Movies The Matrix Resurrections - the first critic "reactions" are in

[Guest]

Had an interesting morning…
 

Well, all I can say right now is I am very excited to hear what everybody else thought of this. 

[Kal-El814]

4 minutes ago, sblfilms said:

Had an interesting morning…
 

Well, all I can say right now is I am very excited to hear what everybody else thought of this. 

 

YIKES

[Jason]

23 minutes ago, Mercury33 said:

Dont watch it. I still don’t 100% know what this is about but the last two trailers def give you a pretty solid look at the main theme. If you like that feeling of knowing I’d imagine discovering that theme for the first time while watching the actual movie would be pretty awesome. 
 

That being said, that trailer was INCREDIBLE

 

I don't really remember the second movie and I don't think I ever saw the third, without spoiling anything does it look like I need to catch up on those before watching?

[Mercury33]

7 minutes ago, Jason said:

 

I don't really remember the second movie and I don't think I ever saw the third, without spoiling anything does it look like I need to catch up on those before watching?

I’m going to cautiously say no, not yet. However, given what they’ve shown I’d say in the end it probably will be better to have a working knowledge of all 3. But seems like @sblfilms has seen the new one so he can probably answer that better. 

 

 

[Guest]

I can’t even say that I’ve seen it 👀

[Reputator]

Really seems like while The Matrix was a sci-fi action thriller with some smoke tent philosophy thrown in, this one seems like it's just going for full-on Nolan levels of what the fuck.

[Kal-El814]

11 minutes ago, Reputator said:

Really seems like while The Matrix was a sci-fi action thriller with some smoke tent philosophy thrown in, this one seems like it's just going for full-on Nolan levels of what the fuck.

 

In hindsight, it’s really difficult to see the original Matrix as anything other than the trans metaphor that it absolutely is, dressed up in a sci-fi action movie.

[Kamusha]

31 minutes ago, Kal-El814 said:

 

In hindsight, it’s really difficult to see the original Matrix as anything other than the trans metaphor that it absolutely is, dressed up in a sci-fi action movie.

I see it as metaphor that be read a few different ways, it’s just that only one specific reading has been confirmed by the Wachowskis.

[b_m_b_m_b_m]

maybe not spoilers because it's what I think based on the trailers but

Spoiler

trinity realizing she is the one and everything is repeating itself once again as it has before

 

[Kal-El814]

37 minutes ago, Komusha said:

I see it as metaphor that be read a few different ways, it’s just that only one specific reading has been confirmed by the Wachowskis.

 

I mean… that’s a pretty good reason.

[Kamusha]

45 minutes ago, Kal-El814 said:

 

I mean… that’s a pretty good reason.

 

I'm not saying it's not, but the discourse recently has centered solely around one interpretation while basically ignoring all of the other philosophical influences. It's a pretty rich movie with a lot going on!

[Brick]

4 hours ago, sblfilms said:

Had an interesting morning…
 

Well, all I can say right now is I am very excited to hear what everybody else thought of this. 

 

Would you guess we're going to get another The Last Jedi type situation again? You know, purely out of a guess since you haven't seen it

[Guest]

3 minutes ago, Brick said:

 

Would you guess we're going to get another The Last Jedi type situation again? You know, purely out of a guess since you haven't seen it

 

If I had to guess right now, based on not having seen it, I would say TLJ is more divisive than this film will be. I think the people who like this movie will *love it*, but I'm not sure that the negative side will loathe it and everybody involved the way the TLJ haters do.

[legend]

That trailer was working for me. Looking forward to this!

[Kamusha]

@sblfilms Because you haven't seen it yet, how much would you guess that the new trailer gives away?

[Jason]

1 hour ago, Brick said:

Would you say you need knowledge of the second and third movies to enjoy this one? You know, purely out of a guess since you haven't seen it

 

@sblfilms

[Greatoneshere]

7 hours ago, Kal-El814 said:

 

In hindsight, it’s really difficult to see the original Matrix as anything other than the trans metaphor that it absolutely is, dressed up in a sci-fi action movie.

