‘The Matrix Resurrections’ ⭐️⭐️⭐️1/2: I’m going to have to do some thinking and reading on this one, and possibly re-watch it at some point. I very much enjoyed the first half, with all the de-/re-construction of the original trilogy. The action in the latter half could probably have been cut down a good chunk, it rather dragged on, and I’ll admit to being confused about just what was going on and why (Neo and Trinity are…super-batteries? But only when connected in parallel? Something?). But my first impression is that while it doesn’t reach the heights of the first, there was more about it that I liked than that didn’t work for me.
The Matrix
The Matrix Resurrections: Why the Matrix movies never stopped being relevant:
The Matrix has a complicated legacy. It’s probably the most influential American movie since Star Wars came out in 1977 (and it is now almost exactly as old as Star Wars was when The Matrix came out), and it’s by far the most popular piece of art created by trans people. But its sequels were divisive, and its ideas about questioning reality have influenced political reactionaries in dangerous ways. Now, with a fourth film in the series coming out on December 22, it’s time to go back … back to the Matrix, across five eras of the franchise’s history.
This is really clever, and I’m totally on board: What if every film Keanu Reeves has starred in is actually just Neo in another iteration of the Matrix?
The Moment The Matrix Changed Everything: I saw The Matrix in a theater, not the slapdash college presentation from this article, but the audience reactions weren’t all that dissimilar. Seeing that film in the theater early in its run really was a singular experience.
Linkdump for September 3rd through September 23rd
Sometime between September 3rd and September 23rd, I thought this stuff was interesting. You might think so too!
- The truth about false rape accusations: “Critics argue that reports of rape should be treated with more caution, since men’s lives are so often ruined by women’s malicious lies. But…every part of this narrative is wrong. What’s more, it’s wrong in ways that help real rapists escape justice, while perversely making it more likely that we will miss the signs of false reports.”
- Does the OK Sign Actually Signify “White Power,” or What?: "The answer is neither simple nor straightforward, which is why it’s such an effective trolling tactic."
- “Oh my god. If i see one more of these ‘India legalizing gay sex = India decolonizing’ posts in my dash I will murder someone.”: Interesting look at homosexuality and gender nonconformance in India in the light of the recent ruling decriminalizing homosexuality and some unfortunate and ill-informed reactions from Western liberals.
- Forget the new iPhones, Apple’s best product is now privacy: “I now believe the best product Apple offers is intangible, yet far more valuable than a flagship smartphone. The best product Apple has–and the single biggest reason that consumers should choose an Apple device over competing devices–is privacy.”
- The Matrix as a Transgender Coming Out Story: This theory/reading/interpretation is apparently a few years old, but it’s the first time I’ve come across it. Fascinating, and worth thinking about.
Fanfic
There’s a short article in Wired today about fanfic, with one bit that jumped out at me…
As befits its beginnings, the genre is planted firmly in pop culture’s nerd division. The films most often given the fanfic treatment – The Matrix, X-Men, and Pirates of the Caribbean – wing straight out of dork central.
Well, chalk me up as a pop-culture nerd living in dork central, as my one — and so far, my only — foray into fanfic so far has been a short piece called ‘Glitch‘…and yes, it’s Matrix-derived.
“This is useless, we’re wasting our time here. Let’s go.” I stood up, letting my chair roll back a couple feet behind me. “Dan?” Dan looked up at me, then nodded, getting up from his chair too.
“I don’t think leaving will be quite as easy as you expect,” said our host. He reached out and pressed the button on his intercom. “Could you come in now, please? We’re having some…difficulties…in our negotiations.” The door to the conference room opened, and the two thugs that had ushered us upstairs came in and took positions in front of the door.
Dan glanced at me and rolled his eyes, then shrugged. We’d had to fight our way out of rooms before — it’s not our preferred exit strategy, but sometimes there just isn’t an option. “You know this is pointless, Rourke,” I said. “You can’t hold us here indefinitely. Even if you tried, we’d already called in to the precinct before coming in here, so when we don’t report in, more police will be on the way.”
Rourke leaned back in his chair, tapping the table with his pen. “Maybe,” he said, “but you don’t play this game as long as I have without taking a few risks when necessary. We have a little time, at least, before your superiors start to get restless. So may I suggest, gentlemen,” — the pen stopped tapping as he leaned forward again — “that you sit back down.”
Okay, while it’s not likely to win any awards, it’s not too shabby, either. Feel free to give it a look if you haven’t seen it before.
Matrix/Web
This is cute — an introduction to CSS-based website design, Matrix style.
Let me tell you why you’re here. You’re here because you know something. What you know you can’t explain but you feel it, that there’s something wrong with the web. You don’t know what it is but it’s there like a splinter in your mind driving you mad.
You can see it when you look out your browser window or when you turn on your web tv. You can feel it when you go to work, when you go to church, when you pay your taxes.
This is the web that you know. The web as it was at the end of the twentieth century.
This is the web as it exists today…
(via WebGraphics)
The Animatrix
I got woken up this morning at 9am (thankfully, only half an hour before my alarm usually starts blaring) by the door buzzer. “Package for ya.” Rock on. Hauled myself out of bed, tossed on clothes, and stumbled downstairs.
End result — thanks to Amazon, I’ve got my copy of The Animatrix one day before its official street date. As long as I was awake, and didn’t have to actually wander out to my bus stop until around noon, I popped in the disc.
Very, very cool.
The Animatrix (just in case you didn’t catch my earlier posts) is a collection of nine animated short subjects expanding the universe portrayed in the Matrix films.
My favorite two episodes are Final Flight of the Osiris (incredible near photorealistic animation from the team behind Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within, and the sexiest sword fight I’ve ever seen) and Beyond (nice animation, and a quietly magical story).
Licence plates in The Matrix
The discussion thread regarding Matrix: Revolutions on the Home Theater Forum is turning up all sorts of interesting tidbits, including the fact that all the licence plates seem to be biblical quotes!
The Twins’ truck on the freeway: DE2852. Deutronomy 28:52 — “They shall besiege you in all your towns, until your high and fortified walls, in which you trusted, come down throughout all your land. And they shall besiege you in all your towns throughout all your land, which the LORD your God has given you.”
Trinity and Morephus’ Cadillac on the freeway: DA203. Daniel 2:03 — “I have had a dream that troubles me and I want to know what it means.”
Agent Smith’s Audi at the beginning: IS5416. Isaiah 54:16 — “Behold, I have created the smith that bloweth the coals in the fire, and that bringeth forth an instrument for his work; and I have created the waster to destroy.”
