#11
THE MATRIX (1999)
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Written and Directed by ... Andy and Larry Wachowski
Executive Produced by … Andy Wachowski, Larry Wachowski, Bruce Berman, Andrew Mason, Barrie M. Osborne and Erwin Stoff
Produced by … Joel Silver and Dan Cracchiolo
Cinematography by ... Bill Pope
Production Design by … Owen Paterson
Costume Design by … Kym Barrett
Art Direction by … Hugh Bateup and Michelle McGahey
Editing by ... Zach Staenberg
Original Motion Picture Score composed by ... Don Davis
Keanu Reeves ... Neo/Thomas Anderson
Laurence Fishburne ... Morpheus
Carrie-Anne Moss ... Trinity
Hugo Weaving ... Agent Smith
Gloria Foster ... Oracle
Joe Pantoliano ... Cypher
Marcus Chong ... Tank
Julian Arahanga ... Apoc
Matt Doran ... Mouse
Belinda McClory ... Switch
Anthony Ray Parker ... Dozer
Paul Goddard ... Agent Brown
Robert Taylor ... Agent Jones
David Aston ... Mr. Rhineheart
Marc Gray … Choi
Ada Nicodemou ... Dujour (White Rabbit Girl)
Deni Gordon ... Priestess
Rowan Witt ... Spoon Boy
Eleanor Witt ... Potential
Janaya Pender ... Potential
Adryn White ... Potential
Natalie Tjen ... Potential
Bill Young ... Lieutenant
David O'Connor ... FedEx Man
Jeremy Ball ... Businessman
Fiona Johnson ... Woman in Red
Harry Lawrence ... Old Man
Steve Dodd ... Blind Man
Luke Quinton ... Security Guard
Lawrence Woodward ... Guard
Michael Butcher … Cop Who Captures Neo
Bernard Ledger ... Big Cop
Robert Simper ... Cop
Chris Scott ... Cop
Nigel Harbach ... Parking Cop
A computer hacker learns from mysterious rebels about the true nature of his reality and his role in the war against the controllers of it.
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Free your mind.
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Are we living in reality?
Or is our entire perception of reality just an illusion?
Is our brain fooling us into thinking certain things/people/events are real, when they are all non-existent?
Perhaps Reality is in a state of flux…what with all of the occurrences of it constantly shifting, bending this way and that and even bearing down on us with a horribly overwhelming weight.
But maybe, in order to control our destiny…control our reality…we must put aside all of our inhibitions and all of our doubts.
And free our minds.
In the case of 1999’s “The Matrix,” mental liberation was just the beginning.
The film centers around Thomas Anderson (Keanu Reeves), a seemingly insignificant young program writer for an upstanding software company in some no-name urban (most likely American) sprawl of skyscrapers, highways, bridges and alleys. He sits in his cubicle, does what he’s told despite his issue with authority and goes about his own existence the way many of us do.
Behind the closed doors of his cramped and decrepit apartment, however, he goes by an alias…‘Neo’…and gallivants through cyberspace as a computer hacker guilty of breaking every computer crime imaginable.
Through his online travels, however, he stumbles across reports of a massive manhunt for a supposed terrorist named Morpheus (Laurence Fishburne)…a man who apparently holds the key to answering a question that has plagued Anderson for quite some time.
“What is the Matrix?”
With nothing to lose and a need to know the truth…whatever it may be…Anderson seeks out Morpheus and discovers that he wasn’t just looking for Morpheus. Morpheus was looking for him.
After an offering of a ‘Blue Pill’ that will end Anderson’s journey before it begins…or a ‘Red Pill’ that will lead him to the truth…Thomas takes the Red and begins his journey towards the inescapable truth.
The year is not 1999…but in fact closer to 2199…
At the crossroads of the 21st century, humanity gave birth to the most advanced A.I. ever assimilated…spawning a race of machines. The machines however, shown no compassion or respect by their makers, decreed that humanity had had its time…and it must now come to an end.
A war ignited between man and machine…which left the sky scorched, the lands laid to rubble…and worst of all…humanity placed on the brink of survival.
Without the sun, they’re single greatest energy source, the machines resorted to an alternative power; the bio-electricity of the human body. Combining and harnessing this energy through fusion, the machines turned the human race into, essentially, batteries…powering their existence.
