Why The Matrix Still Looks Like a Billion Bucks
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 21 ก.ย. 2024
- In 1999, The Matrix redefined sci-fi with groundbreaking visual effects, mind-bending philosophical questions, and action sequences that still leave us speechless. But why does it still look like a billion bucks over 20 years later?
In this video, we break down how the Wachowskis’ visionary direction, iconic bullet-time shots, and meticulously crafted color palette keep The Matrix looking fresh and relevant. We’ll also dive into the sound design to the philosophical depth that keeps this film ahead of its time.
Whether you're a longtime fan or discovering it for the first time, this analysis will change how you see one of the greatest sci-fi films ever made.
Hit play and get ready to follow us down the rabbit hole. 👁🗨
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It WAS subtle in 1999, because the green tint we all know was accentuated in the 2008 blu ray remaster so it fits more with the sequels. Originally the blue/green difference was barely visible, you can see what the film looked like in 1999 if you watch the 2018 4K remaster. The contrast and tones are different. Both version have their charm though.
The green and blue is intentional, and was present in 1999. You have to remember it was projected mostly on film (at least that's how I saw it). They probably added a lot more green later to make it easier to distinguish as well as to match the sequels, which are definitely more green. Which is better? Who knows?
The theatrical version definitely had richer, deeper blacks. The digital versions isn't as rich. Also, the Matrix was finished in 2K, as most films heavy on VFX are. Any 4K work can only be interpolated.
Anyway, none of this takes away from the effort and presentation of the film. Thanks!
@@wolfcrow Thank *you* 👍
And no-one will be able to accurately remember what it looked like in the cinema. They'll remember it as being greener and bluer than it was.
@@loganmedia4401 This is correct : no screen will perfectly reproduce those colors. Let's not forget that consumer screens almost always makes the color pop, especially back then. Laser Discs where incredibly colorful and contrasty, and the Blue Rays really pushed the digital look heavily when paired with TVs that boosted the saturation and contrast quite a bit on purpose. I don't think they had to go to the trouble of changing the actual color-grading.
Let's not forget all consumer TVs tend to be quite a bit more saturated than cinema screens, especially back when Blue Ray was pushing the digital look. The Laser Discs at the same thing going on just way over the top (although it does have it's charm) really locking onto that digital look.
That Trinity scene at the start was truly something to see in the theatre. Goosebumps!
Such a brilliant cold open!
Come to Sydney & see it for yourself
Never before or since have I been so invested in a movie based on that opening. It really grabbed your attention.
I sincerely thought she was the villain when I saw the opening.
The bass drop when we first saw bullet time…. Chefs kiss
When as a teenager I went to the cinema and saw a first scene with Trinity, I thought I was going crazy. I'm almost 40 years old and I still remember that feeling. I'm glad that I get chance to saw it in the cinema when there was no youtube and watching trailers was very limited. Thanks to this, I had no idea what adventure awaited me. For me, it's one of the best films of the twentieth century.
The Matrix was the greatest theater experience ever. The only movie i ever went to see twice in the theater.
I worked at a theater when I was a teenager and when the Matrix came out, I must have watched it like 20 times. It was so different and visually amazing when it first came out.
a sassy obese black woman refused to allow me to see the movie when i was 15.
Have to agree - the cinema experience in the 90's was something special, particulary as not many people knew what the internet was about. Most folks thought you were sketchy if you had your own e-mail account or used chat rooms - this was before search engines so essentially the whole thing was percieved as what we now call the dark web. That context was important at the time.
I still remember the moment the Helicopter crashed into the Building and the shockwave went trough the subwoovers and the whole cinema.
I remember when the trailer came out in 1999... I thought to myself "This looks great, but there's a new Star Wars movie coming out which will probably be even better". Boy was I wrong!!
To this day, I do not know the story of Star Wars and I am 40.
@@LewisDecodesAI Get yourself some popcorn and a free day.
I'm not sure why, but it doesn't keep my interest. I'm massively interested in robots, space and future tech, but Star Wars and StarTrek were never things that peaked my interest. @@zacgrierson
@@LewisDecodesAI only the original 70's film is worth it imo
No, you weren't wrong. They're both great movies.
"You're empty."
"So are you!"
Love it!
oh wow, i never realized the double meaning in these lines.
In the VHS version, you didn't see Agent Smith holding a gun as it was cropped out, instead it looks like he glares at the camera, toward the audience like "Oh snap" Hehe.
