No matter what Joss says, The Matrix is a stupid movie.
POSTED BY: chrisisall
UPDATED: Sunday, December 30, 2007 01:08
VIEWED: 6236
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How many times have I watched it? Like, 20?
This flick looks great, has cool Buddhist leanings, terrific fights, and a way excellent bad guy, but in the end, it fails for me as serious science fiction due to, well, lack of science...
Human electrical activity & body temp mixed with 'a kind of fusion'??? WTF?
I can't even watch the whole thing anymore...I just jump to the training program sequence, and go from there. It's just eye candy, as far as I'm concerned (plus a good soundtrack), and the next two remain unwatchable to me.
If I want good bullet-time scenes with excellent writing and a plot that makes sense, I'll watch Primeval, the almost-last ep in Buffy season four, thank you very much.
Any other Browncoats share this sentiment?
Non-NeoChrisisall
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Our bodies produce electricity, electron current, electrical charge.
Our bodies produce heat.
both are chemical processes in our bodies, the electrical part more so.
Batteries are electrical charge units, often using chemicals.
Fusion can mean many things.
Where do you feel is a disconnect? What is the impossibility you see?
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Not this one. I thought the Matrix was one of the best Scifi films in a long time. It was original, dark and intriguing. It was Tron, only believable. Keanu wasn’t all that great. In fact, he hasn’t done much that I liked since Bill and Ted. But Moss did some of her best stuff in Matrix. Fishburne did a good job and, in my opinion, really carried Keanu.
As far as the sequels. I pretend they don’t exist. There haven’t been worse sequels since those of the Highlander. Some people can’t leave well enough alone, but that doesn’t mean that the first one wasn’t great.
Nihil est incertius vulgo, nihil obscurius voluntate hominum, nihil fallacius ratione tota comitiorum.
Nothing is more unpredictable than the mob, nothing more obscure than public opinion, nothing more deceptive than the whole political system.
-- Cicero
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Quote:That the machines would choose to let 'us' live at all; we are a virus, potentially deadly to their 'species' in the long run.
Originally posted by jewelstaitefan:
What is the impossibility you see?
Don't get me wrong- I think the movie has great concepts, but the execution was weak IMO. The FX dazzled us, and the alienation from reality (as an allegory to our disconnect with our own lives in this consumer-driven corporate society) was hard hitting, but the the idea that intelligent machines would expend that kind of R&D to keep us alive to make of us batteries in the face of a possible threat is ridiculous. If they have 'fusion' capabilities, this makes human electrochemical needs obsolete, and if they truly need it, their technology sucks.
Whoahisall
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Quote:One of the best fantasy films, I could agree with...
Originally posted by Finn mac Cumhal:
I thought the Matrix was one of the best Scifi films in a long time.
Judgemental Trekno Chrisisall
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Quote:I don’t really know what that means. If you define fantasy that broadly, then Firefly, Star Trek and Star Wars are all fantasy. I’m not sure why you don’t like the Matrix. Was there something about the movie that you didn’t like or did you have a bad experience with a matrix as a child?
Originally posted by chrisisall:Quote:One of the best fantasy films, I could agree with...
Originally posted by Finn mac Cumhal:
I thought the Matrix was one of the best Scifi films in a long time.
Nihil est incertius vulgo, nihil obscurius voluntate hominum, nihil fallacius ratione tota comitiorum.
Nothing is more unpredictable than the mob, nothing more obscure than public opinion, nothing more deceptive than the whole political system.
-- Cicero
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Of course, The Matrix also has a wonderful example of foreshadowing. When we find out they are looking for THE ONE, we know that they found him in NEO. (being an anagram foreshadow).
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I only saw The Matrix one time and hated it. Have never tried watching it again, or any of the sequels.
Maybe over New Year's I'll try it again. So many people love it, maybe I just didn't get it. Some movies need time to grow on you.
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Quote:
Originally posted by chrisisall:Quote:That the machines would choose to let 'us' live at all; we are a virus, potentially deadly to their 'species' in the long run.
Originally posted by jewelstaitefan:
What is the impossibility you see?
Don't get me wrong- I think the movie has great concepts, but the execution was weak IMO. The FX dazzled us, and the alienation from reality (as an allegory to our disconnect with our own lives in this consumer-driven corporate society) was hard hitting, but the the idea that intelligent machines would expend that kind of R&D to keep us alive to make of us batteries in the face of a possible threat is ridiculous. If they have 'fusion' capabilities, this makes human electrochemical needs obsolete, and if they truly need it, their technology sucks.
Whoahisall
I don't really think that the allegory was entirely successful. The consumer-driven corporate society is presented as so much more appealing than the "real" world that reality doesn't seem to have a chance. In the matrix, which feeds off of us, we get clear skin, cool outfits and can run up walls. In the real world you eat gruel in your rags. I think they are trying to show that real emotions like love and friendship should make up for the limitations of the real world. Unfortunately, when you've got Keanu depending on emotion to carry your story isn't really an option. So, I guess the ultimate message of the Matrix isn't that we need to dismantle the machine, its that we need to be in charge so we can fly around and punch bad guys in the face...or something like that.
Dark City is a much more (in my opinion) reflection on identity and a wild dream like structure. Of course, if you want a REALLY interesting reflection on identity you should watch Persona.
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Well to a certain extent Chris I agree with you.
Thing is though I wonder.... If you end up THINKING that much about a film like The Matrix in the first place, it is in part a successful film. The fact that when you actually do think about it you realise it's utter bollocks is neither here nor their because ultimatle it is a sci-fi film, and when analyzed most sci-fi films have gapping holes in them. You must to a certain extent dispense with all forms of reality.
One thing I could never work out with the matrix was all these humans go around in a 'ship' that is computerized and 'linked' up to some sort of network. Well why in the hell can't the 'Machines' just tap into the network and 'talk' to the ships and ice them from within?
When I talked to my friends about this and other stuff in the Matrix I seem to be the only one who didn't 'get it'. And I still don't. I was totally bemused by it all. I still don't know what 'The Oracle' is all about and why she doesn't say Neo is the one?! The cryptic ball throwing still seems pointless to me.
Now with the sequels because they seemed to contradict each other and the first film I just watch those as sheer hokum, and I find that Matrix II is my favourite, purely because I don't bother to try and figure it out. It has the Best bike chase, best fight sequence in that house and well lets face it.....Monica Bellucci.
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