Thursday, July 25, 2013

The Matrix (1999)

Director: Andy & Lana Wachowski                 Writer: Andy & Lana Wachowski
Film Score: Don Davis                                  Cinematography: Bill Pope
Starring: Keanu Reeves, Laurence Fishburne, Carrie-Ann Moss & Hugo Weaving

The Matrix is one of those films that seem to come along once in a generation. It taps into the cultural psyche, surpassing mere popularity, and becoming a phenomenon that demands to be continued beyond the creators’ wildest expectations. It’s an allegory that works on a couple of levels, the more pedestrian being Christianity with Neo as the Christ figure. The more interesting is the allegory of Plato’s cave. The premise is genius: the world is controlled by machines that use humans for energy. The control mechanism is a computer program called The Matrix that simulates the “real world” humans generally assume to be the reality of their daily existence. But like the shadows on Plato’s cave wall, they are just an illusion. The reality is too much for their minds to comprehend so, even when they see the truth, they retreat back to the comfort of their illusions.

Keanu Reeves is the computer hacker searching for the truth. He finds it in the form of a man named Morpheus, Laurence Fishburne, who sets him free from his life as an energy source and brings him into the charred, post-apocalyptic reality of planet earth. Unfortunately the machines don’t like humans being free and put controls in the computer matrix called agents, who kill rogue humans on sight. But there are ways to subvert the matrix and, just like changing a computer program, change the rules of the matrix. Defying gravity, dodging bullets, even flying is possible as long as people have the will and the belief. Unlike the dream world from Inception, however, when someone dies in the matrix they also die in real life. What the crew of Fishburne’s ship don’t know is that there’s a traitor in their midst who has given the agents the location of Fishburne and the crew. Reeves and Carrie-Ann Moss are the only two who escape, and the challenge is going to be getting Fishburne back out of the matrix before he’s killed.

Obviously Keanu Reeves is not the greatest actor in the world, but he was born for this part. His character drags his feet until it’s almost too late, and Reeves makes his own self-doubt really work, even with everyone around him believing that he’s “the one,” the one who will save the human race. Fishburne is so forceful, so dominating on the screen that he carries the film on his shoulders. Carrie-Ann Moss’s performance is just as iconic as Reeves. She’s worked steadily in obscure productions but she will forever be Trinity. The ubiquitous Joe Pantoliano is onboard as Cypher, the name signifying his ambivalence about what they are doing. The wonderful Gloria Foster is riveting as the Oracle, who gives information to the humans seeking answers about what’s in their future. And, of course, Agent Smith, played by Hugo Weaving is the perfect villain.

The Wachowski’s invented a radical science-fiction landscape that became so popular probably because it could be our very own. And when the inevitable sequels came along it was as though they had them in mind all along. Everything in the first film, even throwaway lines like underground city called Zion come to fruition in a seamless way. There is so much to like about the film, but especially the allegory of human belief in oneself and human potential that is demonstrated by Reeves. Romance, violence, action, adventure, suspense, spaceships and monsters, The Matrix can be anything to anyone and that’s just one of the reasons it remains a powerful film and has become a hugely successful franchise.

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