This line was taken from John Woos film "Face Off" with John Travolta and Nic Cage
I was 15 when The Matrix hit the cinemas and age restrictions in Germany are quite strict. So my friends and I forged our student IDs in order to get admission. Smartest thing I ever did!
You are so lucky you got to go! I was younger and had no way of getting to the theater then. I just watched the preview over and over 😅
I was 16 and I can say with confidence that it was the best time to watch that movie.
Another big factor for its success was the marketing campaign; I don't think I've seen a movie since that was marketed in such a smart way. I went into the cinema and I had no clue what "the matrix" was and even when I came out, I wasn't 100% sure I got it all right. I wanted to go back and rewatch the movie right away. 🙂
One of the best cinema experiences I've ever had.
I was 8yrs old. Mum had a cool, computer nerd friend who played Quake II and stuff, and talked her into taking me along. Bless that dude, forever. One of the best cinematic experiences of my life (besides seeing all of the LOTR trilogy at the cinema). I remember going home after watching The Matrix and was "dodging bullets" onto my bed lol. Neo became my version of Superman, kinda thing. Now, at almost 34yrs of age, The Matrix is still my favourite movie of all time; it's only gotten better as I've matured and have explored the concepts and philosophies as an adult. Fuckin' love The Matrix.
@@soulwarrior I find it always highly ironic when people had no idea what the matrix was, when the term Matrix for Cyberspace had been a thing in Cyberpunk for like about 2 decades at that point.
It speaks volumes how much more influential for the mainstream The Matrix had been when compared to Gibson or Weisman or Stephenson.
The fact that you put the thumbnail in the video with exact same words behind it in the video and in the same context, no bs, is such a pleasing move. Should be a standard on youtube, but hardly ever happens.
I second this! What a fantastic video. Thank you!
_"I ... hate ... this ... place."_
... this zoo.
... The smell
… If there really is such a thing.
One of the best villain speeches ever.
IMHO the message here is that the Matrix is an allegory to the capitalist career market. From the outside everybody wants in to get a good job with a salary, a sense of purpose (as repeated in 'Reloaded') and the pride of accomplishment. However once you are in it, you are coerced into doing very demanding things, sometimes morally questionable things to keep and push your career so you just want to be done with this important last task your boss asks of you and then have your retirement.
You can also see this in the movie Kate and Leopold when Leopold figures the (diet) food Kate is promoting isn't really good. Her answer speaks volume.
The Matrix is one of my favorite movies of all time. I've seen it a million times, but only recently did I notice something interesting - basically every shot does something unique and interesting, whether that be in the camera movement or the framing - they never phoned it in or settled for anything less than great. There are so many shots that could've just been static or uninterestingly framed, but they decided to go the extra mile and I think that really helps with the rewatchability of the film.
That's my main critique of Reloaded compared to #1, how many times they rely on shot-reverse-shot exposition scenes to get through the plot.
Every shot was meticulously planned.
@@Spenceley the best spiritual successor to the Matrix was Inception
@@Spenceley And then Matrix 4 came along and made all 3 look like the best movies ever.
what they did right is basically taking every legendary scene from anime ( especially GITS ) and somehow put it into a movie. plus I remember the trailer and nobody knwe what the matrix was. simply incredible
Probably the last time a film truly gave us something we haven't seen before.
FR
Indeed
What about the fast and furious franchise ... 🤭
Avatar did something new with its visuals. Too bad everything else about it was uninspired.
What makes The Matrix great is that it was impressive on every front.
@@korakys Honestly, Tron was the movie that had me way more impressed with 3D than Avatar, and much more fun IMO. I like Avatar, as landmark cinema, and to a lesser degree, as a film, but for me Tron: Legacy to this day is still the most incredible 3D experience I have had. My mind was blown. As for landmark cinema, Tron and Avatar are still up there, but The Matrix, Alien and Star Wars are the most groundbreaking things ever to hit theatres. The Matrix is one of my favourites and I was a big fan growing up. The Animatrix compliments it nicely. I wish we could get media on that level again, deep with action and visuals and a banger OST. Miss those times like hell.
One thing that is refreshing when rewatching the original movie is how Trinity actually looks and acts human. She shows emotion, fear, panic, anger etc. You can see her eyes and connect with her character. Idk why but in the sequels they told Carrie Ann Moss to maintain this robotic, stone face and never remove her sunglasses. One of The Twins has a razor blade to her throat: 😐, an agent is strangling and pummeling her in the face with punches: 😐. A lot of the characters in the sequels have this robotic, "prop" look to them. In the first movie they all looked and felt more natural. 5:42 look at Switch, Apoc, and Trinity in the scene where Cypher betrays everyone. You can see their eyes, they emote and have facial expressions. They appear human. Trinity was like a dead fish in nearly all the matrix scenes in the sequels. Idk what happened with the direction of those movies.