 

I certainly agree but when I saw the movie when I was 13 I related to it as an outsider and an introvert. I think a lot of people related to the narrative of The Matrix, even though the trans metaphor is clearly there.

[Guest]

 

If you watch this and actually believe the story was crafted with the intent of being allegorical to transgender life, you are out of your mind.

 

Now certainly the inner feelings of the creators often find a way into works even on a subconscious level, but people are reading stuff into the first film in particular that are barely there if there at all. Revisionist interpretations are fun though.

[b_m_b_m_b_m]

had so, so many people in church (when it came out) RAVE about the matrix because it is OBVIOUSLY a christ allegory and no they will not be watching it again or updating their priors

[TheLeon]

I’m looking forward to this, and I was just thinking that I need to rewatch the trilogy (I honestly don’t remember if I ever watched 2 and 3 other than catching some scenes on TV) when I saw that my AMC is showing the original in IMAX this evening. A-List saves the day yet again! 

[silentbob]

2 hours ago, b_m_b_m_b_m said:

had so, so many people in church (when it came out) RAVE about the matrix because it is OBVIOUSLY a christ allegory and no they will not be watching it again or updating their priors

They should watch the films with the Philosophers audio commentary. I believe they discuss the spiritual presence and meanings they see watching the film. I don’t see the Trans theme in this movie but they are present on screen briefly here and there with extras

[ort]

sblfmlms just needs to use something like a Warrant Canary.

 

Make a post that says, I have never seen the 4th Matrix movie. And then delete it when it's not true.

 

Anyway, I thought the first trailer was great, but found the second one annoying. Not sure why, but it killed all my hype. I'm barely even into the Matrix. The first one is pretty good, and was visually stunning and very influential and important... but way way way overhyped.. The second two are just dumpster fire bad.

[Mercury33]

11 minutes ago, ort said:The first one is pretty good, and was visually stunning and very influential and important... but way way way overhyped.. The second two are just dumpster fire bad.

That’s a negative ghost rider 

[Kamusha]

11 hours ago, sblfilms said:

 

If you watch this and actually believe the story was crafted with the intent of being allegorical to transgender life, you are out of your mind.

 

Now certainly the inner feelings of the creators often find a way into works even on a subconscious level, but people are reading stuff into the first film in particular that are barely there if there at all. Revisionist interpretations are fun though.

She says in the video that she wasn’t aware of what she was doing at the time. This is super common with directors but also creative people in general. You can be working through stuff without even realizing it, but in retrospect it becomes more clear. It doesn’t necessarily matter if she was conscious of what she was doing or not. The subconscious mind is very active when it comes to the creative process.

 

She doesn’t really go in detail but there are other videos that do dig more into the trans allegory. I wouldn’t say it’s barely there, there is enough examples in the movie to write a formal essay on, but I also would argue there are other prisms to view the movie through as well.

[Fizzzzle]

There is also the feeling of being repressed, which covers all manner of things, from the intrapersonal, to the interpersonal, to the cultural, etc. That can fit into so many stories. That's why sci-fi/fantasy is so great, because it allows your brain to make of it whatever your brain decides to. Is it a trans allegory? A Christ allegory? A racial oppression allegory (yes, the main protagonist is white, but the main black character is the "liberator" to freedom... Though I guess that would make it more of an allegory for white people letting go of their racial oppression rather than the other way around? Idk). Any way you look at it, the answer those, the answer can be "yes "

[Reputator]

4 hours ago, Fizzzzle said:

There is also the feeling of being repressed, which covers all manner of things, from the intrapersonal, to the interpersonal, to the cultural, etc. That can fit into so many stories. That's why sci-fi/fantasy is so great, because it allows your brain to make of it whatever your brain decides to. Is it a trans allegory? A Christ allegory? A racial oppression allegory (yes, the main protagonist is white, but the main black character is the "liberator" to freedom... Though I guess that would make it more of an allegory for white people letting go of their racial oppression rather than the other way around? Idk). Any way you look at it, the answer those, the answer can be "yes "

 

Exactly. If it could only be read as a trans allegory, I don't think The Matrix would have had such a wide appeal.

