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THE MATRIX RESURRECTIONS (15)
THE MATRIX RESURRECTIONS (15)
Director: Lana Wachowski
Runtime: 147 minutes
Cast: Keanu Reeves, Carrie-Anne Moss, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, Jessica Henwick, Jonathan Groff, Neil Patrick Harris, Priyana Chopra Jonas, Christina Ricci, Telma Hopkins, Eréndira Ibarra, Toby Onwumere, Max Riemelt, Brian J. Smith, Jada Pinkett Smith
Synopsis: Return to a world of two realities: one, everyday life; the other, what lies behind it. To find out if his reality is a construct, to truly know himself, Mr. Anderson will have to choose to follow the white rabbit once more.
URL: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dd9yT0xt82s
From visionary filmmaker Lana Wachowski comes The Matrix Resurrections, the long-awaited next chapter in the ground-breaking franchise that redefined a genre. The new film reunites original stars Keanu Reeves and Carrie-Anne Moss in the iconic roles they made famous, Neo and Trinity.
In The Matrix Resurrections, we return to a world of two realities: one, everyday life; the other, what lies behind it. To find out if his reality is a physical or mental construct, to truly know himself, Mr. Anderson will have to choose to follow the white rabbit once more. And if Thomas…Neo…has learned anything, it is that choice, while an illusion, is still the only way out of—or into—the Matrix. Of course, Neo already knows what he must do. But what he doesn’t yet know is that the Matrix is stronger, more secure and more dangerous than ever before. Déjà vu.
Keanu Reeves reprises the dual roles of Thomas Anderson/Neo, the man once saved from the Matrix to become the saviour of humankind, who will once again have to choose which path to follow.
Neo is back as Thomas Anderson, a video game developer who came up with The Matrix and its sequel games, all of which were a big hit for parent company Deus Ex Machina. However, he senses something is not right — though his therapist tries to convince him otherwise — and his feelings are validated when Bugs, a captain who escaped the Matrix thanks to seeing Neo’s true form, rescues him from his alternate reality. Neo joins the fight in freeing other humans trapped within the Matrix, including Trinity, while he also learns how and why he was brought back to life following the ending of The Matrix Revolutions.
Moss portrays the iconic warrior Trinity… or is she Tiffany, a suburban wife and mother of three with a penchant for superpowered motorcycles?
Yahya Abdul-Mateen II [Candyman (2021), the Aquaman (2018-2022) franchise] plays the wise and worldly Morpheus who, as always, serves as a guide to Neo while also fulfilling his own greater purpose on a very singular journey of self-discovery.
Jessica Henwick [TV’s Iron Fist, (2017-2018), Star Wars: Episode VII – The Force Awakens (2015)] plays the hacker Bugs, the proverbial white rabbit on a mission to discover the one who sacrificed himself for humankind–and willing to take any risk necessary in search of the legend she idolizes.
Jonathan Groff [Hamilton (2020) Netflix’s Mindhunter (2017-2019)], plays Thomas Anderson’s business partner, a slick, confident corporate type with insouciant charm, a disarming smile and an eye on the bottom line.
Neil Patrick Harris [Gone Girl (2014)] plays Thomas’s therapist, working closely with his patient to understand the meaning behind his dreams and to distinguish them from reality.
Priyanka Chopra Jonas [TV’s Quantico (2015-2018)] plays a young woman with a wisdom that belies her years and an ability to see the truth, no matter how murky the waters.
Jada Pinkett Smith [Angel Has Fallen (2019), TV’s Gotham (2014-2017)] returns as Niobe, the fierce General who once fought for the survival of Zion and who now sees to the welfare of her people with a familiar fire in her eyes, despite a sense of disbelief and suspicion upon Neo’s return.
Lana Wachowski directed from a screenplay by Wachowski & David Mitchell & Aleksandar Hemon, based on characters created by The Wachowskis.
Wachowski’s creative team behind the scenes included “Sense8” collaborators: directors of photography Daniele Massaccesi and John Toll, production designers Hugh Bateup and Peter Walpole, editor Joseph Jett Sally, costume designer Lindsay Pugh, visual effects supervisor Dan Glass, and composers Johnny Klimek and Tom Tykwer.
It’s been over twenty years since The Matrix first appeared in 1999 and broke new ground in film making with its bullet time, pinwheeling wire-fu action scenes, big ideas and dense, multi-layered plotting. The Matrix Resurrections is the fourth instalment in the The Matrix franchise to take us on another adventure in the virtual reality world. While some critics have praised this sequel for its ambition and romance, others are not so keen about its lack of originality and excess of nostalgia. Even the meta commentary in Resurrections which has continuous nods (and flashbacks) to the original, is not quite a reboot nor a sequel, but something else altogether, which has been criticized by some as being a replacement for a deeper analysis of the franchise overall.
Lana Wachowski expands on the mythology, history and technology of The Matrix and the exposition behind Neo and Trinity’s survival when they had both died in Revolutions is necessary to the story in Resurrections.
“My dad died, then this friend died, then my mom died. I didn’t really know how to process that kind of grief. I hadn’t experienced it that closely…..
You know their lives are going to end and yet it was still really hard. My brain has
always reached into my imagination and one night, I was crying and I couldn’t sleep, and my brain exploded this whole story. And I couldn’t have my mom and dad, yet suddenly I had Neo and Trinity, arguably the two most important characters in my life. It was immediately comforting to have these two characters alive again, and it’s super simple. You can look at it and say: ‘Okay, these two people die and okay,
bring these two people back to life and oh, doesn’t that feel good?’ Yeah, it did! It’s
simple, and this is what art does and that’s what stories do, they comfort us.”
(Lana Wachowski)
The big questions and themes in the film about reality, tech and existence are both timeless and timely. Red Pill? Blue Pill? If there is a choice fans will debate…
In cinemas
Images courtesy of: Warners Bros Pictures