Maybe because her acting is so fake in the first film.
@@loganmedia4401re read the comment again.
I had the biggest crush on Trinity.
It's a subtle message to the audience that the film is a soulless money grab sequel.
She was emotional in the real world, but I would agree that the character could have been more involved 'looking', considering what she risks in the Matrix.
When this came out in 1999 you couldn't really tell what you were getting yourself into. You sat through the usual ads, ate your popcorn... and then the Trinity kick sequence _kicked in._ That's when you knew this was not going to be a yet another watch and forget kind of flick. What a masterpiece.
For me the subtle marketing of this film really worked. I'm not sure if I was just lucky, but I heard just enough about it to make me want to see it, but also very little about the plot. The line "What is the matrix?" was thrown out there. When I actually saw it in the cinema I was blown away. It was so revolutionary for it's time.
I was 18 at the time, and the marketing was indeed subtle, probably too subtle to the point where it nearly helped tank the film. If I remember correctly, it didn't actually do too well in the box office and took a long time to build up steam. To this day, I STILL regret not seeing it in the cinema.
One of the few times I left the theater more excited than when I went in.
Another time was after watching Contact.
Those are the only two movies I've felt awestruck by.
No one I know shares my love of "Contact". Same with "Arrival" and "The Man From Earth". Now I am obsessed with "Dune 2".
@@srhintz dune is complete teenage crap, didn't even fisnish.
@@armandb.8737 Porkies was teenage crap. Dune is a great adaptation of a great story. What was crap?
@@srhintz Both Contact and Arrival are two of the best sci-fi movies I've ever seen. There's another one you might like called Another Earth. It's an independent film, but very well done, and the story is damn good. I would love for you to watch that, if you haven't already, and come back here and let me know what you think of it.
To this day it is the only movie I have come out of the cinema awe struck.
I went back the next day to watch it again.
Same
The matrix changed the way we colour grade movies forever. It was a masterpiece.
The Matrix and Fight Club have both aged incredibly well.
I am Jack's complete lack of surprise.
Fight club doesnt reach nowehere near the level of Matrix sorry, its kind of disrepectful to even mention it when talking about Matrix.
@@sisqobmx I was meaning that the visual effects of Fight Club look very good even today. I brought up both because they both released in 1999.
@@sisqobmx They are insanely apt comparisons, both The Matrix and Fightclub are made by LGBTQ+ folk with LGBTQ+ themes that go right over dude-bro's heads when they try co-opting said themes for their dumbass homophobic nonsense. Ffs, Fightclub is blatantly about the dangers of toxic masculinity and how that can lead men down the wrong path and they *still* refuse to get it.
@@sisqobmx they had a similar tone in lighting and soundtrack. they were both very much in the Office Space 'reject the status quo' trend of the time. they both broke out into a sort of alternative media universe with comics and such. it makes plenty of sense to bring them up in context of each other or 1999 culture.
Amazing video, the fact Wachowskis achieved all of this in the '90s shows their technical prowess. Their first movie Bound laid the foundation for the Matrix, in Bound we can see all the stylistic choices of the Wachowskis that were reused, refined and improvised on the Matrix trilogy. I still wish Wachowskis made Assassins though, the original screenplay feels far more terrifying and shocking than the movie Richard Donner made.
Bound was just a request by WB to prove they can direct a movie. They had everything figured out already for The Matrix.
@@saturn_fpv You are both right and wrong.
Where you were wrong:
"The popular mythology is that Bound was an audition piece for the Wachowskis to secure the job of directing The Matrix - an idea that caused both Andy and Lana to roll their eyes. "Joel made that up," Lana said with a sigh. Instead, after metaphorically washing their hands of Assassins, the Wachowskis said they decided to focus on making their directorial debut. The film was a sleek - and relatively inexpensive - neo-noir thriller about Violet, a gangster's moll (Jennifer Tilly) who starts an affair with Corky, a butch ex-con (Gina Gershon). Together, they scheme to steal a fortune from the mob and pin it on Violet's boyfriend Caesar (Joe Pantoliano)."
Also, we should not forget that only during the filming of Bound did the Wachowskis get acquainted with Don Davis, Bill Pope, Joey Pants and Dane A Davis.
