It seems that only other Black people have noticed (and appreciated) how the Matrix Reloaded sports a cast that is mostly people of color. Jay of hiphopmusic.com points out that “there are an astonishing number of people of color, for a sci-fi movie.” CalendarLive.com noted, “People of color outnumber whites in the world's population” so it only makes sense that “In the city of Zion, most citizens are people of color and many of the movie's leading actors are black (Laurence Fishburne, Jada Pinkett Smith, Nona Gaye, Harry Lennix, Harold Perrineau Jr. and the late Gloria Foster.)” In that article they interview Cornel West, the famous Black intellectual who counts the Wachowski brothers as fans of his work asked him to make a cameo in the film. West further explains that the great thing about the multiracial casting that “It's not just the representation in numbers but the humanity displayed.” For myself it was refreshing to see Black actors cast in roles that were not necessarily tailored as a Black character.
The film falls short of reversing the taboo of Black sexuality that is deeply ingrained in Hollywood. This is strange since Cornel West has been the foremost critic of this form of racism, especially in his book “Race Matters.” West himself has condemned the movie industry for setting a sexual double standard- while Whites are able to have sex scenes in movies that are loving, Black sex has an air of pornography. The Wachowski brothers wrote a beautiful love scene for Neo and Trinity yet in contrast to that, when Link (the ship operator) came home he coarsely greeted his wife with “Where’s my (explicitive)!” Of course this wasn’t written like that on purpose, but if the taboos West have written about truly are as persistent as he claims, it will take a deliberate effort to correct it.
So, with the concern of diversity let’s appreciate and praise the Matrix series for what it has done and hope that other movies follow suit and go even further.
Article comments
1 - Eric Olsen
Very interesting post - good balance between recognition and concerns. I have issues with Cornell West, but he makes sense here. Thanks.
2 - visualsimplicity
I would consider it a good thing that people don't notice the predominantly cast of "black people". It means that, in general, people have been exposed to enough diversity that they no longer recognize it anymore, which is a sign of diminishing racism. That sort of doesn't make sense, but I'll relate it to a South Park episode (yeah strange association but it brought up a good point) in which the town of South Park was debating over the issue of the town flag (which shows a "black" person being hung by 4 "white" people). The kids were "so not racist" that they didn't even see it as a "black" person being hung by 4 "white" people, but instead saw it as just a "person" being hung by 4 "people". So thus, if people don't realize that The Matrix: Reloaded is made up of a predominantly "black" cast, then that means that they see everyone in the cast merely as people and not "black" or "white" or any other shade.
3 - Brian Flemming
Madison,
While there is that "Where's my pu***?" moment in the Matrix, I think the most perverted sexuality on display is exclusively white--that French dude manipulating that anonymous (white) woman, and his wife manipulating Neo.
I think the concentration on Neo and his gf is a product of the plot--their relationship figures in the plot more than any other love relationship in the movie. Morpheus's relationship with his former gf (I don't know this movie that well, don't remember the names), for example, is important for the fact it is over, so Morpheus doesn't have any hot scenes.
I would have liked to have seen more inter-racial relationships in this imagined future, though. As far as I remember, whites exclusively pair with whites, and blacks exclusively with blacks. But that doesn't seem like an accurate reflection of where we are headed right now as a society.
4 - Phillip Winn
I wouldn't say that only black people have noticed it, either. Maybe very few white people are making a point of it in print, but I was certainly pleased to notice on opening night that the crowd in the theater looked a lot like the crowd at my church every week - around 50% white. I noted that strong dominance of non-whites in the cast. Heck, when Link came home, I realized that I recognized each of the three adult actors in the scene, and could quote where I'd seen them (Firefly/Angel, Nothing to Lose, and Romeo+Juliet). I'm still not sure if that's good or bad, but I noticed it.
If you want to dig into things really deeply, note that while ship captains and military commanders, as well as the general populace, reflect a strong minority contingent, the Zio council was still liberally weighted with white people. There are always things that might seem worth complaining about, but rarely are they really worth it. This movie marks a great bit of progress for a lot of reasons, and one of those is surely how color-blind it seems to be.
Typically, though, one can still complain if one chooses to. No visible interracial couples is just one complaint, I'm sure that there will be more.
5 - georgy
We are having a thread about this at the William Gibson board ("Wide-spectrum cast in cyberpunk peaks in Matrix Reloaded") and what i actually like in "Reloaded" is the fact that color and nationality are actually made irrelevant.
6 - Madison
"I would have liked to have seen more inter-racial relationships in this imagined future, though"
Brian, that's a good point. I thought of it but forgot to add it into my critique. Thanks for bringing it up.
