When a beautiful stranger leads computer hacker Neo to a forbidding underworld, he discovers the shocking truth--the life he knows is the elaborate deception of an evil cyber-intelligence.When a beautiful stranger leads computer hacker Neo to a forbidding underworld, he discovers the shocking truth--the life he knows is the elaborate deception of an evil cyber-intelligence.When a beautiful stranger leads computer hacker Neo to a forbidding underworld, he discovers the shocking truth--the life he knows is the elaborate deception of an evil cyber-intelligence.
- Won 4 Oscars
- 42 wins & 52 nominations total
Marc Aden Gray
- Choi
- (as Marc Gray)
- Directors
- Writers
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaTo prepare for the scene where Neo wakes up in a pod, Keanu Reeves lost fifteen pounds and shaved his whole body to give Neo an emaciated look.
- GoofsWhen Neo opens fire from the helicopter, and the glass begins to break, none of the three agents is visible (though they should be) and the chair in which Morpheus should be sitting can be seen to be empty.
- Crazy creditsAt the end of all the credits, the URL for the (now defunct) website of the film is given, www.whatisthematrix.com, along with a password, 'steak'. There's a 'secret' link on the page that requests a password.
- Alternate versionsBecause 'The Matrix' was filmed in Australia the Region 4 (Australia) DVD release includes a more comprehensive Australian based list of credits.
- ConnectionsEdited into The Matrix: Path of Neo (2005)
- SoundtracksDissolved Girl
Written by Robert Del Naja, Grant Marshall (as Grantley Marshall), Andrew Vowles (as Andrew Vowles),
Sara J., and Matt Schwartz
Performed by Massive Attack
Courtesy of Virgin Records LTD.
By Arrangement with Virgin Records America, Inc.
Featured review
The story of a reluctant Christ-like protagonist set against a baroque, MTV backdrop, The Matrix is the definitive hybrid of technical wizardry and contextual excellence that should be the benchmark for all sci-fi films to come.
Hollywood has had some problems combining form and matter in the sci-fi genre. There have been a lot of visually stunning works but nobody cared about the hero. (Or nobody simply cared about anything.) There a few, though, which aroused interest and intellect but nobody 'ooh'-ed or 'aah'-ed at the special effects. With The Matrix, both elements are perfectly en sync. Not only did we want to cheer on the heroes to victory, we wanted them to bludgeon the opposition. Not only did we sit in awe as Neo evaded those bullets in limbo-rock fashion, we salivated.
But what makes The Matrix several cuts above the rest of the films in its genre is that there are simply no loopholes. The script, written by the Wachowski brothers is intelligent but carefully not geeky. The kung-fu sequences were deftly shot -- something even Bruce Lee would've been proud of. The photography was breathtaking. (I bet if you had to cut every frame on the reel and had it developed and printed, every single frame would stand on its own.) And the acting? Maybe not the best Keanu Reeves but name me an actor who has box-office appeal but could portray the uneasy and vulnerable protagonist, Neo, to a T the way Reeves did. But, come to think of it, if you pit any actor beside Laurence Fishburne, you're bound to confuse that actor for bad acting. As Morpheus, Mr. Fishburne is simply wicked! Shades of his mentor-role in Higher Learning, nobody exudes that aura of quiet intensity than Mr. Fishburne. His character, battle-scarred but always composed Morpheus, is given an extra dose of mortality (He loves Neo to a fault.) only Mr. Fishburne can flesh out.
People will say what they want to say about how good The Matrix is but the bottomline is this: finally there's a philosophical film that has cut through this generation. My generation. The Wachowski brothers probably scribbled a little P.S. note when they finished the script saying: THINK FOR A MOMENT ABOUT YOUR EXISTENCE. What is the Matrix, you ask? Something that's closer to reality than you think.
Either that or it's my personal choice for best film of all-time.
Hollywood has had some problems combining form and matter in the sci-fi genre. There have been a lot of visually stunning works but nobody cared about the hero. (Or nobody simply cared about anything.) There a few, though, which aroused interest and intellect but nobody 'ooh'-ed or 'aah'-ed at the special effects. With The Matrix, both elements are perfectly en sync. Not only did we want to cheer on the heroes to victory, we wanted them to bludgeon the opposition. Not only did we sit in awe as Neo evaded those bullets in limbo-rock fashion, we salivated.
But what makes The Matrix several cuts above the rest of the films in its genre is that there are simply no loopholes. The script, written by the Wachowski brothers is intelligent but carefully not geeky. The kung-fu sequences were deftly shot -- something even Bruce Lee would've been proud of. The photography was breathtaking. (I bet if you had to cut every frame on the reel and had it developed and printed, every single frame would stand on its own.) And the acting? Maybe not the best Keanu Reeves but name me an actor who has box-office appeal but could portray the uneasy and vulnerable protagonist, Neo, to a T the way Reeves did. But, come to think of it, if you pit any actor beside Laurence Fishburne, you're bound to confuse that actor for bad acting. As Morpheus, Mr. Fishburne is simply wicked! Shades of his mentor-role in Higher Learning, nobody exudes that aura of quiet intensity than Mr. Fishburne. His character, battle-scarred but always composed Morpheus, is given an extra dose of mortality (He loves Neo to a fault.) only Mr. Fishburne can flesh out.
People will say what they want to say about how good The Matrix is but the bottomline is this: finally there's a philosophical film that has cut through this generation. My generation. The Wachowski brothers probably scribbled a little P.S. note when they finished the script saying: THINK FOR A MOMENT ABOUT YOUR EXISTENCE. What is the Matrix, you ask? Something that's closer to reality than you think.
Either that or it's my personal choice for best film of all-time.
- mambubukid
- Sep 18, 2000
- Permalink
Everything New on Paramount+ in December
Everything New on Paramount+ in December
Freshen up your Watchlist with the latest selection of streaming movies and TV shows coming to Paramount+ this month.
Details
- Release date
- Countries of origin
- Official sites
- Language
- Also known as
- Matrix
- Filming locations
- Nashville, Tennessee, USA(exterior scenes: skyline in opening Trinity rooftop chase)
- Production companies
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Budget
- $63,000,000 (estimated)
- Gross US & Canada
- $172,076,928
- Opening weekend US & Canada
- $27,788,331
- Apr 4, 1999
- Gross worldwide
- $467,840,449
- Runtime2 hours 16 minutes
- Color
- Sound mix
- Aspect ratio
- 2.39 : 1
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