Dark City (Blu-ray)

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Nevertheless, although I would rather have seen a bit more natural film grain in the picture, the high-def video still looks good--a far sight better than the old SD version (I've not seen the studio's newer standard-def edition, which they released concurrently with this BD)--and because practically the entire film unfolds in the dark, the polished textures tend to complement the story's overall eerie atmosphere. I doubt that most viewers will mind any fiddling the filmmakers or New Line may have done now or earlier with the look of the movie.

Audio:
The sonics get better as time goes on. This go-round, New Line provide a DTS-HD Master Audio 7.1 English track. The bass thunders, and the surrounds display a good deal of subtle activity. Delicate sounds find their place in all the speakers, mostly ambient environmental noises. Dialogue, however, is a tad rounded-off to my ears, not as crisp as it might be or as it might sound in real life. It's certainly pleasing and easy on the ear, but I'm not sure it's entirely realistic.

Audio note: Users bitstreaming DTS-HD Master Audio 7.1 to certain newer receivers--Denon, Integra, Onkyo, and Yamaha, among others--for decoding have reported occasional pops during playback. DTS supposedly informed the receiver manufacturers of this issue, and the manufacturers supposedly resolved it in their current models, while offering upgrades to older product. In addition, the folks at DTS supposedly have provided studios with instructions on how to reproduce DTS-HD MA 7.1 audio to avoid the problem altogether, but apparently not all studios got the memo. Using an Onkyo 705 receiver, I found this particular disc made a small pop every time I took it out of "Pause." Since at the time of this writing I had not yet upgraded my receiver, the work-around I used was to put the receiver in "Mute" for a moment just before returning it from "Pause." Maybe New Line had this BD already completed before they could implement DTS's instructions, I don't know. Just a caution.

Extras:
The major extra on the disc is getting a new Director's Cut along with the movie's original theatrical release. While the original version is about 100 minutes long and rated R, the Director's Cut is eleven minutes longer and unrated. The first thing you'll notice, though, is what's missing in the Director's Cut; namely, a voice-over prologue that the studio thought audiences would need to understand what they considered a difficult movie to comprehend. We're better off without it. Then, if you want to know more about the differences in the two versions, you can choose to watch the DC with an optional "Director's Cut Fact Track," which provides pop-up comparisons between the two versions.

As far as audio commentaries go, this Blu-ray disc offers five of them. On the original cut you'll find a track with director Alex Proyas, writers Lem Dobbs and David S. Goyer, director of photography Dariusz Wolski, and production designer Patrick Tatopoulos, plus another track with film critic Roger Ebert. On the Director's Cut you'll find new tracks by the director, by the writers, and by Ebert. If I had to listen to only one of these tracks, it would be Ebert's commentary on the Director's Cut.

Next up, accompanying the Director's Cut are two 1998 documentaries, "Memories of Shell Beach," forty-three minutes, and "Architecture of Dreams," thirty-three minutes, with an optional introduction by director Proyas and critic Ebert.

Things wrap up with a production gallery of photos; two text essays: fantasy author Neil Gaiman's take on "Dark City" and a comparison of "Dark City" to "Metropolis"; seventeen scene selections; and a widescreen, high-def theatrical trailer. There is only English available as a spoken language,
but there are Spanish subtitles and English captions for the hearing impaired.

In addition, the package includes a second disc containing a digital copy of the movie for use on Windows Media compatible PCs.

Parting Thoughts:
Whichever way you look at it, "Dark City" does create its own world, even if it's so weirdly familiar a world that at first I couldn't quite suspend my disbelief long enough fully to appreciate it. Over the years, though, I've found it is the kind of film that bears more repeat viewing and less analysis, viewings I have done any number of times and plan to continue doing.