Where you were right:
"The Wachowskis actually wrote The Matrix before they wrote Bound. They initially conceived it as a comic book, but as they showed the script to their friends, they realized the material demanded more dynamic visuals."
www.buzzfeed.com/adambvary/the-wachowskis-jupiter-ascending-the-matrix-cloud-atlas
The stylistic choices may have been theirs, but the technical prowess that made the look and effects possible was not. The Wachowskis are undoubtedly to blame for the much weaker second film and the abysmal third.
Big part of this was Joel Silver as producer. He goes back to Warriors, and many other big action movies including Die Hard, Lethal Weapon, conspiracy theory, swordfish, commando, predator etc, he also was producer behind last good movies from Wachewski - V for vendetta and Speedy Racer. Without him Wachewski never managed to do anything good. Also if you would watch latest of Joel movies - Roadhouse remake, you will notice that it looks and feels more blockbusterish and epic (just compare combat choreography in roadhouse and matrix 4 and you will understand that it was Joel who pushed boundaries in Matrix production and wanted everything to be perfect, this man pushed actor to real fight with real fighters just for 5 minutes footage in movie, surely only he can come up with idea to build few kilometers of real road for matrix 2 just to make 10 minutes footage of chase scenes look realistic and perfect, this is something you can't see in matrix 4 without him) that recent failure of wachewski called Matrix 4, which shows that oversight and producer vision of Silver was big part of what made Matrix trilogy so great. Actually you can find original Matrix draft and Joel Silver critical notes to Wachewski about what works and what doesn't work in original Matrix draft from 1994, and you can see big difference between what Wachewski wrote before Silver input and how they rewrote it under his influence and with his input. Original matrix draft felt more like some Terminator in future and felt less original that final movie. So we all should thank Joel Silver for what Matrix become and should stop giving all praise and credits to Wachewksi only. Also Joel Silver managed to bring all the best professionals from Hollywood to production and Matrix was also good because everyone from camera man to prop and cgi artist and even sound designer and music composers was the best and most talented professionals in industry back in the day, and Joel wa ready to invest tons of money on best people, and that played a big role as well. Yet again Matrix 4 without Joel didn't manage to assemble all the best Hollywood professionals and felt very amateur and cheap without Joel, and wachewski writing was real crap without his critical input in Matrix 4. There was nobody behind their back to tell them that it doesn't work and they should do this and that to make a better movie, and should hire all old crew of professionals to make matrix 4 better.
@@ashwaths Buzzfeed lol..
The #1 greatest science fiction film was released in 1968? You are absolutely right! It's good to see other people can appreciate "Barbarella: Queen of the Galaxy" as much as I do.
Its such a classic!
Don't be kidding. We all know he meant Planet of the Apes.
@@lajya01 2001: A Space Oddysey
@@null_state no it's Barbarella
@@null_state Space Odyssey is not a good movie. There's a few interesting concepts, and it's a classic. But I would not call it a good movie, since it is painful to watch: it is painfully slow-paced. Some scenes can be watched in 4x speed - and they still feel boring.
It's impossible to communicate the feeling of seeing this in the theatre for the first time when it came out. I was 19 and everything about it blew my young mind. I'd had the Internet for a few years but it's nothing like it is now so information wasn't anywhere close to as readily available as it is today so going into the theatre I knew almost nothing about it. I'd never seen a movie that messed with your head about what was real and what wasn't like this one. I'd seen Dark City which gave me similar feelings but this took that concept and really elevated it.
You'd have known very little about it regardless. They kept details of the film tightly under wraps.
Harsh Realm came out a month later than The Matrix, it was good but Matrix was a revolution. Still to this date I haven't witnessed any other movie that made the same impact. Before Matrix, The Terminator 2 had made that impact for me personally but still The Matrix is on another level and this comes from someone who loves the Avengers films, most of the Star Wars and majority of the new sci fi and fantasy movies.
If I had to rate movies, there would be a lot of 9s and 10s for me in the sci fi genre. However, none of them hyped me up and then delivered the way The Matrix did.
Avatar had the same hype, it wasn't as discreet as Matrix was but still it had the hype and I loved it, but it did not back up its hype.
Can't believe it's been 25 years! 😱
saw this on release in London one Sunday morning with a hangover. I didn't really know anything going in. just needed to relax with my double shot latte. It was something else, different, unique. right from the start was simply a remarkable film. unlike anything before it. I walked out completely overwhelmed. mind blown. a wow moment for sure.
