In 2002, Brent Staples communicated with Jean Baudrillard about the use of his philosophy in The Matrix (1999), a film written and directed by Andy and Larry Wachowski. Staples wrote, “He [Baudrillard] noted that the film’s “borrowings” from his work “stemmed mostly from misunderstandings” and suggested that no movie could ever do justice to the themes of this book”. In this paper, I will argue that the Wachowski Brothers did not want to “do justice to the themes of this book”; they wanted to adapt Baudrillard’s theories about the blurring of the real and unreal, and the eventual extermination of the real, into a story that provides hope for humans wanting to escape the suffocation of the “hyperreal”. The “hyperreal” was first coined by Baudrillard in his book, Simulacra and Simulations (1983); it is the product of the distortions of the real through endless simulations of it in radio, newspaper, television, and film.
If you’ve ever had deja vu or felt that something about the world was just off, then you might just be living in the Matrix, a digital reality. At least, that is the case in the movie The Matrix directed by the Wachowski brothers. This movie, released March 1st 1999, takes place in a very distant future after a war between humanity and machines with artificial intelligence. A young man named Thomas Anderson, who goes by Neo in his nightlife as a hacker, discovers that the world is not all he thought it to be. Neo learns the truth about his world and what he has to do to save it in this action packed science fiction film.
The Matrix shows the doubts on how reality and truth is or isn’t. How people actually perceive reality, truth, is really different on how other people do. The reality of something can change over time. On how choices affect the timeline of events and the future of yourself and other people. This movie makes philosophy be more understandable and have modern concept, showing how to doubt our reality, how different is the perspective and truth of people, and on how the choices affect our reality.
This film’s mise-en-scène will be complicated. (title)’s pacing will have to create a comprehensive story with continuity in a short amount of time. A pacing and narrative structure similar to Hugo (Ebert, 2011) will be the best comparison to (title)’s use of mise-en-scenè. In order to visually express points of the plot, a variation of camera angles will need to be applied. As a live action film, by employing various camera angles, the film will maintain its fantastical and imaginative
The Matrix series is much more than an action-packed sci-fi thriller. After one view of this film for the second and third time, we start to notice a great deal of symbolism. This symbolism starts to paint a completely different picture than the images of humans battling machines. It is a religious story, with symbols deeply set in the Christian faith. The Matrix contains religious symbolism through its four main characters, Morpheus, Neo, Trinity and Cypher. In that each character personifies the “Father,” the “Son,” “Satan,” and the “Holy Spirit” of the Christian beliefs only shown through the amazing performances of the actors. A critic by the name of Shawn Levy said "The Matrix slams you back in your chair, pops open your eyes and leaves your jaw hanging slack in amazement."(metacritic.com)
When the trailer for this film was first introduced to the public, many expected The Matrix to be just another science-fiction film with phenomenal special effects which lacked an intriguing plot. The majority of the reviews definitely put an end to this misconception. Most of the reviews written on this film eloquently complement the Wachowski brothers on their excellent story line. The Biblical references of this film incorporated with the phenomenal cinematography distinguish The Matrix from all other science-fiction films in which the main characters are on a race to save humanity. "The script, written by the Wachowski brothers is intelligent but carefully not geeky."2
Mise en scene is a French term, which refers to the visual and design elements of a film. Literally, it is what we actually see on the screen – locations, sets, background details, costumes, even the use of colour and lighting. Mise en scene is used to describe every scene, including framing, composition, costuming, setting, objects, lighting, sound and camera angles. Everything is done purposely and intentionally.
As individuals overcome the inevitable process of change, they begin to realize their full potential. In the set text, the 1999 Wachowski Brother’s film, The Matrix, the concept of change is significantly explored. In the related texts “Plato’s Allegory of the cave” and “The Door” clearly represents and reinforces this concept of change; that it is inevitable and experiences from this process leads to wisdom. In each text, the individual composers explore certain themes such as “the illusion of reality”, “choices and the endless outcomes of change” and “the fear and danger of knowing”. All the texts mentioned visible represents that “It is the process of transformation that ultimately allows potential to be realized”.
