Reviews
Is ‘Dark City’ A Flat Earth-Approved Film?
Author’s Note: This review is based on the Director’s Cut of Dark City that excludes the opening expository monologue.
A few years ago, my mother told me that Dark City was one of her all-time favorite films. As someone who typically doesn’t enjoy Sci-Fi (the genre, not the channel), I purchased it and let it collect dust on my shelves. Every time I would take my movies out to dust, I would see it and think, “I should watch this soon.” Thankfully, the curator of all things Horror Press, James-Michael, made one of the themes for June science fiction. What better time to watch one of my mom’s favorite Sci-Fi films than now?! Not only was Dark City a wholly enjoyable film, but there are weird parallels to Saw, the flat earth theory, and the Men in Black!
Rufus Sewell’s John Murdoch Anchors Dark City’s Mystery
John Murdoch (Rufus Sewell) wakes up in a bathtub inside a seedy hotel, unsure of who he is, where he is, or why he’s there. After a call from Dr. Schreber (Kiefer Sutherland), John leaves the hotel as quickly as possible when he learns a group of strange men (The Strangers) are after him. Not only does John find himself on the run from The Strangers, but he soon learns that he’s on the radar of Inspector Bumstead (William Hurt) regarding the deaths of multiple sex workers. Along with his wife Emma (Jennifer Connelly), John must evade police and The Strangers in the hopes of clearing his name and finding out what is going on in this backwards, dark city.
Alex Proyas Creates a Visually Stunning Neo-Noir Sci-Fi World
Fresh off the heels of his cult classic film The Crow, writer/director Alex Proyas (with co-writers Lem Dobbs and David S. Goyer) comes out swinging with an even more stylistically gorgeous, groundbreaking science fiction film. When it comes to straight-up science fiction films, one of the biggest issues creatives can face is how to handle the science aspect of science fiction. Proyas (Dobbs and Goyer) weave a slightly convoluted science-based story that slowly starts to tie itself in a neat bow by the finale. To be completely honest, I was slightly worried that none of it was going to make sense, and I would have to resort to one of those “ending explained” videos. Thankfully, as long as you thoroughly pay attention, it all does make sense. Which makes me wonder why producers forced Proyas to write an opening monologue to explain the film.
Dark City and Saw Share Surprising Similarities
To momentarily step aside from the film as a whole, I almost wonder if Dark City was the impetus for Saw. We start with John waking up in the bathtub, as Adam (Leigh Whannell) does in Saw. The bodies of the deceased sex workers in Dark City are covered in spirals, which is John Kramer’s (Tobin Bell) signature. Dark City is fraught with blueish and yellowish hues, as is Saw. And the editing of Dark City occasionally devolves into that music video-like, quick cut, Nu Metal editing that Saw would inherit more of as the franchise went on. A quick Google search didn’t reveal much of anything regarding Leigh Whannell or James Wan discussing Dark City, but I believe there’s a connective line somewhere.
The Men in Black and Conspiracy Theory Abound
What I loved the most about Dark City is how it is in line with some of my favorite conspiracy theories, specifically the flat earth theory and the Men in Black. The Strangers are very similar to the descriptions given in Nick Redfern’s The Real Men in Black. Tall greys (except the child), herky jerky movements, stilted speaking, and a general misunderstanding of what it means to be human. In fact, the motivating factor of The Strangers is to attempt to understand what makes humans human. And wrapping all of that into a Matrix-like flat earth world is the cherry on top of the cake. It would take multiple viewings of this film to find more examples of how many science fiction and conspiracy topics Dark City broaches, but it does so in a way that doesn’t feel forced or overcrowded with ideas.
Dark City’s Sets Create a Nightmare Atmosphere
Not only chock-full of brilliant ideas, but also nightmarishly impressive visually. It makes sense that the director of The Crow is also the director of Dark City. Thankfully, Proyas had a hand in the script for Dark City because, while his directorial style in The Crow is impressive, The Crow is just an awful film. I know that will piss a lot of people off, but I just really don’t understand the love for that film. Dark City’s ever-evolving set creates this deeply unsettling atmosphere that adds to John’s amnesia. As a viewer, you start to get accustomed to a certain layout, only to have The Strangers pull the rug out from under you in a single moment.