I dont think there has been a mainstream movie as intelligent as this since its release
Manchester by the Sea
@@Garbageman28 my bad; should have been more exact: mainstream as in "action"
Inception.
Tenet is so ahead of its time .....people will appreciate it in the years to come
@@Skanda1111 great movie
This vid seems specifically timed.
_The Matrix_ is getting re-released in theaters for a 25th anniversary thing this weekend (at least, where I live). And since I never saw it in theaters, you can bet your ass I pre-ordered tickets and am gonna go see it on the big screen.
Oh lucky you!
I worked at a small software place our boss closed it down for the afternoon and we all went to see the premier. Very anticipated movie if you were into film...same fight choreographer of the matrix also did "Iron Monkey"
@@ironmonkey1512Never saw _Iron Monkey,_ but Yuen Wu Ping's choreography is incredible.
@@ironmonkey1512 Iron Monkey is such an underrated gem. I haven't seen it in at least 15 years (on VHS no less)! I need to find it, now 😅
Probably as an apology for how bad the last (thing we won't talk about) was that they gave us.
I replayed the metal detector scene over and over when I was a teen. I found it so cool.
Yeah me too, almost wore out the vhs😂
Matrix is one of the best movies ever shot. It suffered from its own success, being copied, homaged, and replicated. But Matrix is the OG, and while it builds on an incredible twist in the first quarter of it, it's still so amazing. Don't listen to any snobbish artist, and ignore the sequels. Matrix is perfect.
Especially considering when it was released we barely knew what the internet was or how it would affect society.
Just saw The Matrix at the movies for the 25th anniversary - Fantastic!! ❤
I remember that after first watching i could recall every scene in the movie. Wachovski's vision was unbeatable in this film
"Once the kids saw the colouring books they were sold" Great Line!
A somewhat major point of contention with your essay. The Matrix was *not* green in 1999. The film was re-graded in re-releases, but looked much more neutral in 35mm release.
Yep, it was done in 2008 rerelease for the original to match it with the sequels. A simple Google search and pretty much negates half of what this guy is talking about. Also calls him out on the lie of not actually watching it in theaters during its theatrical run.
@@totallylegityoutubeperson4170 I have loads of things i don't like about what this guy said. The one that really bugged me and sounded so condescending was this. "If you really understand the Matrix. You know it's a horror movie" 🙄 This guy doesn't know the difference between horror and thriller. Matrix has aspects of a thriller. But only in like 2 scenes. You could use the interrogation and what follows. But that's down to lighting and pace
I'm actually starting to really dislike this sort of content. These people think they can rewrite classic films to their way of understanding. Forgetting millions of people understood when they watched the film a million times over the years 😂 It's so annoying 🙄
BTW i'm old enough to have went the cinema when it released in 99. This guy is definitely lying about the colour 🙄
@@totallylegityoutubeperson4170 This idiot doesn't even know that the matrix is literally an allegory for what it's like to try and come out as trans. The writers/creators literally said so themselves. He's just another idiot that can't comprehend simple/basic physiological concepts.
You can’t expect TH-cam “video essay” channels to do thorough research, or if they do they’ll just disregard anything that contradicts the first draft of their script.
The Matrix was still green 1999, just a lot less green than the re-release. It was originally more subtle.
I think I was 14 when I saw this in the Cinema. It fucking BLEW MY MIND!
You are so lucky you saw it. My parents would not allow it but my older sister went and told me how cool it was lol
The green tint wasn't in the original theatrical release. It was added later on for DVD releases once the coloring technology had advanced to a point where digital color grading was becoming more widespread.
Even after 20 years, it looks like gold, and I know; after 20 more years later, it will be still gold...
The Matrix is (most likely) the last movie, where I came out from the cinema and truly wondered "How the [insert exclamation] did they actually do...most of the whole thing..."
Now you can, more or less, create what ever you want. But I have not seen ANY movie after The Matrix that filled me with such....awe...in both script, style and masterful execution.
Fury Road had the same "How did they do that?" factor I think
I'm 38 years old now and i feel like The Matrix is the last movie that really defined things on every level. Concept, music, art style, combat, characters, story..............Everything about this movie is memeable.
If you liked Matrix, Equilibrium was pretty badass too. Came out 3 years after The Matrix.
One of the last movies that didn't give into the slo mo hype but still crazy good.
Gun Kata!!!!
Equilibrium pales in comparison to the Matrix. Honestly it's like comparing lead with gold.
