Unfinished business

The Matrix creates (at the time) the refreshingly innovative idea of not only an alternate reality, but also questions what makes ‘reality’ real. It brings a world full of cohesive, and at the time, brand new technology to the table.  Throughout the film, The Matrix raises many questions, but gives little answers. From the beginning, the audiences is given little context, and less background about our protagonists. Introductions are made, but characterization is far from being given. Most of the dialogue in the beginning of the story centers on Neo being told of this faceless prophet. Neo is given hints at reality, but is never given any real explanations before he makes his life-altering decision. Slowly but surely, bits and pieces of reality are revealed to us, creating a general picture of the real world and the Matrix. The clearest distinction made is the distinction between reality, a post-apocalyptic world where artificial intelligence has enslaved humanity, and the Matrix, the artificial reality that the enslaved mind has been born believing in. With the creation of these two worlds, the more Neo discovers about the state of the world and himself, the more the audience is left wondering about the future and how they will change in relation to each other.

 

One of the major elements of the film that contributes to The Matrix’s momentum and intrigue is technology. At that time, the internet had just gained worldwide usage, though it was still a relatively new concept. Many people were still getting used to the idea of the ‘world wide web’ and software technology. The Matrix took this relatively new concept and expanded it to new proportions. Not only is the internet and intelligent technology present, but it dominates society. These ideas challenged everything we knew to be true, and created a need to pursue this technology driven society. Within the computer-generated world, characters are able to ‘download’ new skills into their virtual selves, and transport back into reality by picking up a phonecall. Within their reality, the rebels are able to hack into the computer mainframe, fly a war hovercraft, and use an electromagnetic pulse device to fight off the machines. These new technologies help fuel our need for answers for questions within the film, and for our curiosities regarding the future.

 

Another element adding to the mystique is the overall aesthetic of the characters. In the Matrix, the rebels are dressed in sleek all black skin-tight clothing distinguishing them from the attire of the people still trapped in the virtual world. They don dark, (Morpheus is the only one who wears reflective glasses without temples) almost sporty sunglasses, hiding their eyes as well as their emotions. The sunglasses are not present when they return to reality, where their true selves and emotions reside. While their attire is dark and polished, it draws much attention. They are both subtle and striking at the same time, drawing the audience’s attention and creating a desire to access their concealed emotion.

Some of the biggest questions raised revolve around Neo’s assumption (or rejection) of the role of ‘The One’, leader of the rebellion and savior of mankind. Morpheus hints at importance of Neo’s presence within their group early on, but for most of his time spent in the real world, he doesn’t believe Morpheus’s prophecy. He only fully realizes the extent of Morpheus’s belief when the oracle tells him of the choice he has to make, as well as the consequences of his decision. Questions are consistently being raised—Who is Morpheus really? Will we get a more in-depth look at this AI regime? Where is Zion, and how much of mankind remains? What does survival without earth’s resources look like? Finally, the huge question—will Neo end the rule of AI and liberate mankind? The film does a remarkable job of hinting at these questions/potential problems, and skillfully evades answering them. This system of lingering curiousity and doubt creates a slow thirst for resolutions—a thirst that only a sequel can quench.

 

 

 

The “Oliver Twist” Complex

The Wachowski Brothers’ 1999 film The Matrix creates a world in which the characters, and as a result the audience, are left wanting more. Besides the unresolved ending in which Neo realizes his true potential and becomes a master of the matrix without having truly defeated the film’s antagonist, this film has a great deal to do with American capitalist ideology. Specifically, the world of the Matrix is one of a mindless populous subjected to a reality that mimics our own (the audience’s), without actually having been created by humans. This means essentially that even our robotic overlords could not create a utopian world in which humans could happily live. Instead, the only world in which the human slaves could survive in was the one we truly live in– an unequal, capitalist-driven society. Neo, for example, finds himself making a living in an office in some unnamed metropolis, getting yelled at by his boss and working in a cubical from 9 to 5 as “Mr. Anderson.”

