In the first installment of this trilogy, The Matrix, Neo takes the red pill and descends Alice’s rabbit hole. But it’s an intriguing paradox that the Wachowskis use a mirror or looking glass to show the real beginning of his journey. Like Alice, we all go down the rabbit hole to Wonderland simply by watching The Matrix. We then choose immersion via her Looking Glass by seeing The Matrix Reloaded or The Matrix Revolutions.
When Morpheus tells Neo that the Matrix is “the world pulled over our eyes,” he could very well be describing the movie itself. The entity that the Matrix Trilogy has evolved into is not a fraudulent cover up however. It is a world that an eager audience has willingly drawn down and around them, the mantle of questions, of enlightenment, the shroud of a thought experiment of vast scale.
And The Ultimate Matrix Collection too, provides deep exploration into a world that cannot be explained, it must be shown. With 35 hours of extras, plus the three films, this set is a massive compilation of behind-the-scenes technical goodies, background information on the actors and their work on the three films, and of course, some naval-gazing and New Age philosophizing.
And so, here’s a brief bit of summary and random reactions and observations on the Trilogy.
The Matrix (Disc One)
I’ve always maintained that The Matrix was, at the very least, a visually stunning project. Now it’s captivating and wondrous in other ways as well, but since this is a review of a high definition product, then we must start with appearances. For example, the use of the green tint inside the Matrix was mainly used to symbolize the color of old computer monitors and screens, but it also brings such texture. The addition of 1080p HD technology just cranks this up to a new level. The scene that made bullet-time famous – Trinity suspended in the air, all black suited whoop-ass splendor – is even more jaw-dropping.
Article comments
1 - Brad Schader
I always thought Neo was not the main point of the Matrix trilogy. He was the point of the first movie, but he does not grow at all as the series progresses. He reaches he strongest at teh end of the first. Agent Smith on the other hand only first becomes free in the first, evolves into a virus for the second, and reaches his max power at teh end. The Matirx is really the story of Agent Smith. Neo is the antagonist, trying to stop Smith from evolving. The story sucks as the tale of Neo, but once I saw it this way I grew to love the movies. Looking forward to seeing the HD versions.