Human beings are no longer born…but grown in endless tech-fields. And in order to keep humanity under control, the machines created ‘The Matrix,’ a computer simulated dream world that contained mankind’s collective consciousness, setting it back into the prime of the 20th century so that there would be no attempt to rebel against the machines.
Believed to be the One, prophesized by the Oracle as the reincarnation of a Man born in the Matrix who could bend it to his own will and who freed the first minds, Morpheus sought out Neo…and while he’s reluctant to accept all that has been thrown at him, Neo realizes that the truth, no matter how terrifying, is always welcome when faced with a façade.
So now, it’s up to Neo and Morpheus…along with the remaining crew of Morpheus’ ship the Nebucadnezzar, including Trinity (Carrie-Ann Moss) the field agent who tracked down Neo for Morpheus…Cypher (Joe Pantoliano), Tank (Marcus Chong), Apoc (Julian Arahanga), Mouse (Matt Doran), Switch (Belinda McClory) and Tank’s brother Dozer (Anthony Ray Parker)…to begin Neo’s training on path to fully becoming the One.
But the training will be difficult…not only as a result of Neo’s inexperience…but also because of three Agents, sentient programs who govern the Matrix and keep any suspicious persons in line to avoid rebellion. Headed by Agent Smith (Hugo Weaving) who may have his own agenda, they will do whatever it takes to see to the destruction of humanity…whose remnants take refuge in Zion, the last surviving human city on Earth (or rather, in it).
Written and directed by the Wachowski brothers, “The Matrix” was a huge hit when it came out. I vividly remember “What is the Matrix?” being everywhere…on everyone’s lips…and like a tidal wave people went nuts.
As is expected…
With “The Matrix,” all of the elements and stars were in alignment to create a fully immersive world with a story that had both stakes and goals that everyone could rally behind. It’s a film very much for the comic book, sci-fi and anime crowd but it was handled so well that nearly everyone got on board.
The film tackled the difficult question of reality. It addressed this question with such style, power, and individuality, that it will easily be remembered as one of the greatest Sci-Fi movies ever made.
The cast of the film is wonderfully composed, made up well versed actors (Fishburne, Weaving and Foster) fresh faces who’re taking a step outside their comfort zones (Reeves and Moss) and wonderful character actors who delight in bringing flavor to the world of “The Matrix” (Pantoliano).
Neo is easily Reeves best role yet…though ‘Bill & Ted’ fans might dispute that so I’ll rephrase so as not to piss them off. Neo is Reeve’s most ambitious and fulfilling role. Despite his whole surfer persona, Reeves actually brings a fair amount of credibility to Neo and watching his transformation from a nothing-cubicle worker into a fully fledged messianic, gun toting super hero is pretty damn impressive.
Fishburne’s turn as Morpheus is probably my favorite role in the proceedings…while not to the degree of, say, Morgan Freeman…the gravitas of Laurence’s voice lends itself quite well to the heaps of Wachowski dialog he has to spout. There’s an honesty and regal ness to Morpheus which I quite love and that’s all Fishburne. Carrie-Ann is pretty decent (better than the sequels) and I love her physicality more than anything.
Another wonderful performance is given by the late Gloria Foster as the Oracle (she would later pass on after completing work on “The Matrix: Reloaded”
. It’s a small role, one scene in fact…but her charm makes it more than worth it.
Finally you’ve got Hugo Weaving as Smith…given the conditions of the continuing story in the sequels he obviously isn’t playing nearly as big a part as he would come to be but Smith in his initial incarnation is still quite devilish and more than a match for our heroes.
What makes “The Matrix” pop more than anything else…even its visual effects since their actually aren’t that many (not really)…is the film’s cinematography and, even more so, it’s editing.
This film is a prime example of how a movie can be made or broken on editing. Thanks to the work of Zach Staenberg, there’s a rhythm of movement to “The Matrix” that is absolutely engaging. Having been fed on a steady diet of anime, manga, films and comics during their youth, the brothers, through Staenberg, bring an anime sensibility to the pacing of the picture as well as the staging for Bill Pope’s lovely camera compositions and it all works in the project’s favor. Every frame in “The Matrix” is like art thanks to Pope and the Wachowskis. With a sickly green tint to the color scheme and lighting, the film has this odd other-worldly dimension placed upon it that makes it ever better.