The only thing that differentiates Neo from others in this false existence is his interest in the Matrix and Morphius, allowing him to become a part of the larger plan to overthrow the robots and save the human race. The way in which Neo lives his life says a great deal about the longevity of the series, going along with the idea that Neo, like the films themselves, has a constant need for more information beyond the 9 to 5 existence he finds himself in. This causes the audience to consider their own existence; they want Neo to find information as badly as he does, and the fact that his false, Matrix-based life mirrors their own causes a minor existential crisis that is similar to Neo’s. In essence, the audience considers their own existence and the doubt of the reality of it crosses their minds. When Neo is able to escape, then masters the rules of the Matrix, the audience wants him to succeed primarily because of their own need for answers. In a way, the first Matrix film allows for the audience and Neo to become narratively intertwined, making his search for answers the audience’s search for answers, his successes their successes, and his failures the audience’s own failures. Because Neo’s false reality within the Matrix so closely resembles the audience’s true reality, it becomes a parallel that the audience (and the writer of the film) needs to see through to the end. Just as Neo has a need for “more,” so too do the viewers. The real world outside of the Matrix to which Morphius brings Neo also says a great deal about the desire for more, given that in reality, these people do not actually want for much.

Their existence is a simple one, likely due to the circumstances they find themselves in. As a result, the audience sees the real world and the characters in it as deprived of a good life, unlike those in the Matrix. However, it could be argued that those in the Matrix are the ones deprived of life, and the fact that they have more than those in the real world only causes them to become less free and actually have less. This is an interesting commentary on the idea of wanting more, and would certainly call for more sequels. Subconsciously, the characters’ need for a world of more than what they are given is, in the audience’s mind, the same as the need for a continuation of this fictional world in the form of sequels. Even without the cliff-hanger ending, this film begs for more– more answers, more information, and a validation of the world we truly live in.

The Matrix: There Is No Spoon

The Matrix, written and directed by the Wachowski brothers, created such a world that warranted for sequels, games, more for the audience to explore. This was done by combining certain narrative and visual elements that challenge the audience’s understanding of what is reality and what is the Matrix within the world of this film, which encourages a further investigation of its alternate reality. Starting with one of the most famous scenes, that of Morpheus offering Neo the chance to escape the Matrix and learn the reality of what he is actually living in, or stay in this computer-generated, predetermined world of the Matrix. This scene is loaded with visual and narrative devices that set up this opposition of worlds. Visually, this scene, along with much of the movie, holds an emphasis of screens, mirrors, or reflective surfaces like sunglasses. When Morpheus offers Neo this choice, the red and blue pills are reflected in his sunglasses, alluding to the theme of dual, opposing realities.

For Neo, this is a choice of free will versus fate; it is an abandonment of traditional ideology that our world is one of free will. Of course, he chooses a life of free will, so when he takes the pill and joins reality, there is a moment where he looks at himself in a broken mirror, which he then touches and it begins to overtake him, symbolizing his switch into reality.  Neo, along with the audience, begins to discover who he is, what his world is, and what it is not.

Neo again deals with this issue of fate versus free will when Morpheus sends him to an Oracle to “guide” him. Before he he meets with her, Neo meets another prophesied “The One”, a child monk who is mentally bending spoons. Neo tries and fails to bend the spoon, to which the child says that he must think “There is no spoon”. This beat is super important for building the world of the Matrix. It reinforces the idea that nothing is real in the Matrix; it is all computer generated, fabricated, and fixed. When Neo accepts this idea, he realizes that it is not the spoon that must change, it is him. He can control the world of the Matrix by changing himself, knowing what is real and what he is capable of rather than simply believing what he is provided through sensory perception. The audience is discovering the Matrix alongside Neo, so not only is Neo’s world being constantly challenged in what is real and what is fabricated, but the audience is forced to ask these same questions as well.

Once Neo finally meets with the Oracle, she asks Neo if he believes he is “The One” to which he responds no. The Oracle agrees and does not explicitly say whether he is “The One” or not, but she does flirt around the idea, saying that he is waiting for something, but he does have it within him. The exchanges in this scene follow the Oracle in dancing around the idea of Neo’s free will within the Matrix. The Oracle agrees that he is not “The One” because he explicitly says he is not. However, later in the film, Neo faces a choice in which he chooses to believe he is “The One”, and thus becomes it. Although this seems like his choice, this foretelling of fate from the Oracle is reminiscent of another exchange from their first encounter in which the Oracle predicts Neo will break her vase, but only does so as soon as she calls attention to the vase. So the audience, along with Neo, is left wondering can the Oracle determine fate or read the future? Or does she simply guide Neo by planting ideas into his head? This scene is huge in withholding information about the vague laws within the matrix, providing only hints to what is happening, keeping it a mystery to the audience and Neo, even though the Matrix was for a long time, all he knew. It is this reversal of knowledge that builds the audience’s interest in removing the metaphorical blindfold, or in this case, sunglasses.

