The Matrix is one of the most well-known cyberpunk movies; I’m not going to argue its cyberpunk qualities. But 20 years after The Matrix was relevant, we got a cash-grab sequel in Matrix Resurrections.
My question to you is: Is there anything cyberpunk left in Matrix Resurrections? Or has the franchise been so diluted that what’s left is no longer cyberpunk? For example, in the first movie Neo was a hacker. By this movie, I really wouldn’t call him a hacker anymore. But maybe the themes of “what it means to be human” still remain?
wow, i am shocked at how bad everyone seems to think it was. it was definitely a significant shift from the original trilogy, but i thought it was still a pretty solid film on its own merits. also, definitely still cyberpunk.
I really wasn’t trying to make a “let’s all shit on Matrix Resurrections” post here. I was hoping for more of a discussion about at what point something stops being cyberpunk. I guess I misjudged things…
I don’t think Resurrections is a film that can be talked about plainly. Not right now, anyway.
It’s really interesting because it’s an almost objectively terrible movie, but it’s self-aware of that, as if it were mocking people for being interested in the first place, deliberately rubbing their noses in the carpet shit-stain they somewhat innocently paid to see. And so, it is a film that wields its audience as a weapon against the producers that forced its birth, and there is essentially no way this plays out without a lot of unbridled anger and resentment.
I actually like it for having the balls to be that awful. But for a lot of people, who simply do not care about the “broader conversation” this film sits within, there’s just nothing else to talk about but how boring that particular Sunday was for them.
Wanted to love it, watched it twice, don’t remember a thing. I’ve found that’s my criteria for movie critique, do I remember it the next day. May seem cool in the moment, I’m easily impressed, but did I wake up thinking, “Holy shit that was cool!”
Went to see the original 2 nights in a row in 1999. Yeah, woke up thinking it was cool.
Matrix Resurrections was Terminator Genisys bad. It took real effort not to look away from the screen.
The action was weak with constant slow motion and no impact. Neo spends the whole movie spamming force pushes. Trinity’s return made no sense and had zero buildup. Morpheus was turned into a meme. Smith was just some guy with no presence. The new crew was forgettable. The meta commentary was embarrassing and killed any immersion. It felt like the film hated being a Matrix movie and wanted out.
I’m pretty sure “hated being a Matrix movie and wanted out” is basically in the text of the film in the meta commentary at the beginning