“You take the red pill - you stay in Wonderland and I show you how deep the rabbit-hole goes.” Morpheus (Lawrence Fishburne) THE MATRIX (1999).

When THE MATRIX came out in 1999, it woke us all up in a surrealistic way. It waved the cinematic cyberpunk banner proudly while covertly flying another inclusive flag, spawning a deep franchise that included two film sequels, THE MATRIX RELOADED and THE MATRIX REVOLUTIONS (both in 2003), as well as three videogames, an animated film THE ANIMATRIX, and several comics. We hear about the Marvel Cinematic Universe, the Star Wars Galaxy, the Wizarding World of Harry Potter, but then there’s the Matrix. It’s not a universe, galaxy, or world. It’s the Matrix. And it’s a metaphor that’s still relevant today.

THE MATRIX grappled with themes of shared reality, identity and transformation, a surreptitious allegory for the Wachowskis coming out as transgender. It was covertly LGBTQ inclusive long before that acronym entered the popular vernacular. Between the release of the first film and now, brothers Larry and Andy both transitioned to become sisters Lana and Lilly. They worked together on several more projects, notably for KungFuMagazine was the attempted ninja franchise launch NINJA ASSASSIN (2009). Many of their works subtly explored gender themes. Others weren’t so subtle. Their last project together was the Netflix series SENSE8 (2015-2018) which was extremely LGBTQ woke and was very martial arts inclusive to boot.

On December 18^th, THE MATRIX RESURRECTIONS was held in San Francisco’s historic Castro theater in the heart of SF’s LGBTQ neighborhood. The cast and crew in attendance. Instead of a traditional red carpet, it was green. The city by the bay celebrated by turning Matrix green and lit a show of fireworks. Beyond that, San Francisco lit up its landmarks – City Hall, the SFO airport, and Coit Tower – with that glowing Matrix green.

If that seems like an extraordinary feat of Matrix municipal manipulation, note that SF mayor London Breed was present at the premiere. She also has a small cameo in THE MATRIX RESURRECTIONS as Calliope, but blink and you might miss it.

But back to Matrix green, it’s a reference that might escape the present generation. Green computer text is an artifact from when all computer screens were CRTs (cathode ray tubes). Green is the center of the color spectrum for projected light – the G in a ROYGBIV rainbow – so it became the default color for text on CRTs. Today’s monitors are dominated by LCD and LED formats which don’t default to green anymore. Matrix green is one of the few dated technologies in the original trilogy (the other major one is the Nokia flip phones but those are abandoned in this reboot).

Nevertheless, the original films hold up extremely well. The first film remains a groundbreaking classic. The sequels – which are really more like one long story split into two films – aren’t as strong and get bogged down in gratuitous special effects. Those were spectacular back in the day but have been long eclipsed by present day technologies. The ‘real’ world outside the Matrix, while a spectacular fantasy landscape (designed by Geof Darrow, the artist behind the stunning SHAOLIN COWBOY graphic novels), isn’t as intriguing as the everyday Matrix world where rules can be bent.

THE MATRIX RESURRECTIONS updates the effects to today’s standards, but it also gets too self-absorbed in them in the second half of the film. The first half is a clever spin on what the Matrix holds for Neo (Keanu Reeves) and Trinity (Carrie-Anne Moss). It’s a witty reboot. But when things explode and they are propelled back into the ‘real’ world, it gets muddled by Matrix logic just like the two sequels.

Lana Wachowski spoke eloquently about her love of San Francisco and the Castro theater at the premiere (Lilly did not work on the new reboot). The first feature film by the Wachowskis, BOUND (1996) premiered at the Castro in the LGBTQ Frameline Film Festival so the theater and SF hold a special place in her heart. THE MATRIX RESURRECTIONS is a shining postcard to SF with panoramic magic hour shots that are so beautiful that the players comment on it repeatedly. According to THR, Wachowski said at the premiere “When I was in high school and I was struggling with my identity, I would run to the movies for popcorn, sticky floors and a kung fu movie, and everything seemed like it was going to be OK.”

Reeves and Moss reprise their original trilogy roles of Neo and Trinity and their connection remains heartfelt. The scenes they share have such chemistry that it seems as if no time has passed. A few cast members from the sequels return too, including Jada Pinkett Smith (Niobe), Daniel Bernhardt (Agent Johnson), and Lambert Wilson (the Merovingian). There are also few key swaps: Morpheus (Yahya Abdul-Mateen II replacing Fishburne), Agent Smith (Jonathan Groff replacing of Hugo Weaving), Sati (Priyanka Chopra Jonas replacing Tanveer K. Atwal). Given how SPIDER-MAN: NO WAY HOME reassembled so many former cast members, some of the swaps fall short in comparison. Others make sense in that Matrix logic way. The threequel gave the Matirx franchise ample latitude to make swaps.

THE MATRIX RELOADED was the final role for Gloria Foster, who died of diabetes between production of parts 2 and 3. She had played the Oracle in the first two films and was replaced for the third by Mary Alice. That new Oracle offered an explanation that blamed it on the Matrix, which is the ultimate excuse for any discrepancies and totally justifiable. Once again, Matrix logic bends the rules.

Chopra Jonas taking over for Atwal makes some sense too. Atwal was a child in THE MATRIX REVOLUTIONS and THE MATRIX RESURRECTIONS takes place decades after the original trilogy both in reality and within the story. She only logged one more acting credit after her work on the Matrix, an appearance in an episode of THE OFFICE. Replacing her with Chopra Jonas brings a lot of star power. Beyond her work in QUANTICO (2015-2018) and BAYWATCH (2017), she’s a well establish Bollywood actress with some 80 acting credits on IMDB. Her inclusion entices that potential Indian market.