The visual style of this film is unique in the way it separates its two realities. Obviously the Matrix is set within the green tinted scenes, alluding to it being in a computer screen driven world. The sleek, sexy, cyberpunk outfits with sunglasses that the protagonist and allies wear within the Matrix are also important to the distinctive visual style because of what it adds to not only the more action driven, kung-fu nature of that realm, but it also builds on the narrative idea of the Matrix in that it shows the characters as they want to be seen. Rather than being dressed in rags in the real world, the characters control how they wish to be perceived and essentially get to remake themselves in this computer world, again blurring the lines of what they have control over and what they do not.

Other visual elements that are unique to The Matrix include the recurring image of a grid system, like that of Neo’s workplace in the beginning of the film and the constant grid of numbers on computer screens.

Another, almost revolutionary, visual aspect of the film is the “bullet time” effect of slowing down the action and dollying the camera around a character. This only happens within the world of the Matrix so in a way, it allows the audience to believe they, too, are within the Matrix and are able to cheat natural laws like that of time and space. It truly forces the audience into the space and the world of this film, manipulating conventional ways of watching and perceiving, and blurring lines of reality.

The Matrix was an incredibly significant film within the science fiction genre and managed to create a franchise of sequels, games, comic books, and toys, out of this other world. It is through its narrative design and withholding of explicit explanations of the matrix, as well as its unique visual style that captured its audiences’ imaginations and warranted a billion dollar franchise.

The Matrix(1999)

The Matrix(1999) was a huge deal. I was only 3 years old when it was released, but I remember how excited my brother and Dad were to go see it.  The film follows a very appealing 3 act structure that raises many questions. In the first act, the audience immediately wants to know who this woman is that can escape from a dozen policeman plus these ‘special agent guys’. And even more so, how did she disappear from the phone booth that one of the special agents drove into? Viewers are immediately thrown into confusion. Are there two different worlds? Why is his computer talking to him? Why are they looking for this programmer/hacker known as Tom Anderson? The audience wants answers, which entices them to keep watching. The Wachowski brothers purposefully continue this feeling of necessity to know more through what seems to be an abnormally long and atypical first act. We learn Mr. Anderson alternate identity as a hacker, but other than that, the audience does not know much about him or the plot in general. The film doesn’t even come across as a science fiction at first. Act 1 seems to function more like a lengthy prologue before the movie can truly start. The action finally takes a turn when the catalyst happens: Neo decides to take the red pill.

In the second act, explanations for all the questions raised in the first act are answered. The audience is given insight to the two different worlds as it is explained to Neo. Now we start getting into the sci-fi genre that rings true to the reputation of the film. We learn that for Morpheus and his crew, no practice is needed to learn skill no one needs to practice when it comes to skills. Like when Neo learned ju-jitsu; just a click of a button imports the skills necessary for Neo to perform and fight against Morpheus. We experience this later when Trinity instantly learns how to pilot a helicopter. We also learn that, “The body cannot live without the mind”. So if they die in the Matrix, they die in reality. This creates tension and heightens the stakes for any scene that happens in the Matrix. The third foreshadowing we learn of is the disloyalty of Cypher and his deal with Agent Smith. Throughout the ups and downs in action of the second act, the central question of the film is raised: is Neo the one? Neo is forced to make a second, plot-altering decision: save, or kill Morpheus. This decision points the action out of the second act, and toward the climax.

The climax does what it’s supposed to do, answers the central question with yes. Neo is the one. Initially, I don’t believe the Wachowski brothers meant for this movie to be a sequel. They successfully satisfied the audience when Neo realizes his power and defeats the agents. However, now that man and machine are on an equal playing field, there is finally an opportunity for resolution. The Matrix can be destroyed, which is the plight of Morpheus and his crew. Now that the power is equalized, the resolution can easily be reached through sequels and further satisfy the audience. [And make a lot more money]

“As Long as the Matrix Exists, Humans Will Never be Free”

The Matrix has widely been considered one of the greatest science-fiction action films of its generation. The film itself grossed over $400 million in the box-office, and, has since then, become a franchise producing two sequels to the original film, an anime series, three video games, and a comic book set. The franchise as a whole, has grossed over $1.6 billion. In addition to its apparent monetary success, The Matrix and its following sequels have received many awards and nominations for its cinematography, visual effects, direction, acting, and more. However, it is the The Matrix that set the precedent for the success of the franchise with its narrative and visual effects.

