Darkest City Remixed By Jorge

Video is a bit low quality, dialogue is muffled. Still watchable though. Very well edited, both video and audio - seamless throughout.

Pace is a lot higher than in the original early on due to cutting and reordering of scenes - about 23 minutes has been cut in total - although I'm a little unclear on why some things were moved. Additionally, some of the clues have been removed, and the edit increase the mystery surrounding the Strangers by showing less of them early on. It's also important to note that this edit removes the awful narration from the beginning - before the Extended Cut did it one year later.

I personally preferred the slower pace of the DC, which fits better with the noir mood of the film, whilst this one feels more like a thriller at times. The slower build up and suspense in the original made the reveal more cathartic, whilst the impact is somewhat lessened in my opinion by moving through events a little quicker and spending less time on character development. This isn't completely Jorge's fault as the TC had 11 minutes less material than the DC released in 2008. Additionally, I don't feel the rescores matched the mood of the film.

All in all, if you found Dark City boring or too slow, then this edit will redeem it for you, whilst if you enjoyed the slower pace of the noir-esque Director's Cut, I'd stick with that version. Either way, don't watch the Theatrical Cut!

So, how do you get to Shell Beach and when was the last time you saw daylight?

I think I may only be able to answer one of those questions. But now is not the time for spoilers...Let's get on with the review!



It's one of those films you have to be in the mood to watch. I had already seen the Director's Cut earlier this year, but admittedly I just wasn't in the mood and I had to stop and start a few times. Before then I had watched the original version and that was over a decade ago, which I enjoyed. But I suppose time and Dark City can both play tricks with your mind.

With Darkest City, I arrived half-hoping half-expecting that it would be a perfect blend of both the original and the directors cut. I can't tell you if that was really the case, but I did find the edit a lot easier to watch on this occasion. As others have said, scenes have been moved around and it must help with the flow of the film. Without spoiling the plot for anyone, the twists and shocks in the film stand out a little more in this, so I think the editing did improve on the film. I also noticed Richard O'Brien's presence a lot more here too. He does a brilliant job.

Another previous reviewer said the music was distracting. I disagree and I couldn't find any fault with the audio at all. The visuals look superb, which is pretty decent for an edit that'll be 15 years old in April!

Overall I don't think this influential cult sci-fic mystery will ever be a top favourite of mine, but it's a solid film and I would watch it again in another few years. I recommend it to others to give it a viewing, even if it's just to watch Richard O'Brien.

This is a great edit. The quality was very good for a DVD. Technically, this was very well done. This movie has an insane amount of cuts in it, and the reordering helped strengthen the narrative. I enjoyed this one quite a bit. The new musical cues were interesting. I liked some more than others but I appreciated what you were going for.

I would say that we find out kind of what's going on early on, but I like the narrative flow of your edit more than the theatrical cut. I watched this with my wife who was also a big fan of the movie but hadn't seen it in 15 years. She couldn't figure out what had been cut because everything worked with no logic gaps. That's strong praise right there.

Overall, very well done.

Video quality was perfectly acceptable to me. Editing was seamless.

I love love love love Dark City. I had been hesitant to watch this edit for awhile because of that (also because KBM barely tells us anything about the changes he made). This improved version is great! I still prefer the Director’s Cut but this version is much stronger than the theatrical.

A/V Quality - 10
Editing - 10
Narrative - 9
Enjoyment - 9 (Director’s Cut 10)

Recommended drink: Pinot Noir

Dark City was one of the touchstones of the early DVD era.
The film was embraced by the geeks, and derided by them. Likewise, the pacing and the acting.
For all that, Dark City was a showroom demo disc, along with Blade, Matrix, Blade Runner, and dominated the charts in Video Business Retailer when it came out.
This was always an excellent example of SciFi Noir. Jorge's version is slightly darker, done with trims.
Jorge's version was outstanding on a technical level.
Video edits were clean and helped propel the pace. I did not find the narrative any more mysterious, however.
Audio modifications were noticeable. Sometimes the new scoring worked, other times not.
A bit too much accordion for my liking, though chalk that down to personal taste.
Otherwise, highly recommended.