Coincidentally, Reeves returned to his breakout film role of Ted in BILL & TED’S EXCELLENT ADVENTURE (1990) with the threequel, BILL & TED FACE THE MUSIC in 2020. In retrospect, that now seems like another iteration of the Matrix. Perhaps Ted is Neo in another program, one where he takes the blue pill. Think about it.

Just like the first trilogy, any LGBTQ nods are on the sly. The same is true for the obvious symbol of red and blue pills, given today’s political climate. There’s passing mention of skies filled with rainbows and the power of sheeple, but THE MATRIX RESURRECTIONS audiences can blissfully enjoy the film without paying much attention to any such proselytizing. On the surface, it can be grist for the mill of any political stance. But deep down in that rabbit hole, as Neo said, the Matrix is “a world where anything is possible.”

Fast Forward to the Fight Scenes

When it comes to fight scenes, THE MATRIX was a game changer. It borrowed liberally from Hong Kong action, not just Kung Fu films but also the triad gangster genre where double-barreled slow motion firefights and bullet time were already mainstays. When THE MATRIX came out, Hong Kong cinema was on fire. In 1997, the Hong Kong handover returned sovereignty from 156 years of British rule back to China. Given China’s controlling stance on media, local filmmakers were worried that the Chicoms would shut down their unique and thriving film industry. Hoping to catch global attention, many Hong Kong filmmakers put out their most extreme visions around then just in case they were forced to immigrate to continue to pursue their craft uncensored. So, they went for it.

It was a tremendously productive period for Hong Kong cinema that produced many truly edgy and groundbreaking films. Emerging from the fray was Yuen Woo-Ping. Yuen was one of the Seven Little Fortunes, trained in traditional Chinese opera from childhood, and a Kung Fu brother of Jackie Chan, Sammo Hung, and Yuen Wah (recently seen in SHANG-CHI AND THE LEGEND OF THE TEN RINGS). Chinese opera has a lot of Kung Fu in it, and when it was losing popular appeal, these stringently trained performers moved into filmmaking to become the founding fathers of Hong Kong action.

The Wachowskis are fans of the Hong Kong genre and headhunted Yuen Woo-Ping for their Kung Fu choreographer in THE MATRIX. Yuen resisted – he had not heard of them or Keanu Reeves for that matter – and was doing fine making Hong Kong films. By 1999, he had already amassed 25 directorial credits and along with several more choreographer and acting credits. But the Wachowskis were relentless and eventually made Yuen an offer he couldn’t refuse. It was a turning point in his career.

THE MATRIX propelled Yuen into the Hollywood spotlight, earning him the notoriety as the world’s top fight choreographer on both sides of the Pacific. His next Hollywood film was the Academy-award-winning CROUCHING TIGER, HIDDEN DRAGON (2000). He returned to choreograph the two Matrix sequels, but in between he worked on another significant Hollywood martial arts film, the grindhouse homage KILL BILL: VOL. 1.

Disappointingly, Yuen is not involved in THE MATRIX RESURRECTIONS.

As action choreography goes, another notable result of THE MATRIX came from Reeves stunt double, Chad Stahelski. A kickboxer with Jeet Kune Do roots, Stahelski got a raise in the sequels to become the Martial Arts Stunt Coordinator and continued to work with the Wachowskis on successive projects like V FOR VENDETTA (2005), SPEED RACER (2008), and NINJA ASSASSIN. In 2014, he found his seat the director’s chair for a new franchise starring Reeves, JOHN WICK. He has directed the whole Wick franchise, with more to come. Stahelski has a role in THE MATRIX RESURRECTIONS playing ‘Chad.’ It’s one of the well laid Easter eggs for action fans.

The replacements for Yuen and Stahelski have big shoes to fill. Jonathan Eusebio is the Stunt Coordinator. He’s a seasoned veteran of the action trade having choreographed actioners like V FOR VENDETTA, THE AVENGERS (2012), THE BOURNE LEGACY (2012), TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES (2014), the John Wick films, BIRDS OF PREY (2020), and many more. Joshua Grothe is credited as the Fight Choreographer. A stuntman by trade, he previously worked with the Wachowskis on SENSE8 where he directed some fine martial arts fight scenes, especially for the small screen.

Although Neo quips “I still know Kung Fu” in THE MATRIX RESURRECTIONS, the fight scenes fall short. Most of the fights are shot with a jiggly camera that covers for sloppy action. The emphasis is upon big slow motion falls as the characters crash through walls and furniture. Gone are the long shots with the actors unloading complex combat sequences without splices. The fights are standard fare for today’s superhero actioners. Given the impact of Kung Fu on the original films, it’s inadequate. We expected much more. It fails to measure up to Yuen’s work and the quality of gravity-defying fight choreography we’ve come to expect from the Matrix franchise. Even the twists on ‘bullet time’ feel like rehash.

Will THE MATRIX RESURRECTIONS reboot the franchise? How deep the rabbit-hole go? While the end feels final, so did THE MATRIX REVOLUTIONS. What’s more, the end-of-credits scene offers an absurd teaser, almost redemptive of the out-of-Matrix muddle. It’s offered as a joke, but it may be the film we really want to see.

The choice is ours.