Oh I get that they aren’t on the same level. But it’s themes of questioning the reality around you, courage, challenging authority and the slow building the movie is working towards at the end - that’s an explosive moment. I’m 43 now but I remember watching it 20 odd years ago and at the time finding it pretty epic.
That being said I was all in with The Matrix.
@@vice.nor.virtue Hm k. You still liked both :)
The Matrix was still huge when Equilibrium came out, and that caused an unfair comparison between the two. Equilibrium was a great movie, and it may have borrowed some ideas from The Matrix with the way it was shot, but it should be judged just on its own merit, instead of how some people view it, by comparing it to The Matrix and the places it falls short.
I remember lining up at midnight to watch this in 1999 as a teenager. Only once before was I given goosebumps watching a great movie (Jurassic Park), and will never forget that feeling of not being able to comprehend what I just saw. I can only image this is how audiences felt when Star Wars first played.
Another great idea that didn't make it past the studios was that the machines used human brains as hardware for computation, like a massive organic AWS cloud system. I guess they didn't think cloud computing and server farms would make sense as a valuable resource back in 1999, so they went with the incredibly dumb concept of using human bodies as energy generation.
And let's not forget Gondry's 1996 Polaroid commercial for the UK
I think it should be noted the green tint, although with its own reationalization can't be separated from the original 'Ghost in the Shell' which the Wachowskis noted as a direct influence on 'The Matrix' and and a lot of their work as a whole.
That being said, 'The Matrix' is a seminal film, and I would say unparalelled in my lifetime. I was very young when 'Jaws' and then 'Star Wars' came out, and the blockbuster was created. There were movements, fashions and changes in technology but I can't remember or even think of film that not only blended genres (sci-fi, action, horror, martial arts) but made traditionally hokey concepts but though out, better presented and redefined the content that was acceptable in main stream films.
Its style, its thrills..its icon making legacy.
Great video.
Went to see it in a theater 8 times. When I went to film school afterwards, half the kids there, when asked said they were there, because they've seen The Matrix. The movie was insanely influential and brilliantly marketed. My former CG supervisor was a CG lead the Matrix movies. Told us many stories about what production was like, and how conditions were horrible for the first film. They didn't actually have that much budget to play with.
I frickin love that still-camera bullet-time rig. They used Canon EOS5 SLRs all wired together with a high speed panavision camera for the final bit of the sequence.
i remember leaving the theatre with my friends after it was over and people were like doing flips in the hallways, everyone was blown away and hyped. i was one of the few back then who had seen a lot of hong kong action cinema and anime. my friends and i were immediately recognizing the homages to those films. so fun. this was before the internet was huge and i literally knew nothing about the film going in.
The matrix wasn’t color graded with the matrix scenes in green and the real world scenes in blue prior the 2008 blu ray release, which is when it was remastered it to bring it in line with the thematic color grading decisions made in reloaded and revolutions
At age 12, our computer science teacher played this for us in class instead of following whatever he was supposed to per curriculum. I'm still grateful till this day.
Blade 1 had a little bullet time and it came out a year before the Matrix.
fyi, this entire video "essay" is pure BS, almost nothing he says is true. Including disregarding the fact that the movie was about being trans, lol.
Was it a still shot? There where some before. In lost in space (1998) and another space related film when they jump over light speed. But matrix bullet time was the first to show this in motion. AFAIK
@@evolicious the movie is about being trans? wtf 😂
@@evolicious He does talk about the trans angle in the video. Or are you against it being discussed?
@@evolicious the most ridiculous retcon in modern american history lol "sure, in retrospect, it's totally about our transitions. please keep us relevant and don't cancel us."
Chitty Chitty Bang Bang is also my #1 sci-fi film of all time!
The green tint was definitely an after-thought. The theatrical release was a distinctly colder/bluer
Yep. The VHS version of the movie has a warmer color tone and I think also the first DVD release.
But it's a change to the film that makes sense. But the guy in this video is wrong about what he was saying.
like 90% of the video, this wolfcow guy is making up BS for views.
One of the local cinemas here in Dublin showed this about a month ago, only born in 1992 i never got a chance to see it in the cinema, so i went half expecting it to have aged and be a bit cheesy.. Let me tell ya, its easily one of the best sci-fi films ive ever seen, its aged like a fine wine on the big screen.
I don't know how they did the entire building rippling when the helicopter impacted; that had my jaw on the floor as a kid just as much as the bullet time... and really hit home the 'simulation' part of reality, that all is not as it seems
It was a mixture of practical effects and cgi: th-cam.com/video/LlJ569CVGdE/w-d-xo.html
Computers most likely. Special effects had been using them to varying degrees for several years by the time this film was made.