Narratively, the Matrix appeals to its audience for several reasons. The film’s three-act structure prompts the audience to continually ask questions both throughout the film and beyond the film. Right from the opening image, the audience hears a telephone conversation between two characters talking about “The One.” Who is the One? Why are they watching him? Why is he important to both the film’s plot, and to a character named Morpheus? Why are the characters concerned about a secure line? These are just some examples of the questions that are meant to drive the audience to think about the direction and central question of the story. As the film progresses, all of those questions are answered. Neo (aka Thomas Anderson) is a computer programmer who lives a seemingly average life in which he feels out of place. Thus, he searches for Morpheus, the Matrix, and the Truth. Conversely, Morpheus searches for Neo because he believes that Neo (aka Thomas Anderson) is “the One.” It is Morpheus who offers Neo a way to learn the Truth about reality by taking the red pill as oppose to the blue pill. Again, questions arise and are answered. Throughout the film, the audience is forced to question whether Neo is “the One,” and at the climax, it is positively confirmed that he is. But that is not the reason why this film pioneered a whole franchise.

This film, specifically, introduces the audience to the Matrix. It establishes a foundation for the sequels by initiating this central theme of continually searching for freedom in the Truth. Again, the audience knows that Neo is the one; they know that Trinity and Neo are supposed to be together; they know that Zion is the only remaining Human refuge left in the real world; and they know that the Matrix still exists, which means that those in the Matrix are still not free. Thus, at the end of the film, the audience is left wondering how Neo, Trinity, Morpheus, and Tank are essentially going to free Mankind from the Matrix.

Visually (as well as more explicitly), The Matrix leaves the audience wanting more. As classified in the introductory paragraph, The Matrix can, and should be, considered a science-fiction action film. The choreography of the action scenes is largely inspired by various Martial Arts practices, including Kung Fu. Additionally, the action is grand and fast paced. From characters jumping rooftops to Keanu Reeves and Carrie Ann-Moss blowing a whole building up with an innumerable number of guns to Keanu Reeves dodging and stopping bullets, the movie is evidently action-packed. In fact, The Matrix was responsible for popularizing the “bullet time” effect, which heightens the perception of certain characters by allowing the action within a shot to progress in slow motion while the camera’s viewpoint appears to move through the scene at normal speed. Furthermore, the character’s costumes add to the film’s visual aesthetic and significance. The all black leather outfits that Neo, Trinity, and Morpheus in action scenes are more than visually appealing, and the sunglasses they wear are iconic to the franchise. Additionally, the costumes allow the audience to clearly distinguish between reality and the matrix while following the film’s narrative. The smiths are easily identifiable by their uniform suits, everyone in the Matrix wears clothes familiar to what the audience knows, and the clothes worn inside the ship are also distinctive in appearance and texture.

The narrative and the aesthetic of The Matrix, as well as the component of Artificial Intelligence and technology all play a major role in the Matrix franchise’s success. Even though any piece of work has room for improvement, The Matrix was exceptionally entertaining. It is barely any wonder why audiences wanted more, and that the franchise became the success that it did.

What’s Next for The Matrix?

One of the major sources of revenue for production companies is the creation and distribution of sequels. Action films like Marvel’s Avengers are able to capitalize on the beloved tale of super heroes fighting the next new villain that surfaces. Each of the films has something in common, spectacle and a plotline that can be done and redone with the insertion of a new antagonist. The Wachowski Brother’s film, The Matrix, has similar ability to be stretched through multiple films.

To start, the film The Matrix toys with the concept of jumping between reality and the unknown. In this case the unknown is the alternate reality that the A.I. robots have created for the humans. The story of The Matrix can potentially continue to push the boundaries of what is reality and what Is the false reality that the humans believe they are living in. The Matrix introduces movement and travel through the alternate realities in a unique and intriguing way. The audience is awed by the character’s ability to move through space by simply answering a phone call. Along with the ability to move through both realities is the potential to be one’s best self in the conceptualized world of the robots. The characters are able to dress and appear in any form that they would like. Changing hair and clothing to become sleek and rebellious. The characters are also able to learn impressive martial arts skills and the ability to fly a helicopter within seconds.

