The Matrix Movie Review

The Matrix (1999)

Rent The Matrix on Amazon Video
Written by: Lana Wachowski, Lilly Wachowski (as The Wachowski Brothers)
Directed by: Lilly Wachowski, Lana Wachowski (as The Wachowski Brothers)
Starring: Keanu Reeves, Laurence Fishburne, Carrie-Anne Moss, Hugo Weaving, Joe Pantoliano, Gloria Foster
Rated: R
Watch the trailer

Plot
Have you ever had a dream that you were so sure was real? What if you couldn't awaken? Computer hacker Neo dives into an underworld with a shocking truth. The life he knows is an elaborate deception.

Verdict
This is such an awesome movie. From the melding of sci-fi and action to the aesthetics and concepts. The movie has numerous iconic scenes from the dojo to the lobby, rooftop rescue, and the subway fight.
What is real? That's a question that pervades the movie and asks the audience to question their own perceptions. Real is just a feeling, something we tell ourselves.
You've probably seen this movie a few times, but there is a lot of foreshadowing. The movie follows the rule of cool, but in a construct that completely works. It's smart, the action is amazing, and it's still engaging.
Watch it.

Review
Being the 20th anniversary of when The Matrix first released in theaters, I felt compelled to watch it again. I still remember the first time i saw this movie on HBO one Saturday night long ago. I've seen it many times since then and the introduction is still amazing. You assume Trinity is a hacker, but we don't really know. Then she defies physics by leaping fifty feet across a rooftop. We don't know what's going on, but it's a great hook.

It's well made and that's clear just in the first few shots. It's a phenomenal movie. It's made for a rewatch as so much of this doesn't make sense the first time through. The movie slowly feeds you information. After you have a handle on the plot you begin to notice the foreshadowing. A lot of the dialog folds upon itself, setting up the threads soon to come.

We're as lost as Neo, but he's driven to find the answer. This has some big exposition segments, but it's uncovering a big world. What is the Matrix? That's a lingering question since the beginning and Laurence Fishburne does a great job with that monologue as Morpheus. The whole movie oozes cool. From sunglasses worn all the time to trench coats and guns. There's a lot of style. The casting is great and all of these characters have some kind of arc. None of them feel like filler, well except for Mouse, just a bit. While there is a lot of the rule of cool, it completely works in this movie. It provides a built in excuse. 

All of this is wrapped around the central question of, 'What is real?' The movie questions limitations and perceptions and that might be the coolest thing about this movie as it drops hints that our world could be a simulation. Why does everything taste like chicken? What is deja vu, really? It's inventive. As Agent Smith states, played tremendously by Hugo Weaving, humans are a virus. They exhaust resources and move on. Humans resist paradise. Smith is a computer program in the Matrix that polices the construct. His job is to capture the humans.

The movie is full of iconic scenes. When Neo first trains with Morpheus in the dojo, we're as excited as the crew. Part of what makes theses scenes have such an impact is the framing and composition. There is a level of detail throughout this movie and while of the editing and camera movements feels '90s, that's not an insult.

The movie revolves around Neo as he must forge his own path and discover his abilities. He can't just be told, he must figure it out. Morpheus believes Neo is special, and Neo just discovered the world is a wasteland. Robots use humans as an energy source. It's best not to think about how that would work too long, but it provides a great visual.

Morpheus sacrifices himself for Neo and Neo goes on a suicide mission to save him. "I believe I can bring him back." The rescue is a great sequence. It starts with the lobby shootout, and that music is awesome. I love all the music in this movie. We've been told Neo isn't the one, but his feats are incredible. No one has ever been able to take on an agent, and Neo does just that.He may not win the fight, but he's the first human to take on an agent and walk away.

The movie is just fun. This presents the coolest characters from clothes to cars and actions, and in so many movies that's not logical. Wearing sunglasses inside impedes your vision, but in this world none of that matters.