Genre: Science Fiction
Cast: Louis Hofmann, Oliver Masucci, Karoline Eichhorn
The first German original series produced for Netflix, ‘Dark’, is a dramatic, supernatural mystery about some missing children and a town’s dark history. It’s 2019 and teenager Jonas (Louis Hofmann) has returned after spending some time in a mental hospital to help him deal with his father’s suicide. Now back in his small town of Winden, which is known for being near a problematic nuclear power plant, he learns that his classmate Erik has been missing for almost two weeks.
But ‘Dark’ is not just about a murder related to the supernatural. It’s about a community of people, all with their own problems, and all linked in different ways – both in the present and in the past.
‘Dark’ is slow paced in the beginning, but it keeps you on the edge of your seat. It is tense, the cinematography and acting is great. Intelligent, engaging and demanding you pay attention. Excellent mystery drama best watched in the original language with subtitles. The English dubbing is not great: it feels like amateur, emotionless actors reading a script for the first time.
It’s easy to recognize the parallels between ‘Stranger Things’ and ‘Dark’. Sure there are some: the disappearance of a little boy, 80’s influences, dark soundtracks. But that is really where the similarities end. There is so much more depth to it than the mentioned ‘Stranger Things’. There are not so many special effects, nor the same budget. It’s a much more mature and serious treatment of science-fiction concepts.
‘Dark’ isn’t linear. It hops from one era to another and back again all in one episode. When characters from different time periods start interacting with one another, it’s both confusing and entertaining. ‘Dark’ feels like ‘Lost’, but instead of a remote island, it’s a town characterized by bizarre events and secrets.
Season 2 of ‘Dark’ was officially confirmed the 20 Dec after becoming an international success, but no date is confirmed yet. Following Netflix’s normal release patterns, it could be out a year after season 1 – as early as Dec 2018 – but failing that, it’ll be sometime in 2019.
> Mar Martínez
Dark – Review
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