Sort of nodding to the fact that we’re dealing with the parameters of a world that isn’t real...very good stuff.
Of course when it DOES come to the effects, “The Matrix” was quite revolutionary. Now I’m not about to say it invented ‘Bullet Time’ because we all know it didn’t…anime and manga did that.
But the ingenious photography system used for the film’s idea of ‘Bullet Time’ effects is really neat.
The iconic image of Neo dodging bullets on a rooftop as the camera completes a nearly 360 degree spin around him was not only spectacular in its own right…but its been lampooned on several occasions. Everyone from “Scary Movie” to “Deuce Bigelow Male Gigolo” got their hands on parodying that shot.
There’s also the wonderful moment where, coming into his own as the One, Neo stops the Agent’s bullets in mid-air. Of course this idea is improved upon in “Reloaded” but I remember getting a kick out of Neo becoming the One…easily stopping rounds and blocking Smith’s attacks without evening looking! I’ve always been a fan of the ability to kick ass without any question or doubt…and that made it something I could really enjoy.
The film’s production and costume design is also really awesome. I’ve always been a fan of seedy urban locales and tough as nails characters wielding a ton of guns…”The Matrix” allowed me to dabble and relish in that with Owen Paterson’s beautifully urban approach to Mega City (as it’s now referred to by the Wachowskis and the crew from the sequels and video games) and who doesn’t love Kym Barrett’s costumes?
Neo’s trademark trenchcoat, glasses, combat boots and gun holsters still remain one of my favorite costumes from film in the past 11 years…freaking AWESOME to see Keanu sporting all that. The use of PVC, Latex and Rubber also brought a proverbial S&M quality to the picture…but it’s unique and you gotta give it up for that.
One of the other key factors to “The Matrix” is its action. Again, like the edit, the action is what makes the film work as well as it does.
The film is also among the best actioners of recent years that you can find.
The Kung Fu combat between Neo/Morpheus and Neo/Smith is just wonderful. It’s kinetic, it’s powerful…it makes you wanna do it to! Keanu and Laurence’s fight in the Dojo Construct is just awesome…I love that fight scene.
But easily nothing…NOTHING…in the film compares to its most iconic and bad ass sequence.
The Lobby Shootout.
What can I possibly say about this sequence? It’s mesmerizing, to put it mildly, as Neo and Trinity open a hellstorm of automatic fire on military police and security guards alike. Seeing Neo and Trinity perform all of those aerial acrobatics and flips? You jaw drops to the floor when you see that for the first time…and from then on, while it may not drop, your mouth can’t help but stretch into a big grin.
Everything about that scene works…the rhythm (again), the shot composition…bullet shells pinging on the floor, the giant slabs of marble being torn apart by shotgun blasts and machine gun fire…Neo flipping WHILE firing…all capped off with Neo sending a high flying kick to the last lowly guards puss.
Action-Packed Brilliance.
The film also gets a pretty decent Don Davis score…although, much like the sequels and other films like “Batman Begins,” the score isn’t all that dynamite. More or less Davis’ material is just an amalgam of sound effects and repetitive cues that pop up continuously throughout the film.
Luckily, we’ve got a kick ass soundtrack to help out on the music front.
Rage Against the Machine delivers a tremendous finish for the film with “Wake Up,” very much the lyrical theme of “The Matrix.” There’s also “Dragula” brought to us by Rob Zombie which is great as well as “Spybreak”…the Propellerheads track that accompanies the Lobby Shootout.
The soundtrack not featured in the film includes the incredible track “Rock is Dead” from Marilyn Manson (GREAT song!) and another favorite in Monster Magnet’s “Look to your Orb for Warning.”
