Dark

There is no miracle. It wants to look like Stranger Things and have a Lost-like atmosphere, but given that there isn't a single interesting character and they all look equally depressed (which, by the way, left me feeling pretty messed up) it doesn't really work. I’m avoiding the next season. (28/06/2020)

I’ve been thinking about watching the series Dark, produced by the Netflix Internet television, for quite some time. The theme looked nicely mysterious. But the result is not entirely what I imagined it would be. The first episode of the first season looked as if it was shot by lovers of Twin Peaks. I was never sure about what was going on in the series, but I was constantly fascinated by the locations and especially fascinated by the cinematography, which was oozing with an atmosphere as harsh as Indiana Jones’s whip. Until about the sixth episode I didn’t know why I should be excited about a series that I don’t really understand, which has a great premise but totally sloppy characters and otherwise looks wannabe cool and stylish. From the seventh episode, the plot thickened and everything started to somehow fit together. But since I didn’t actually care about the flat characters, even when there was seemingly interesting stuff happening, I couldn’t really get up to speed with the series. The Dark series maybe has an interesting plot, but otherwise, it’s hollow, like an empty swallows’ nest. For me personally, a great pity and it just confirms the fact that it is not easy to film something that is mysterious from both a technical and spiritual stand point. (24/06/2019)

Three stars are a bad way to average out a contradictory project that began with my enthusiasm in the first season and ended in deep disappointment during the third season. It must be admitted that the creators managed to extract from very little (the project manages with a minimum of locations and effectively only a handful of actors) an impressive and atmospheric game about time paradoxes and the futile effort to reverse inevitable events and change one's future. Don't expect grandiose images that American producers would create, but even with this minimalism, clever screenwriters demonstrate how little is needed to capture the audience's attention. The series doesn't boast any stars, but the local actors, combined with an interesting theme and a catchy script, can work wonders. What sinks the series in my eyes is its extravagance, the effort to extract the maximum from the idea. Invention gradually fades, repetitiveness grows, playing on fate starts to feel false and tedious, the magic dissipates... The final resolution comes much later than it should. Dark would benefit from restraint, acknowledged modesty, and 10 episodes would have been just right... I must also add to the faults the ridiculous view of the creative team on nuclear energy. I know, we are in the realm of the entertainment industry where nothing can be taken seriously, and Germany is the cradle of anti-nuclear activism, but everything has its limits, and here a series of scenes - judged from an industry insider's perspective - look like an unintended parody... So, I'll leave it at an overall impression of 50%, and next time, please, use a greater dose of judiciousness. (05/06/2024)

I put Dark off for quite a long time and I'm glad I waited until the very end of the series, as it allowed me to enjoy the whole story at once and without interruptions, which I think is an advantage given the incredible complexity of the plot and the characters. In the beginning, the viewer is confused and has absolutely no idea who, where, when, how and why. Then the puzzle pieces begin to fall into place, which basically stops in the final minutes of the third season. Some of the plot twists (especially regarding the interconnectedness of the characters) were indeed unexpected, others were somewhat predictable, but even so the creators managed to keep me in constant suspense and "groping in the void". I commend the casting, who mostly managed to select physically similar actors for each time period, which made navigating the plot a little easier. As the number of episodes increased, so did the complexity of the story, but somehow it still worked and held together pretty much right up to the very end, the denouement of which I think the creators pulled off quite well. My only major complaint would be with the characters, who I often found really annoying and irrational in their actions, so I had trouble forming a positive relationship with them at times (Magnus, Bartosz, Hannah and Katharina). Out of all the characters, Claudia Tiedemann appealed to me the most overall. Last but not least, I can't fail to mention the distinctive musical score with a touch of the Doppler effect. In the end, it would have been four and a half stars, but in this case I'll give myself an extra one - especially for the courage of the creators to embark on such a challenging project. (27/08/2020)

Such an ambitious project is something I really didn’t expect from the Germans. They decided to tackle the theme of time travel, which at first glance might seem like a topic that’s been endlessly explored in cinema, but they managed a small miracle... They made it so engaging that it hooked me right from the start. I don’t quite understand the comparisons to Stranger Things; as the title suggests, the series Dark focuses on a darker approach, dense atmosphere, and grounded performances that often leave you saying: WOW... Don’t expect any comedic elements here; you’ll need to look elsewhere for that. I could go on for pages about the cast, as there are so many superlatives that could fill a good amount of text... but I won’t... I just have to praise those responsible for the casting, as they did an incredible job (the blending of the timelines of 1953, 1986, and 2019 brought the challenge of casting younger and older versions of characters, and they managed it superbly... hats off). Throughout all ten episodes, I was presented with many questions as a viewer, and not all of them were answered. Because of that, I can’t give it a full score. However, I’m almost certain that these remaining narrative questions will be addressed in the second season, which I have high hopes for based on my experience with the first. 83%. (29/03/2020)