@@loganmedia4401 yes, but the impact was a miniature smashing into glass :)
I'm a simple man. I see video praising the original Matrix, I click on it, watch the entire video, and like it.
I saw the movie during it's original run and went into it completely blind. It did not disappoint, not even for a second. I went on to see it two more times that evening and three more times that weekend, something I had never done before and since.
It was like everyone in theater was experiencing the movie through a connected consciousness . We were all synchronized in our amazement of what we were watching on that screen.
The original Matrix (to me) was something special and deserves all the praise and adoration it receives.
The Matrix had the best marketing campaign of any movie ever.
I remember the phone ads they had 6:02
I was queued up at my local phone shop to get the Nokia 7110 on launch day! It was iconic at the time.
One of the best movies ever made! I love the part when Neo needs to accept a cookie to get access to the Oracle :D
Holy cow this background video of this movie is amazing!
Speaking of sound, I haven't watched any other modern movie that has the swooshing sound of the bullet in slow motion and Agent Smith and Neo's punch sound effects.
Nothing has matched the effect of this movie 👌
I agree and there was also something different about the fighting sounds in The Matrix. It sounded like zippers pitched down and pitched down scratches on textured cardboard. What a sick film man.
@@Drfresh1402 ya very true!
I was 18 when it came out. It changed me. I saw it in the theater more than 25 times. I’ve watch it hundreds of times and it is still my favorite movie of all time.
1:17 the green tint started with reloaded and was edited into the first movie in later releases
Sad newer audiences had to have their hand held to tell
Go and watch it again lol 🤦
Just found this channel. Absolutely love it. Thank You! (about 2 dozen videos went into Watch later directly)
In 1999 in Poland movies were still premiering many months after their Western premieres. I still regret not seeing it in the cinema. I watched it with a friend on a pirated copy which surprisingly was in great quality (not some hidden camera recording).
You are right, I forgot Matrix was 5 months later in Poland than in US!
On the other hand in 99 it didnt matter so much, because we didnt have as easy access to spoilers and reviews as today - so most people werent thinking or hearing much about movies until they watched them in their country. And that was good - I hate whet nowadays my smartphone is bombarded with spoilers about movies I havent watched yet.
@@JohnSmith-lo8cn Exactly. In 1999 I didn't even have internet at home, I used internet cafes ;)
Just went to see the 25th anniversary showing, great experience. It's probably the last time I'll see it on the big screen in my lifetime.
Among the most recent movies I bought in 4K HDR Blu-Ray. Want to be able to show this to people when I walk with a cane.
I can't remember having fallen in love with an 8:15 minute long youtube video this quickly and wholeheartedly.
Everything about the film's production was exemplary. Costuming, lighting, music (!!!), props, casting, writing, direction, performances, color palettes (as you mentioned), character arcs, etc. AND DON'T EVEN GET ME STARTED ON YUEN WO PING'S INCREDIBLE FIGHT CHOREOGRAPHY. Boom... excellence on nearly every level. That's what exemplary storytelling is all about.
The color balance on The Matrix was originally way different, the greens & blues were understated, and nearly an exact imitation of Alex Proyas' film Dark City, which is an unsung influence of the entire Matrix "Trilogy". If you locate an original Matrix DVD you'll notice a huge change in the image. Bill Pope updated the color balance in subsequent releases to match the saturated colors of the sequels. Still waiting for a release of the original transfer.
Didn't he fix this in the 4K release?
I think they fixed the greens in the 4K release.
I very much prefer the 2018 4K blu ray version, the one Bill Pope actually came back for. Cinematography is way more subtle, offering a better contrast than the green painted one from 2008. Anyway, crispiest movie ever made.
i'm sorry but Underworld's blue light is just brilliant 🥰
I agree. Don't F with Underworld.
Yes, and it isn't arbitrary. It's part of the overall atmosphere of the film.
Totally agree.
100%
this wolfcow loser is just spitting lies for views, almost nothing he says is true.
When it came out, I went in the theater without any expectation at all, following my mates to see this unknown obscure movie. When it was over I was totally speechless, no movie ever has such a lasting impact.
Something to note is that the original color choices were quite less green than the ones shown here. Most of these shots seem to be from the 2008 Blu-ray release, this version has too much green in my opinion. The original scan and 1999 VHS/DVD release version have a much more balanced color grading, not as green, more like creamy yellow.