The Matrix is a film where every aspect of reality is questioned. Neo is a computer hacker whose life goal is to know the truth
What is the matrix? The matrix is an artificial world, which has been pulled over to blind us from the truth, that we are slaves (Matrix,1999). We are trapped in a prison for our minds (Matrix,1999). We will never really get to feel, touch, or see anything for ourselves, except objects created through the matrix.
The actual “matrix” described in the movie The Matrix provides the best example of a matrix. The “matrix” in the movie is a virtual reality implemented and created by machines to use human beings as a power supply. Their minds are trapped and they are unaware of the reality that they are simply batteries for the machines. Matrices are situations or surrounding circumstances within which something else originates, develops, or is contained. For example, in the explanation of the matrix above, human beings are in the matrix and their minds are contained within that matrix. However, containment is not the only type of matrix. Many different matrices exist in our lives. The educational system at California State University, Northridge can be considered a matrix. When students attend the university they start as one person, and through education and social experiences a new person is developed. Dick’s novel and The Matrix contain in their stories many mat...
In 1999 directors/writers Larry and Andy Wachowski (Bound) made a dark and often disturbing Science Fiction film, The Matrix. With the production expertise of Joel Silver (Commando, Predator, Lethal Weapon series, and Die Hard series), Andrew Mason (The Crow, Dark City) and Barrie M. Osborne (Face/Off, The Fan, Child's Play), The Matrix is sure to be a favorite among Science Fiction movie fans for years to come. The Matrix won the Oscar award in all four categories it was nominated for; Best Sound, Best Sound Affects Editing, Best Visual Effects, and Best Film Editing. More DVD’s of The Matrix were sold then the movie “The Titanic”. The hard work of choreographer Yuen Wo Ping (Iron Monkey, Fists of Legends) make the fight scenes very much in the Hong Kong style of film-making, including the part where one of the fighters taunts the other, by daring them to be aggressive. The music featuring artists like Rob Zombie, Ministry, Deftones, and Monster Magnet, complements the mood of the movie remarkably well. The Matrix is filled with the spectacular visual effects of a science fiction masterpiece, and at the same time has the killer fight scenes that are included in a true action movie.
Historically speaking the fate of world has always been called into the question. The same is true of commentaries on the state of mankind. T.S. Eliot’s "The Wasteland" is considered by many to be the greatest poem of all time. During Eliot’s time, the world was beginning to place more value on pop culture than high culture. Gone were the days where most were familiar with the works of the greats. The Wachowski Brothers’ film, The Matrix, deals with similar themes as "The Wasteland" . The science fiction film set in world that has been taken over by machines and centers around the plight of unsuspecting hero, Neo and other who have been freed from the computer simulated reality of The Matrix. Both worlds of “The Wasteland” and The Matrix center around the struggles the inner self faces when modern society no longer reliable for spiritual sustenance. It is the lack of spirituality in modern culture that leaves the masses starved intellectually and out of touch with historical and high culture.
Mise-en-scéne is something that we see in movies all the time. It’s translated from French and means the staging the different aspects of a movie such as setting, lighting, subjects, or almost anything else. Any common movie, such as Inside Out, shows Mise-en-snéne in it. Three big parts of Mise-en-scéne that are shown in the movie Inside Out are cinematography, sound, and editing. Inside Out uses all of these by describing a plot in which there are feelings in our brains which connect to different memories that we can remember at any time. There were five main emotions that controlled the person on the outside whose name was Riley. The five emotions were named, Joy, Fear, Anger, Disgust and Sadness. They helped Riley as she moved away from
Millions of people flock to the movie theater year after year on a quest to be entertained. Even a mediocre movie has the ability to take the audience to another place, escaping the realities of their own life, if only for a mere two hours. Some movies are simply pure entertainment. And then, there are those movies that provoke conversation long after the film has been viewed. Dystopian themes are not new, and have historically provided a template to gage the course of human existence. The Matrix portrays a society where humans exist without freedom. The film is not only entertaining, but also thought provoking. It paints a world with two different dimensions, one with the mind numbing constraint of technology, the second with endless possibilities and free will. When closely examined, a world very much like today’s. The Matrix uses technology to dominate humankind, by implementing a socially stabilizing virtual reality program, thus warning that humanity’s obsession with technology can weaken the mind.