In closing, one of the reasons “The Matrix” is among the more reviewable and debatable films (maybe THE most reviewable and debatable) are the philosophical and religious elements of the story. Obviously the film draws on the Messiah myth as Neo is a clear reference to Jesus with the analogy of his name (Neo = one, as in The One) but also hidden in his other name, Thomas A. Anderson. The first part of his last name, Anderson comes from the Greek Andros meaning "man" and combine this with the second part of his last name "son" and add a little creativity you will come up with the combination "son of man" which was a title Jesus came up with about himself. Also the first time we meet Neo a man calls him (and I quote): "You're my Savior man. My own personal Jesus Christ." It doesn't get any more obvious than that. Aside from the Christianic elements the film also gets its inspiration from Buddhism, Gnosticism (Gnosis = knowledge) but is also inspired by Plato and his analogy of the Cave and Jean Baudrillard's essay ‘Simulacra and Simulations.’ (don’t worry…I just found all this fascinating when I got my hands on my best friends ‘Ultimate’ Matrix collection a few years ago).
In “The Matrix” Neo is a computer hacker. One day, Morpheus enters into his life. He is given 2 options: To go back into living his ‘dream’ life, and never find out what reality truly is. Or, he could ‘go deeper down the rabbit hole’. To discover what forces powered our reality, and how our mind perceived everything. Neo chose the red pill, to discover the truth behind his existence.
Every one of us is given various choices in life. We can go on living like zombies, in a world of our own. Or we can choose to do something about our lives, to make the best of reality as we know it. Whether reality exists or not, is an entirely different question. But let’s face it: You are probably not going to discover a machine that creates a false reality while you are alive. Illusion or not, you might as well make the best of it.
This very review that you are reading; how do you know if it is real or not? Your mind is interpreting these awkward shapes called letters, into messages. These messages are then decoded nearly instantly by your brain. What you want to do with these messages is completely up to you.
Do we exist? Or are we living in a dream world? This brings to light an existentialist film I saw in school once…“Waking Life.” Now in “Waking Life,” one character states that our brain functions for 5-10 minutes after we’re dead.
What if those 5-10 minutes are the reality that we are living now?
What if you are the only real person on earth, and everyone else is just a figment of your imagination?
This could be a possibility.
Whatever it is, this ‘life’ that you are living, may not be real. It is why I choose to stop taking myself so seriously. Problems are going to occur. Think about it: If you were not real, if nothing was real, would you be stressing out about paying your bills? You would probably be much more calm, and treat life more like the game that it is.
”The Matrix” is not a very friendly computer program. It tricks people into truly believing what doesn’t exist. It has no compassion whatsoever. It sees people falling in love, having families, and enjoying life. On the other hand, it sees people being killed, starving, and depressed. For this ‘Matrix’, it’s job is to continue the illusion. It does not care who is suffering from its illusion of existence.
The same can be said in real life. There is so much suffering in the world. I don’t know the ratio of suffering to happiness, but I would imagine it is extremely high. Depression is increasing, and it’s not going to slow down anytime soon. If our reality is fake, then what’s stopping the creator, whoever it is, from putting and end to the suffering? In this sense, life is very much like the Matrix.
The agents are the allies of the matrix. They are the people who will stop at nothing to prevent the truth from being found. They want everyone living a dream life, and are prepared to kill anyone who stands in their way. The best real-life comparison is ourselves.
Think about it.
We will stop at nothing to keep up the illusion of life, if it is indeed an illusion. We are blind to any ideas other than our own. People are closed-minded to new religious/spiritual concepts. Everyone has their own views on what existence really is, what God is, and what it means to ‘be’. There are thousands upon thousands of interpretations of life. And you know what? Not a single one of them has been proven correct. Likewise, not a single one has been proven false. Hang onto your beliefs, but respect others’ thoughts on existence. Neo had his own beliefs on life. Morpheus challenged him to bend his beliefs, and open his mind, in ways that Neo could never have imagined. When the time comes; will you learn to open your mind?
So what is it that keeps us going on?
Is it the worthless paper that we call currency?
Is it coming home to our families?
Maybe enjoying the flavors of delicious food? Again, taste buds are just part of the brain’s function.
There can never be a right answer, and there can never be a wrong answer. As soon as you die, a transformation occurs. What happens on the other side? I guess you will have to wait for that! Until then, make the best of life and its opportunities. Illusion or not, it is an incredible experience. Make the best of it while you can, because once you find out the truth, you will never be the same.
Go ask Neo what reality is. He’ll tell you.
In closing, “The Matrix” remains a wonderful pinnacle of science fiction and action filmmaking…if you haven’t seen this one, what’re you waiting for!?
Free your mind and see this badboy…NOW.
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