7 - Wes
The most entertaining moment of the Matrix 2 for me was the brainchild of a fellow viewer in the seat behind me and showed the true beauty of the varied cultures in this land we call America. As the character of Link was being developed and his emotional ties to the whole scheme of things were coming into focus, a comment was flung from the peanut gallery behind me. Making loud comments during movies is common practice for many African-Americans (which often annoys uptight white folks) and these comments are often well spoken. The lovely lady behind me says and I quote "Damn, you know he (Link) gonna die". She knew as most know, that when the black actor starts having character development he is gonna die. This is a staple of horror flicks. Now that is some racist shnizzle. To that lady, I give my respects, I laughed my a** off. She also slammed all of the dialogue cliches, BEFORE Keanu could mumble them out. I chimed in with her in a chorus for the "You could have just asked" line. God he should have just said "Hasta La Vista Baby". But back to the point, her lively interaction made for a great viewing experience in my opinion, it was like MST3000 Live. And to the African-American commenters out there, keep up the good work, you are the life of this country, the true human spirit, unbridled and uncompromising. And to the white, honky, crackers like myself, take a lesson from a people who still have some sense of spirituality. Piece.
8 - El Tangas
Well, I have to say that if Metrix Reloaded is a step against racism in the movies, it's a small one indeed.
Zion: lots of black people, but there are way more asiatic people in the world than black, and I don't see much of them. And where are the mixed couples?
And (maybe its just me, being european and all...) how come the bad guy is french and his evil minions are the true representatives of racial diversity in the movie(though not sexual diversity-all male)?
The 2 twins, who are white, are european too (english).
So, you see, racism and xenophoby are clearly there.
9 - Saab Lofton
The only flaw with the Matrix is that it's a "burning trash can", post-apocalyptic future--so some KKKlansman can easily claim that, "Well, that's what you get when you let the NIGGAHS run the show!" In contrast, Star Trek is predominately cast with whites and within the Federation there's no poverty, bigotry, atrocity, etc. So the goal is to have the best of BOTH worlds: a utopian future like Gene Roddenberry's BUT with a Matrix-esque cast running the show.
10 - Pep
Well, I think it also should be noticed that ALL the bad guys are white people (and men, by the way). The Architect, Agent Smith, other agents, the French guy... however the good guys side is full of "racial diversity". Even the Messiah isn't white.
From my humble point of view, this is actually a racist movie, but instead of depicting blacks as the evil, it does just the opposite. Reverse racism in fact. In addition to this, women aren't portrayed as feeble and subjugated by men, but they participate actively into the fight in equal conditions (even they show better abilities than men). It seems that the traditionally oppressed minorities take revenge whipping the evil white man and the evil patriarchy.
Despite of I liked this movie, I think that it's just the result of the current political correctness, though quite exacerbated.
11 - Saab Lofton
Given AmeriKKKan history, it's incredibly inconsiderate and short sighted to write the Matrix off as politically correct revenge. After decades of minstrels and similar caricatures, blacks have every right to make themselves look as good as possible. Michael Moore won that Oscar for Bowling for Columbine for a reason: The extent to which blacks are made to look bad by the corporate mass media is well documented, so compensation (NOT to be CONfused with revenge) is in order and well overdue.
To put it simply, actually sit down and COUNT how many movies depict blacks in a positive manner and how many depict blacks in a negative manner.
12 - Kerry
I cant believe Cornell West nor others do not see the racism in the matrix 2 and 3 for that matter.
Watch it again, and notice how all the black people look for Neo to save them.
They are not active participants in their own saving but rely on others to do so.
Look at where he says 'its the hammer', like yea they are here to save my ass, to hell with you all, my ass is saved. He even smiles at it.
Look at the council scene, when the black lady says "how long have we got", others does ask this question, just blacks in this film, its as if Whitey must save our ass..
I really cant believe people have not seen this.
Sure there are lots of black actors and actress's in the movie, but when you tally up their responses it comes out like this...
whitey does things, blacks hope someone will save them.
On the other front is that whitey 'believes' the blacks do not.
Take for example the scene when the kid opens the gate, he says "I believe", whereas the black woman is only interested in saving her black husband. Not the bigger issue.
There are literally dozens of items like this in the movie, "where's my pu***", is a typical black low end comment.
Similarly commander lock, I don't believe in miracles, ask him, pointing to morpheus, who at that point has no answer..
Its sad that you haven't seen to quote a phrase, '5min in front of your own face", all you do see is black actors, and are some how happy with that situation.