The character’s ability to fight is one of the most intriguing spectacles within The Matrix world. For the first time audiences see a new way to watch action. The “bullet time” effect was first introduced in The Matrix and gives it it’s signature look. In the fight scenes we see characters and their weapons move in slow motion and from multiple angles. The Matrix fight scenes are what set this franchise apart from other sci-fi films. This unique style is interesting and rewarding to audiences and leaves them wanting more. Audiences may long for more of The Matrix not only because of its spectacle but its relatable narrative.

Relatable not because we are actually living in the Matrix, but because we also long to create our best selves and we also fear an overbearing police state. Through out the film we see the agent robots morph into and take control of police officers and swat team members. The officers represent the power of the government and it might make audiences feel uncomfortable to see our suspected protectors as villains chasing after the heroic protagonist. This unease creates a longing for a resolve in how Neo and the gang might lead the humans to prevail. Another facet of the relatable narrative is Neo himself. The character of Neo is an (mostly) average Joe who has a “feeling” that something just isn’t right in the world. Neo’s accessibility makes it easy for audience members, especially young boys, to wonder if they too could be “the one.”

Besides the obvious wonder of whether or not the humans will escape the grasp of the robots, there are narrative links that could be furthered within the film. Viewers have little to no concept of what Zion might be like. The Matrix franchise could easily be continued through explaining what takes place in this mysterious city. The audience also did not get a perfectly clear vision of how the Earth became what it is in present day. The Matrix could potentially make an origin story for all of the chaos.

Overall, the visual style and narrative links create the potential for more from the The Matrix franchise. The toys, games, and merchandise for the movie can all be explained by the longing of audiences to embody the main characters. The main characters are trendy (for the 90’s) and capable of acquiring endless skills. Who wouldn’t want to have endless abilities and rock an all black trench coat?

The War Isn’t Over

The Matrix came out in 1999, and since it’s release, the film franchise has released two sequels, video games, toys, and much more surrounding the world The Wachowski Brothers created. The Matrix left audiences wanting more for several reasons: the set up for Zion, Neo’s evolution, and the film’s lack of an overall victor. It’s because of these narrative and visual elements that producers met the needs of viewers.

Through out the film, the audience is told about the real world and the city of Zion. We are introduced to two characters, Tank and Dozer, from Zion. Through these two characters, we are told about Zion, but we never go to Zion.

We also are told about the real world, and see virtual simulations of the real world; however the only actual glimpses of the real world we get are within human farm and within Morphious’ ship.

Morphious brings up earlier, “no one can be told what the matrix is; they have to see it.” This same concept can be applied to narratives. You can tell someone what is happening or what something is, but audiences rather see it. Showing is stronger than telling, so in the case of The Matrix, audiences’ are left desiring to see Zion and the rest of reality since we are only told about it.

Audiences also want to see more of The Matrix because the narrative is told primarily as Neo’s backstory. We are introduced to Neo when he is still an average person but also right when he is about to be pulled into reality, so the film is set up to be his backstory. The film also uses montages to condense Neo’s training so we see his development from average man to sci-fi hero. Even the evolution of Neo’s costume from ordinary clothes to rags to sleek, sexy, pleather clothes gives us visual cues of his progression to becoming the one.

These visual and narrative elements of the film all play a part in Neo’s evolution, and they further affirm my claim that The Matrix is back-story for a greater plot that will be centered on Neo. Because this film comes off as a backstory film, audience expect there to be a follow up for what happens after Neo becomes The One.

While the film does show Neo as The One and what happens when he is The One, it isn’t until the very end of the film. At the climax of the film, the film answers the central question: “is Neo The One?” It shows Neo can stop bullets, penetrate the Smiths, see codes, and fly, but each of these actions is brief.

Audiences have come to expect spectacle from films, and while the film in its entirety provides plenty of spectacle, condescending Neo’s new found ability in a time frame of minutes causes viewers to want more and question what else he can do.

Finally, the film itself does not have a true victor. While Trinity and Neo save Morphious and defeat the several Smiths after them, they have not defeated the Matrix itself. Through out the narrative we are told that Morphious and rebels’ driving force is to free humanity. The Smiths and the A.I.’s driving force are to exploit the humans for an energy source. Given that there these two motive conflict with one another, it is expected that there would be some sort of battle between the A.I. and the rebels; however, the central conflict focuses on Neo and Trinity rescuing Morphious from a handful of the Smiths. This film felt like a battle in a greater war that has yet to be won.

