The Matrix

Bullet points

• Tastee Wheat advert in the train station.
• Unrelenting action through a lot of it -- not much room for characters except as extensions of machines, weapons.
• Continuing expansion of Smith's villainy until one expects him to turn into a giant a la Sark in Tron.
• Seems like the APUs are pretty inefficient and unnecessarily expose the operator to danger. Damn cool looking though. :)
• Now both Trinity and Neo are (probably) dead. I say probably due to the nature of these things. Who knows, maybe they'll all show up in The Matrix: Resolutions (or, more likely, Resurrections) in 2014.
• Speaking of Tron, I kept thinking of that movie watching this trilogy. Virtual world. Sentient programs. Evil AI reaching into the real world. I'm sure someone out there has written an essay on the connections.
• And speaking of 2014, seems like March 31st that year would be a good time for a 15th anniversary re-watching of the trilogy.

Now, for a glass of water and bed. I'll perhaps have more thoughts tomorrow to wrap things up. Hope to see you again on May 25th for the Alien marathon.

Bullet points

• Trinity's entrances are always awesome.
• Missing Tank and his energy. But Link is very cool too, especially his reactions to Neo's increasing miraculous exploits.
• Knife & Spoon. Death & Life.
• Candy from Oracle Red? I think so, echoing red pill.
• Wachowski Brothers always push the tech, like with bullet time. Sometimes they push too far, as the uncanny valley issues in the fight with many Smiths. But others, like nearly the entire freeway sequence are awesome.
• First movie, Neo is resurrected thanks to Trinity's love. This one, Neo resurrects her.
• Feeling more tolerant re The Architect this viewing. Less annoying, felt like less of a screeching halt.

Next, you say you want Revolutions?

Bullet points

• Trinity is such a badass.
• So is Morpheus.
• Was struck by the intensity and variety of textures, just more depth to a world already deep with images and sound.
• "Ten hours straight. He's a machine." Heh.
• The best villains you love to see on screen even as you hate them. Agent Smith is a great villain.
• Bullet time is still freaking cool in the original, even after 10 years and innumerable times seeing it.
• "There's a difference between knowing the path and walking the path." That's for sure.
• The subway fight between Agent Smith and Neo is one of my favorites ever. Good fights tell a story and reveal character.

Now, for pizza and Reloaded.

This will be the main post for the marathon, with links to the individual film entries. Times are when each story was posted, written just after the film in question ended. I think we'll be getting started around 7 Pacific.

• 21:22: Matrix Marathon I: The Matrix
• 23:36: Matrix Marathon II: The Matrix Reloaded
• 02:02: Matrix Marathon III: The Matrix Revolutions

The original post planning today's celebration, exactly a year and two days ago: "The Matrix marathon, too?"

Previously on Celsius1414:

• Star Wars Day - May 25, 2007
• Kill Bill 5th Anniversary (2008) - October 1, 2008

Morpheus: This is your last chance. After this, there is no turning back. You take the blue pill - the story ends, you wake up in your bed and believe whatever you want to believe. You take the red pill - you stay in Wonderland and I show you how deep the rabbit-hole goes.

The other day, cleaning out and disassembling an old computer cabinet at home, I found a DVD case had fallen down between it and the wall at some point in the past few years.

The movie?

Yep.

Marathon starting in just a little while.

Morpheus: I imagine that right now, you're feeling a bit like Alice. Hmm? Tumbling down the rabbit hole?

Neo: You could say that.

Morpheus: I see it in your eyes. You have the look of a man who accepts what he sees because he is expecting to wake up. Ironically, that's not far from the truth. Do you believe in fate, Neo?

Neo: No.

Morpheus: Why not?

Neo: Because I don't like the idea that I'm not in control of my life.

Morpheus: I know exactly what you mean. 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. You've felt it your entire life, that there's something wrong with the world. You don't know what it is, but it's there, like a splinter in your mind, driving you mad. It is this feeling that has brought you to me. Do you know what I'm talking about?

Neo: The Matrix.

Morpheus: Do you want to know what it is?

Neo: Yes.

Morpheus: The Matrix is everywhere. It is all around us. Even now, in this very room. You can see it when you look out your window or when you turn on your television. You can feel it when you go to work... when you go to church... when you pay your taxes. It is the world that has been pulled over your eyes to blind you from the truth.

Neo: What truth?

Morpheus: That you are a slave, Neo. Like everyone else you were born into bondage. Into a prison that you cannot taste or see or touch. A prison for your mind.

Tomorrow marks the 10th anniversary of The Matrix being released. Hard to believe it's been ten years already. As I mentioned last year, I decided to follow up my Star Wars marathon of 2007 with watching The Matrix trilogy in 2009*. In anticipation, I ordered The Ultimate Matrix Collection, which includes The Matrix, The Matrix Reloaded, The Matrix Revolutions, The Animatrix, and more special features than I'll be able to watch in my lifetime.** So tomorrow after work I'll watch the trilogy. I've been looking forward to this for a long while and will be blogging it like Star Wars Day.

Morpheus: Have you ever had a dream, Neo, that you were so sure was real? What if you were unable to wake from that dream? How would you know the difference between the dream world and the real world?

* I was also going to do a full-blown Alien Versus Predator marathon in May for the 30th anniversary of the original Alien, but have decided to make it an Alien Quadrilogy marathon instead, maybe including the two AvPs, but probably not. Even I have my limits. ;) This decision also neatly solves the "what order to watch them in?" question.

** Seeing as how it's only $25.99 now versus it's previous $52.98, I couldn't pass it up anyhow.