The Matrix (1999)

Directors:

Andy Wachowski
Larry Wachowski

Writers (WGA):

Andy Wachowski (written by) &
Larry Wachowski (written by)

Release Date:

31 March 1999 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Adventure | Sci-Fi | Thriller

Tagline:

In a world of 1s and 0s...are you a zero, or The One?

Plot:

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.

Plot Keywords:

Parallel World | Red Dress | Lucid Dream | Shot Through Chest | Blown To Pieces

Awards:

Won 4 Oscars. Another 28 wins & 36 nominations

Cast

Keanu Reeves	...	Neo
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	...	Rhineheart
Marc Aden	...	Choi (as Marc Gray)

MPAA:

Rated R for sci-fi violence and brief language.

Runtime:

136 min

Country:

Australia | USA

Language:

English

Colour:

Colour (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital | SDDS

Certification:

USA:R (certificate #36569) | UK:15 (re-rating) (2006) (uncut) | Iceland:16 | Philippines:PG-13 | France:U (with warning) | Brazil:12 | Ireland:15 (re-rating) | Malaysia:18SG | Argentina:13 | Australia:M | Belgium:KT | Chile:14 | Finland:K-16 | Germany:16 | Hong Kong:IIB | Ireland:18 (cut) | Israel:PG | Italy:T | Japan:PG-12 | Netherlands:16 | New Zealand:M | Norway:15 | Peru:14 | Portugal:M/12 | Singapore:PG | South Korea:12 | Spain:18 | Sweden:15 | Switzerland:12 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:12 (canton of Vaud) | UK:15 (cut) | Canada:13+ (Quebec) | Canada:14A (Alberta/British Columbia) | Canada:14 (Nova Scotia) | Canada:AA (Ontario) | Canada:PA (Manitoba)

Filming Locations:

AON Tower, Kent Street, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

Company:

Groucho II Film Partnership

Trivia:

The book Neo hides his computer discs in is called "Simulacra and Simulation". The chapter where they're hidden called Nihilism. Nihilism often involves a sense of despair coupled with the belief that life is devoid of meaning.

Goofs:

Continuity: When Neo (Anderson) is first handed the FedEx envelope, he moves his hand to the corner to open it - then the camera shifts, and he moves his hand to the corner to open it.

Quotes:

[first lines]
[phone rings]
Cypher: Yeah.
Trinity: Is everything in place?
Cypher: You weren't supposed to relieve me.
Trinity: I know, but I felt like taking a shift.
Cypher: You like him, don't you? You like watching him.
Trinity: Don't be ridiculous.
Cypher: We're gonna kill him. You understand that?
Trinity: Morpheus believes he is the one.
[...]

Movie Connections:

Referenced in 101 Biggest Celebrity Oops (2004) (TV)

Soundtrack:

Wake Up

The benchmark for all sci-fi films to come

The story of a reluctant Christ-like protagonist set against a baroque, MTV backdrop, The Matrix is the definitive hybrid of technical wizardry and contextual excellence that should be the benchmark for all sci-fi films to come.

Hollywood has had some problems combining form and matter in the sci-fi genre. There have been a lot of visually stunning works but nobody cared about the hero. (Or nobody simply cared about anything.) There a few, though, which aroused interest and intellect but nobody 'ooh'-ed or 'aah'-ed at the special effects. With The Matrix, both elements are perfectly en sync. Not only did we want to cheer on the heroes to victory, we wanted them to bludgeon the opposition. Not only did we sit in awe as Neo evaded those bullets in limbo-rock fashion, we salivated.

But what makes The Matrix several cuts above the rest of the films in its genre is that there are simply no loopholes. The script, written by the Wachowski brothers is intelligent but carefully not geeky. The kung-fu sequences were deftly shot -- something even Bruce Lee would've been proud of. The photography was breathtaking. (I bet if you had to cut every frame on the reel and had it developed and printed, every single frame would stand on its own.) And the acting? Maybe not the best Keanu Reeves but name me an actor who has box-office appeal but could portray the uneasy and vulnerable protagonist, Neo, to a T the way Reeves did. But, come to think of it, if you pit any actor beside Laurence Fishburne, you're bound to confuse that actor for bad acting. As Morpheus, Mr. Fishburne is simply wicked! Shades of his mentor-role in Higher Learning, nobody exudes that aura of quiet intensity than Mr. Fishburne. His character, battle-scarred but always composed Morpheus, is given an extra dose of mortality (He loves Neo to a fault.) only Mr. Fishburne can flesh out.

People will say what they want to say about how good The Matrix is but the bottomline is this: finally there's a philosophical film that has cut through this generation. My generation. The Wachowski brothers probably scribbled a little P.S. note when they finished the script saying: THINK FOR A MOMENT ABOUT YOUR EXISTENCE. What is the Matrix, you ask? Something that's closer to reality than you think.

Either that or it's my personal choice for best film of all-time.