Alex Proyas’s Dark City is a noir-infused science fiction mystery that blends philosophical musings with striking visual storytelling. Released in 1998, it came just a year before The Matrix, and though less commercially successful, it remains a cult favorite and a profoundly influential work in its own right. With a dense atmosphere, shadowy aesthetics, and themes of identity and reality, Dark City is a fascinating meditation on what it means to be human—wrapped in a pulpy detective tale with science-fiction flair. The film opens with protagonist John Murdoch (Rufus Sewell) waking up in a bathtub in a grimy hotel room, suffering from amnesia. A dead body lies nearby. He quickly discovers he’s being pursued—not only by the police, led by the world-weary Inspector Bumstead (William Hurt), but also by a group of pale, sinister figures known only as “The Strangers.” As Murdoch scrambles to uncover the truth about his identity and his past, he begins to notice peculiarities about the city ...