While the central question of the film was not “will humanity beat the A.I,” it was still a question present in the film. This question was never answered, but with how the film ended, it felt like that question will be answered at some point. Again, because we do not find out whether humanity will come out on top, the film feels like it lacks a victor in the overall world The Wachowski Brothers have created.

Technically speaking, The Matrix could be a stand-alone film. However, the way the narrative and visual elements are in the film, The Matrix implies there is more to this world than what we see in the first film. The Matrix sets up worlds we have not visually explored, so audiences are left desiring to see these worlds. It also explores Neo’s evolution, but because of the focus on developing Neo as The One, audiences only get a glimpse at what he can do as The One, so audiences want to see more from him. Finally, while the film answers the central question, it implies the conflict of this film is only a part of a bigger, unresolved conflict.

The Case for Sequels

With The Matrix, the Wachowskis created a deeply complex and endless-seeming world that is entirely open to revisitation. The Matrix is engaging to audiences not only for the fight scenes or for its classic narrative, but also because the Wachowskis crafted a compelling and engaging world. The fundamental world-building process inherent to most science fiction movies benefitted the The Matrix because its world was not fully realized by the end of the movie. The film offers itself up for sequels by telling a captivating story, teasing viewers about the scope of its world, and intentionally weaving threads of future importance into its narrative.

There is a lot going on in The Matrix, to say the least. Yet at the same time, it’s the typical story of the hero refusing the call and then actually going for it and ultimately succeeding. In fact, Neo’s character arc matches up nearly perfectly to the “hero’s journey” as theorized by Joseph Campbell. The point is that for all of the complication, nuance, and philosophizing found in this film, it remains very accessible and straight forward. It’s really just about one guy “beginning to believe,” as Morpheus would have it. It’s about the underdog taking on the system, and at the end of the movie, the audience has been given a satisfying taste but is still hungry for more. And thats part of the reason why The Matrix: Reloaded  made $742 mil at the global box office; audiences were eager for more.

Where does it end?

The imagery in the film almost insists upon further exploration. The above image stuck out for me as it evokes a sense of endlessness. Viewers are logically inclined to seek physical approximations, and when the film makers don’t provide concrete answers to about the exact size or boundaries of a space, we are left wanting more. We don’t even see the ground in this image, let alone the surrounding area, or a city-scape-type view, and we are left to fill in the gaps ourselves. This works on multiple levels because it asks the viewers to think more about the world of The Matrix while also leaving the potential for the film makers to explore the world in further adventures. 

Another great case for sequels comes from Agent Smith’s speech to Morpheus after his capture. This is a great soliloquy not only for Smith’s musings on humanity’s virus-like nature, but because it foreshadows Smith’s direction in future movies. The Wachowskis allow the viewer into the head space of the villain and build his motives for his own (ironically virus-like) replication and escape from the Matrix in the sequels. At once the film’s villain is humanized by making him also want to escape a hostile environment and also made more loathsome because he is diametrically opposed to the existence of us, humans. The film makers cleverly set up Smith’s escape later when they have Neo seemingly destroy him in the finale, but thankfully they leave this thread untouched during the denouement. Since The Wachowskis have built this world, they define its rules. So in the same way that Neo returned from the dead, Smith has the possibility of revival (and coming back even stronger) when the world is revisited.

The Matrix creates avenues for sequels both explicitly, as with Smith’s desire for freedom, and implicitly through the use of imagery that asks questions about the world. Viewers wanted more after The Matrix because it offered a glimpse at an impossibly large world with insane and enticing qualities. The parallel worlds of The Matrix also offer themselves up to further world building on two different platforms. Zion, in the real world, is a destination that is teased to the audience, and the Matrix, seemingly the size of our real world, is equally available to be explored. Viewers came back for the sequels because The Matrix introduced them to an entertaining world that did not attempt to contain itself.

If he can fly, do you think he can go to space? Does the matrix render the whole universe? THINK OF THE POSIBILITIES

The Matrix does a phenomenal job of telling a coherent, self contained story, while at the same time building a world where many questions are yet to be answered. It is in the brilliance of its world building that The Matrix sequels are allowed to exist without deteriorating from the original’s narrative cohesiveness. I will avoid speaking of the unfinished main plot (neo liberating mankind) as the reason why there must be sequels, because its obviousness needs little support.

