" documentary (58:55) - This new behind-the-scenes piece is a nice look back at the making of the film, built around new interviews with several key players (Proyas, Sewell, cinematographer Dariusz Wolski, production designers Patrick Tatopoulos and George Liddle, costume designer Liz Keogh Palmer, visual effects artists Peter Doyle and Andrew Mason, storyboard artist Peter Pound, and hair and makeup artist Lesley Vanderwalt). In terms of the approach, this is meat-and-potatoes stuff, and some of it is no doubt stories repeated elsewhere on the disc, but it's a very enjoyable overview of the production (and, full disclosure, one produced by my friend and extra-producer extraordinaire, Heather Buckley, and her company Black Mansion Labs).

• "I'm As Much in the Dark As You Are" visual essay by film scholar Josh Nelson (19:50) - Those who are interested in the film noir references that Proyas is drawing on with the movie will enjoy this piece, which features Nelson taking a deep dive through the films, both old and new, which Proyas either drew on or which were part of a movement at the time the film was released paying tribute to the hard-boiled detective films of the 1940s. Most of the piece uses Dark City footage as a backdrop, but some archival imagery appears from time to time while Nelson speaks in voice-over. (Who knew so many of these characters were named Johnny?)

• "Rats in a Maze" visual essay by film scholar Alexandra West (14:33) - Although the film features a key visual reference to rats in a maze, this second essay focuses on a theme in Dark City that isn't necessarily the first thing that comes to mind, but which makes for a fascinating angle on physical and existential prison the characters are trapped in.

• Design and Storyboards gallery (14:08) - A look at the concept art and storyboards developed for Dark City over the years. The gallery is split into sections based on which artist created the images, and the gallery includes some material from early iterations of Dark City that evolved into the finished film, which are discussed in the "Return to Dark City" documentary.

• Archival Extras - The rest of the bonus features included on Dark City will be very familiar to fans of the film, including the famous Roger Ebert audio commentary. They include: Disc 1

  • Audio commentary by director Alex Proyas

  • Audio commentary by screenwriters Lem Dobbs and David S. Goyer*

  • Audio commentary by film critic Roger Ebert*

  • Introduction by Alex Proyas and Roger Ebert (4:51)

  Disc 2

  • Audio commentary by director Alex Proyas, Lem Dobbs, David S. Goyer, Patrick Tatopoulos, and Dariusz Wolski

  • Audio commentary by film critic Roger Ebert

  • "Memories of Shell Beach" documentary (43:26)

  • "The Architecture of Dreams" documentary (33:41)

  • Image Gallery

  • Theatrical Trailer (3:49)

*note that while Arrow identifies these commentaries as being from 2008, when they were included on New Line's Blu-ray, the reality is a little more complicated. Proyas recorded a new commentary for the director's cut, but the audio of Dobbs and Goyer is from the original 1998 recording session, expanded to fill an entire track, and Ebert's track is largely the same, with some new portions that were re-recorded or added for the Director's Cut.

As many will expect, this is another hardbox from Arrow featuring new artwork by Doug John Miller on the outer packaging, a standard European-style 4K case (with reversible art) on the inside holding the discs, as well as three art cards with poster designs on the back, a Shell Beach postcard, and a reproduction of Dr. Schreber's business card. There is also a fold-out poster featuring the new and theatrical artwork, and a 60-page booklet with new writing on the film by author Richard Kadrey, and film critics Sabrina Stent, Virat Nehru, and Martyn Pedler. Unboxings online show that Arrow has also begun including a slipsleeve for the hardbox featuring the new art. (No packaging was included with Genre Grinder's review copy.)

Conclusion

Dark City deserves its growing reputation as a genre classic, and this 4K UHD feels like it has to be the final word on the film, offering both cuts in 4K UHD with a strong (if not necessarily demo-quality) restoration, and plenty of extras (I can't imagine anyone needing to hear more from Proyas on the film after listening to all three of his commentary tracks and checking out both making-of documentaries). Highly recommended.

The images on this page are taken from Arrows’ 4K restoration Blu-ray and New Lines’ Blu-ray – NOT the 4K UHD – and sized for the page. Larger versions can be viewed by right/cmd-clicking each side of the sliders. Note that there will be some JPG compression.