Why Dark City Deserves Recognition Alongside The Matrix
Dark City is a film that needs to be seen to be believed. It’s hard to imagine that it predates The Matrix, if only by one year. Science fiction films typically have a hard time living a show-don’t-tell existence, and Dark City perfectly toes that line. It’s a blend of showing and telling in a way that doesn’t feel like Proyas (Dobbs and Goyer) is talking down to the audience. Moreover, it gives enough away to have it all make sense as the credits roll, while still letting the audience put together enough pieces to walk away feeling as if they solved the mystery themselves. If you haven’t seen Dark City (the Director’s Cut), then you need to rectify that immediately.
Haunted house stories are a staple in the horror genre. But it’s not often that a haunted house film digs its way under your skin and stays there long after the credits roll. Enter Recluse, celebrating its world premiere at the 2026 Tribeca Film Festival.
A Disturbing Return Home Fuels Recluse’s Story
Joan Wyatt, a young and troubled audio engineer, is called back to her childhood home following a bizarre accident in which her father, the famous artist Lawrence Wyatt, was engulfed in flames and left in critical condition. Joan has been estranged from her father for quite some time, so when his longtime housekeeper Lydia leaves a voicemail telling her that he likely doesn’t have a lot of time left, she ignores it. But then Lawrence himself calls, telling Joan that he’s been seeing her mother—who disappeared when Joan was a child—around the house.
Joan arrives to find Lydia armed with a crossbow to ward off Lawrence’s obsessive fans. Her father is bed-bound with severe burns, and is being cared for by a hired nurse around Joan’s age named Emily. Lawrence, who notoriously experimented with psychedelics and occult practices during his career, is barely coherent and keeps his face concealed underneath a crude plaster mask. He keeps asking about his “little spider.” It’s disturbing and deeply upsetting, especially since Joan already has a lifetime of trauma associated with the house. Now that she’s back, she begins to suspect that these “ghosts” aren’t metaphorical. Lawrence was not a good man… but something even more sinister may be lurking in the house.
Henry Chaisson Reinvents the Haunted House Formula
Recluse, written and directed by Henry Chaisson, is a masterfully crafted debut feature that takes familiar elements of the haunted house genre—like a remote mansion as the setting, traumatic family secrets, and supernatural mischief—and twists them into something fresh and, well, twisted.
Sasha Frolova Leads an Exceptional Ensemble Cast
Sasha Frolova stars as Joan, delivering a performance that is both believable and compelling. She’s easy to root for throughout the film, especially as she contends with her father’s unwaveringly loyal housekeeper Lydia, brilliantly played by Toby Poser. Mia Vallet’s portrayal of Emily is also noteworthy, commanding attention from her first appearance all the way to the end. Kimball Farley plays Lydia’s son and Joan’s friend Todd with the perfect balance of levity and tension. Frankie Seratch is enjoyable to watch as the opportunistic nepo baby art dealer Tom. Rounding out the cast is Xander Berkeley as Lawrence; even from behind a mask, his performance is intense and chilling. Berkeley even provided some of his own art to be used in the film.
Sound Design and Cinematography Create Unrelenting Terror
The cast is far from the film’s only strength, though. Sound design by Matthew Rollins will have you death-gripping your seat in the best way, and serves as an integral part of the story itself. Production designer Yulanda Yo-Rong Shieh and art director Ana María Kalvo absolutely nailed the set and made the Wyatt family mansion simultaneously sprawling and claustrophobic.
Finally, we have the beautiful and (appropriately) haunting cinematography by Bryce Holden, supported by the editing prowess of Nik Voytas, Josh Lobo, and Henry Chaisson. Not only did they maintain an air of unrelenting suspense throughout the entire film, but they also executed some of the most disturbing and bone-chilling jump scares I’ve seen in recent years.
Seriously: One of those jump scares made me feel physically ill. You’ll know it when you see it for yourself.