The larger part of what we see in the movie happens inside of the matrix, a world mostly the same as the one we live in today. We learn very early on though, that because this world is a simulation, it is possible to break or bend the fundamental laws that rule its mundanity. This is the way in which the movie explains the incredible feats of strength and speed that the protagonists and antagonist perform. Throughout the film we see characters jump incredible lengths, fight at amazing speeds and suffer ridiculous amounts of damage. What allows the possibility of sequels in The Matrix universe is that at the end of the film we learn this is only the beginning of what the characters are able to do. Once Neo accepts that he is the One he is able to stop bullets mid air, fuse himself with others to destroy them from within, and even fly. How far does Neo’s power extend? We are left with this question at the end of the film, and with more of the main plot to explore, The Matrix becomes a sandbox of marvelous, unrestricted spectacle. How could you not ask for more?

Spending most of our time inside the matrix means there is a whole different world to explore outside of it. Morpheus explains to Neo that they live in a dystopic future where, after singularity, machines have overthrown mankind and now use them to farm energy. We are shown glimpses of the ruined city, scorched sky, and the human farmland. Tank later tell Neo that there still exists a human city buried deep underground called Zion. He talks of a revolutionary group, other hover ships with other captains, and the resilience of mankind. Yet, our characters are never outside of Morpheus’ ship. We want to explore the dystopia that gives birth to the matrix because it is described to us richly, yet seldomly. The movie relies on this enigmatic setting to explain its present, and in doing so, it builds a world its audience craves to know. How is the city of Zion going to react to the one, how will machines react too? These questions aren’t explicitly asked during the movie, but they give the audience something to imagine as they wait for a sequel.

Add to this the mysterious mythological existence of the oracle, agent smith’s obvious separation from the rest of the machines and his goal to exit the matrix, and a largely unexplored romance between Trinity and Neo, and you’ve got yourself a recipe for sequels with no need of cliffhanger endings.

Is this wonderland?

The matrix provokes the audience through its narrative and visual elements to immerse the audience into their very own rabbit hole. The audience is directly submerged into the story of the matrix because “the matrix” is supposedly what we’re currently living. The audience is then lead to blur the line between virtual vs reality through out the movie. Worlds juxtaposed by technology becoming artifical intelligence may frighten many but this fear alone hooks us people in wanting more. The tension and relevance of this movie all appeal to the audience to keep them fascinated by the notion that anything is possible With the idea of the red and blue pills, computer grid and Neo as the second Jesus create an implicit desire for more development and understanding of this never ending story.

In the scene where Neo is given the choice between the red pill or the blue pill a ultimate sacrifice is made. As the red and blue pills are reflected in Neo’s glasses, the audience is led to reflect within themselves to ask which pill would they choose. If you take the red pill you would have to face the truth of reality. If you take the blue pill you could stay in “wonderland”  and live in blissful ignorance. Although it is clear that Neo would take the red pill because of the matrix plot, we can’t help but wonder what would happen in Neo chose the blue pill instead. The blue and red pill open the window for many possibilites for sequels to explore further.

For the opening image we are introduced to the green, vertically linear numbers that end in the title. Next we see a blinking green dot on an otherwise black, blank computer screen and then typing. As the camera comes increasingly closer and closer to the screen, all of a sudden it speeds up and we move through the computer screen, with and beyond the numbers. As the audience soon finds out as the story develops is that the this opening image is the computer grid. The computer grid is a reoccurent image that has a “looking through the rabbit hole” that is the audience’s direct view into the matrix. This doubling of reality through the computer screen is an interesting concept that can be marketed in more movies as well as video games.

Neo is referred to as the Chosen One, the reluctant hero, the savior, and the one who will lead his people to freedom. In order to do that, he must sacrifice himself, and rise from the dead.  He faces progressively greater challenges through the course of the movie, and as he begins to believe in himself, he is able to overcome these challenges, including being able to beat Agent smith. However when Agent smith explained to Morpheous that “The perfect world was a dream that your primitive cerebrum kept trying to wake up from. Which is why the Matrix was redesigned to this, the peak of your civilization” , but what does this mean for Neo’s purpose? This causes the audience to speculate deeply about civilization and what our perfect world entails and how Neo’s new abilities can help, which in the end calls for more sequels.