[Guest]

7 hours ago, Fizzzzle said:

There is also the feeling of being repressed, which covers all manner of things, from the intrapersonal, to the interpersonal, to the cultural, etc. That can fit into so many stories. That's why sci-fi/fantasy is so great, because it allows your brain to make of it whatever your brain decides to. Is it a trans allegory? A Christ allegory? A racial oppression allegory (yes, the main protagonist is white, but the main black character is the "liberator" to freedom... Though I guess that would make it more of an allegory for white people letting go of their racial oppression rather than the other way around? Idk). Any way you look at it, the answer those, the answer can be "yes "

Quoted because I can only like it once.

[b_m_b_m_b_m]

7 hours ago, Fizzzzle said:

There is also the feeling of being repressed, which covers all manner of things, from the intrapersonal, to the interpersonal, to the cultural, etc. That can fit into so many stories. That's why sci-fi/fantasy is so great, because it allows your brain to make of it whatever your brain decides to. Is it a trans allegory? A Christ allegory? A racial oppression allegory (yes, the main protagonist is white, but the main black character is the "liberator" to freedom... Though I guess that would make it more of an allegory for white people letting go of their racial oppression rather than the other way around? Idk). Any way you look at it, the answer those, the answer can be "yes "

I hate metaphors. That’s why my favorite book is Moby Dick. No frufu symbolism, just a good simple tale about a man who hates an animal.

[Kal-El814]

12 minutes ago, b_m_b_m_b_m said:

I hate metaphors. That’s why my favorite book is Moby Dick. No frufu symbolism, just a good simple tale about a man who hates an animal.

 

A literal reading of The Whiteness of the Whale is the correct reading.

[Kamusha]

The first movie is basically a retelling of Plato’s Allegory of the Cave, which itself has been interpreted many different ways. So it makes sense that the Matrix can mean multiple things to different people.

[Greatoneshere]

12 hours ago, Reputator said:

 

Exactly. If it could only be read as a trans allegory, I don't think The Matrix would have had such a wide appeal.

 

I don't think anyone was arguing that it could "only" be read as a trans allegory, only that it's clearly there. I think the movie can be read numerous different ways, it's lasting nature in film history is proof of that.

[Fizzzzle]

I like what J.R.R. Tolkien had to say about the subject:

 

Quote

“I cordially dislike allegory in all its manifestations, and always have done so since I grew old and wary enough to detect its presence. I much prefer history – true or feigned– with its varied applicability to the thought and experience of readers. I think that many confuse applicability with allegory, but the one resides in the freedom of the reader, and the other in the purposed domination of the author.”

 

[Kamusha]

4 hours ago, Fizzzzle said:

I like what J.R.R. Tolkien had to say about the subject:

 

 

I suppose this was a point of disagreement between him and his friend C.S. Lewis.

 

As a writer myself I have no issue with allegory, but I do feel like any story should have to function well on the surface level first before the interpretation of the allegory is even implied. This is why the Matrix works is that even if you ignore the allegory, it’s just a compelling and emotionally satisfying tale on its own. It functions without it, but the allegory only enhances the narrative.

[Guest]

4 hours ago, Greatoneshere said:

 

I don't think anyone was arguing that it could "only" be read as a trans allegory, only that it's clearly there. I think the movie can be read numerous different ways, it's lasting nature in film history is proof of that.

 

At least one person is  

 

On 12/6/2021 at 2:08 PM, Kal-El814 said:

 

In hindsight, it’s really difficult to see the original Matrix as anything other than the trans metaphor that it absolutely is, dressed up in a sci-fi action movie.

 

[Kamusha]

It should be noted the Wachowskis refused to elaborate on the deeper meaning of the Matrix for years. They left it up to the viewer. It wasn’t until somewhat recently when Lana saw that other trans people were finding a lot of personal comfort in the story that she chose to be more open about this one particular reading of her story.