The Matrix (1999)

Directors:

Andy Wachowski
Lana Wachowski

Writers (WGA):

Andy Wachowski (written by) &
Lana Wachowski (written by)

Release Date:

31 March 1999 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Adventure | Sci-Fi | Thriller

Tagline:

Free your mind

Plot:

A computer hacker learns from mysterious rebels about the true nature of his reality and his role in the war against the controllers of it.

Plot Keywords:

Computer | Hacker | The Matrix | Reality | Truth

Awards:

Won 4 Oscars. Another 28 wins & 36 nominations

Cast

Keanu Reeves	...	Neo
Laurence Fishburne	...	Morpheus
Carrie-Anne Moss	...	Trinity
Hugo Weaving	...	Agent Smith
Gloria Foster	...	Oracle
Joe Pantoliano	...	Cypher
Marcus Chong	...	Tank
Julian Arahanga	...	Apoc
Matt Doran	...	Mouse
Belinda McClory	...	Switch
Anthony Ray Parker	...	Dozer
Paul Goddard	...	Agent Brown
Robert Taylor	...	Agent Jones
David Aston	...	Rhineheart
Marc Aden	...	Choi (as Marc Gray)

MPAA:

Rated R for sci-fi violence and brief language.

Runtime:

136 min

Country:

USA | Australia

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital | SDDS

Certification:

USA:R (certificate #36569) | Iceland:16 | Ireland:15 (re-rating) | Malaysia:18SG | UK:15 (re-rating) (2006) (uncut) | Philippines:PG-13 | France:U (with warning) | Brazil:14 | India:A | South Africa:10V | Argentina:13 | Australia:M | Belgium:KT | Chile:14 | Finland:K-16 | Germany:16 | Hong Kong:IIB | Ireland:18 (cut) | Israel:PG | Italy:T | Japan:PG-12 | Netherlands:16 | New Zealand:M | Norway:15 | Peru:14 | Portugal:M/12 | Singapore:PG | South Korea:12 | Spain:18 | Sweden:15 | Switzerland:12 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:12 (canton of Vaud) | UK:15 (cut) | Canada:13+ (Quebec) | Canada:14A (Alberta/British Columbia) | Canada:14 (Nova Scotia) | Canada:AA (Ontario) | Canada:PA (Manitoba)

Filming Locations:

AON Tower, Kent Street, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

Company:

Groucho II Film Partnership

Trivia:

According to Don Davis, Johnny Depp was Larry and Andy's first choice for Neo, but Warner Bros. wanted Brad Pitt or Val Kilmer. After Kilmer and Brad Pitt said no, Warner Bros. was willing to consider Johnny Depp, and then it came between Johnny Depp and Keanu Reeves, who Warner Bros. was pushing. Keanu was always really tuned in to the concept and made a big difference in the casting.

Goofs:

Incorrectly regarded as goofs: When Neo is rescuing Trinity from the falling helicopter, he slides across the roof of a building. When he reaches the edge, his foot hits the block causing it to move, but in a way consistent with a real block whose grout is imperfect; after all, that's a rather large force.

Quotes:

[first lines]
[phone rings]
Cypher: Yeah.
Trinity: Is everything in place?
Cypher: You weren't supposed to relieve me.
Trinity: I know, but I felt like taking a shift.
Cypher: You like him, don't you? You like watching him.
Trinity: Don't be ridiculous.
Cypher: We're gonna kill him. You understand that?
Trinity: Morpheus believes he is the one.
[...]

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Chasing Papi (2003)

Soundtrack:

Prime Audio Soup

The Matrix has Buddhist themes

A large part of the appeal of 'The Matrix' for me was the special effects and action-packed scenes. But, on reflection, part of the appeal is also its philosophical and religious underpinnings...

When asked whether Buddhist ideas influenced them, the Wachowski brothers offered an unqualified "Yes!" and at a very basic level, the movie portrays two levels of reality: our everyday existence and a deeper, more significant, underlying reality (the matrix). This is very much like the Two Truths in Buddhism: relative truth, in which everything is perception, and ultimate truth which is the way things really are (objective reality).

Because of our ignorance, we mistake the everyday world for something real and objective, and this is the cause of our suffering. As in 'The Matrix', breaking through relative truth to direct contact with ultimate truth represents a high spiritual attainment, some would say enlightenment, an awakening. (Remember the message on Neo's computer screen: "Wake up, Neo!")

Mahayana Buddhism suggests that there are great spiritual warriors (like Neo?) who are walking the path from ignorance to enlightenment, and who can in turn guide us on the path.