Recluse had its world premiere at Tribeca Film Festival 2026.
One of my favorite special interests is the Mormon-millionaire-real-estate-tycoon-owned Skinwalker Ranch. Mormon millionaire Brandon Fugal has crafted a wonderfully apophenic history in his post-Bigelow ownership. His perfectly curated release of pseudo-information through the lens of a History Channel TV show did wonders not just for his wallet but for docu-dramas as a whole. Fugal did what The Curse of Oak Island could have only wished to accomplish. BUT, three years before Joseph Smith’s teachings made their way to the Uinta Basin, a group of filmmakers set out to capitalize on one of America’s strangest phenomena. Skinwalker Ranch is a film that is as perplexing as it is insufferable.
Skinwalker Ranch: Missing Children, UFOs, and Found Footage Chaos
In 2010, Hoyt’s (Jon Gries) son disappeared in a blinding ball of light. Some time later, Modern Defense Enterprises sent a team of experts to Hoyt’s property to study what happened to Cody (Nash Lucas). Upon arriving at the property, MDE sets up a reality-TV-like number of security cameras in the hopes of finding anything. But what they found may just make them wish they hadn’t set foot on this property.
The Real History Behind Skinwalker Ranch Lore
As stated, the story of and behind Skinwalker Ranch is one of my favorite bits of Americana. From the Sherman family’s story, through Robert Bigelow’s ownership, all the way to its current Mormon occupation, the history behind Skinwalker Ranch runs deep. Dire wolves, dino beavers, and disappearing orbs, oh my! Whether you believe in the stories or not, Skinwalker Ranch is one of America’s biggest pieces of lore.
One of my favorite theories is that a resource-observing beacon was placed by, for lack of a better term, aliens when Pangea existed. Throughout the years, the dissolution of Pangea shifted the location of where the aliens placed the beacon to what is now considered the Mesa on the northern portion of Skinwalker Ranch’s property. The said beacon could very possibly be what causes the mysterious 1.6 GHz signal on the ranch, or why there are so many UAP sightings around the Mesa.
How Skinwalker Ranch Wastes Its Fascinating Premise
Now, I know all of this has been discovered post-Skinwalker Ranch (movie), but Hunt for the Skinwalker and Skinwalkers at the Pentagon, by Colm Kelleher and George Knapp (and James T. Lacatski for Pentagon), had already been released. Dino beavers on Skinwalker Ranch had already been discussed. The true terror of Skinwalker Ranch had been disseminated by three highly regarded UFOlogists. So, for writer Adam Ohler (and story by Devin McGinn, Steve Berg, Ken Bretschneider, and Murphy Michaels) to craft such a plain story that doesn’t even scratch the surface of what makes Skinwalker Ranch even slightly interesting is confounding. It feels as if the writer/story creators heard the term “Skinwalker Ranch” and decided to focus on that, and that alone. Skinwalker Ranch has zero world-building, and hopes that the title is titillating enough to get someone to click ‘play’.
The singular great aspect about Skinwalker Ranch is the casting of Jon Gries (Uncle Rico in Napoleon Dynamite) and Michael Horse (Deputy Hawk in Twin Peaks). Gries does enough carrying in this film to make up for dropping that winning pass. And it’s just wonderful to see Michael Horse in a film, even if he’s cast as a token Native American whose only purpose is to make the writers feel better for capitalizing on Native American lore. Besides that, the acting in Skinwalker Ranch is beyond atrocious. In fact, the acting feels so unnatural that I honestly thought the team from MDE was going to turn out to be the aliens that kidnapped Cody. Turns out, the story doesn’t even attempt to be 1% as clever as that.
A Massive Found Footage Failure
Skinwalker Ranch not only fails at being an interesting sci-fi horror flick, but it also fails at being a found footage flick. Full of awful CGI, bad acting, and an even worse script, Skinwalker Ranch exists as nothing more than a time waster. In fact, Travis Walton’s experience in Fire in the Sky would be more entertaining to take part in than watching even two minutes of this film–I’d rather get dry probed by the Hyperboreans than ever think of this movie again.