You really need to look past the skin color and look and listen to how the characters act and react, then you'll see how blacks are portrayed.
Also for that matter, America is the most RACIST place I have ever been too, after visiting South Africa its nothing like as racist as America is. Nothing.
I once spoke to a black man in charge of aids drugs in SF, he said there were quota's of drugs for whites and for blacks, when I questioned him, saying if your white quota runs out and a white man walks in with aids, you turn him away?
Yes was the answer, I replied (which was not liked) that then sir you're the racist. Because if your judging people by quota's and color then simply put you are.
When you say we have an amount and anyone who tuns up gets them, until we run out, they you not.
I learned blacks dont like being called racists, yet they are the strongest group of racists (in america) that i have found.
I realised a few days after that blacks in America actually have learned to thrive on racism, because it, like the aids manager gives them some power over other blacks. And so the cycle continues.
IN summary Cornell West is WRONG in the title of his book. Race does not matter, and as long as people think or promote that it does, then we'll continue to have racism, and that's reflected in film too.
13 - Saab Lofton
Kerry, you're flat out WRONG.
Whether you're comfortable dealing with this is completely irrelevant: White supremacy is still dominant, DESPITE the coronation of Obama the Overrated.
The African-American poverty rate is three times higher than the rate for whites. About one in 10 white children live in poverty (10.5 percent). For African-Americans, the figure is 33.2 percent. The African-American infant mortality rate is 2.4 times the rate for whites. And that's just for starters ...
We are NOT equal. Whites are more powerful than blacks. NOT superior, simply more statistically likely to be privileged.
And again, I don't care if this is too uncomfortable for you to deal with; your comfort level is less than zero compared to the pain and suffering black America has gone (and continues to go) through.
Yes, there are black supremacists (such as Farrakhan's Nation of Islam), but you caN'T hide behind them. They're NOT powerful enough to be a threat. They don't even own a single nuclear missile!
If you're serious about helping the black community ...
1) Hold fund raisers and benefit concerts for the United Negro College Fund.
2) Join the Apollo Alliance and help call for a Greenpeace version of FDR's New Deal; pay those in the ghetto a LIVING (NOT minimum) wage with full benefits to erect windmills, install solar power panels and grow/process industrial hemp (which can make fuel, fabric, paper and plastic).
3) Decriminalize all drugs since the War on Drugs was racist to begin with (read Jack Herer's The Emperor Wears No Clothes)
4) Find a way of basing a TV series on the A.C.L.U./The Sentencing Project/The Southern Poverty Law Center, because so long as every other TV show is about the cops, blacks will continue to be demonized.
5) Tell B.E.T. to have a Public Enemy or a Dead Prez or a KRS-1 video for every gangstah-gangstah/bling-bling video. Aaron McGruder's analysis of B.E.T. is dead on accurate and should be treated accordingly.
6) Tell John Singleton to do the Black Panther movie and NOT, I repeat, N-O-T a Luke Cage movie. The world needs to see a movie about a genius ruling his own country, NOT another thug in the streets.
14 - Eugene
You all are aware that originally, the Wachowskis wanted Will Smith for the part of Neo?
O.K., carry on.
15 - san francisco
this is probably my third time seeing the film. i now begin noticing the number of ethnic actors in the matrix series, although the lead man is white.
Will Smith! Awesome.
he would've been a "funky" neo (sorry..couldnt resist)
16 - Whitey
I noticed the prevalence of black people. What about the Asian, Indians (people from India), Latinos, and even the whites (not to mention the diversity in whites such as Americans, Europeans, and Russians). As for all the "mixed couple" comments, it sounds like you really mean "what about the black men and white women?" Yeah and why are the agents all white? Too bad most of the commenters say, "Oh we love the diversity" really means, "Oh look at all the black people". Just goes to show we are all human and we flock to birds of a feather.
17 - Saab Lofton
Whitey, you're clearly THREATENED by there being a "prevalence of black people." I guess a CENTURY of white dominance in Hollywood wasn't enough for your greedy ass -- but to answer your question, when you put "Asian, Indians (people from India), Latinos" in a blender, you GET people who can AND WILL pass for black!
18 - Saab Lofton
"As for all the 'mixed couple' comments, it sounds like you really mean 'what about the black men and white women?'"
You damn skippy! After THOUSANDS of black men were lynched -- as in, TORTURED to DEATH -- for simply gazing upon white female beauty, there BETTER be some compensation, to say the least!
"and why are the agents all white?"
Research a little thing called COINTELPRO and see why.