Yes! Also what I felt missing was a bit more about the use of grading. Not just green. As before Matrix using heave color grading was not so common
Agreed... too green. The original was better
Watching this at ten years old was honestly the best movie experience of my life. As soon as it finished I rewound the tape and watched it again ♥️
If the Matrix is the 2nd best Sci-Fi film, what is your first best pic? I've been a Matrix junkie since it came out, I revisit it every now and again even after hundreds of viewings. The 20th anniversary remaster in the Dolby Cinema was fantastic, I had to go twice, and it absolutely rocked me anew.
it's obviously 2001 space odyssey. And he said it by mentioning it was released in 1968 :)
For me personally it’s a close call between Matrix, Alien and Terminator 2
@@Gomtu Ah! A solid choice, I missed that clue!
@@artofsam I can get behind Alien for sure, but I prefer the OG Terminator personally. Also love T2 and Aliens. Bladerunner...
Blade Runner.
I used to live with an Italian and an Aussie housemates and we would watch the Matrix Trilogy every weekend. Never got bored.
For everybody, MATRIX trilogy and Animatrix were made when Wachowski were brothers.
They still are
@@jackofthelantern1545 In legal terms, they are no longer brothers, but at the time of directing The Matrix, they were brothers. But sites like IMDb like to defying history and as a directors of The Matrix they writing Lilly and Lana Wachowski with is so wrong. In many cases, people after transition, mysteriously want to rewrite the past.
@@welchianachi7707 Do you agree that Matrix 4 shouldnt exist? For me its disgrace to that trilogy. I also agree that all the sites should define directors of those movies like males except for the Matrix 4.
The Trinity kick scene was cool. But, for me, it was the helicopter crash kicking a WAVE through the glass building that melted my mind into a new era. No CGI has had a shock of the new like that since.
The movie did not have the green tint in it's '99 theatrical release. [insert "I was there, 3000 years ago"-meme]
It is very unfortunate how much this movie has been messed with in terms of color.
it did actually, but it wasn't as pronounced.
I remember the original movie poster and it was more grey blue
The same thing happened with the Lord of the Rings Blue Ray.
FYI - the 300fps camera was a Wilcam (not Wilcom) which was also used for shots in films such as Independence Day and Mars Attacks. I remember that camera being so fragile and delicate, that you’d make the sign of the cross every time you turned it on. It probably spent more time back in the shop in Yucaipa than it did on set.
In some instagram comments section I was talking about how most of the discourse around The Matrix is poisoned by the fact that the main audience who saw it back in the day were teenagers when they saw it, and they've never gone back and re-examined the trilogy and re-engaged with it. Yesterday someone replies to it with "it's not surprising, because it's made for 14 year olds." Which really tells you everything you need to know about the media literacy of modern audiences, and the level to which people engage with good filmmaking. No wonder a hot piece of garbage like Deadpool and Wolverine can earn a billion dollars in 2024, and why every big budget movie Hollywood churns out seems to be outrageously bad. Our audiences have just...no capacity whatsoever left when it comes to what makes movies good, from a narrative OR technical standpoint.
Ok so how does that explain the majority of films made for teenagers in the 70's 80's and 90s? I dont buy the teenager argument. It must lie more on higher level and such.
Also about the Matrix, was it really teenagers who was the main audience? I would like some proper linked stats to it. As I at least did not see it as focused so sharply on that viewer group. Just curious.
Also might I add, the should not be any need for the audience to understand the technical aspect of an movie. Not at all.
Man I was so down with this comment right up until it became “blame the audience for bad media literacy”.
The modern audience is a symptom of a larger dysfunction that combines global markets, no home video sales, and an entire cohort of writers raised on social media. It’s not just cinema, “art” as a medium of expression that can be shared widely through a culture is dead or at least dying.
@@Leathal That's a pretty valid take. It's just that I am desperate for audiences to do their part and to engage with this stuff, art in general, on some level that's not absolutely shallow. And you're right, the whole ship's taking on water fast but the people on top are only giving audiences what they want. The change has to come from the ground up, otherwise it's an endless feedback loop of crap that just ends with all mainstream art becoming less meaningful than the average Spongebob episode (not to drag on Sponge, GOATed show obviously).
Only the first Matrix film is actually good and even then the philosophy and ideas in it were nothing new.
Truly the greatest sci fi movie of all time.
One of the most prescient movies ever made.
I was in college, and I was taking Japanese so I could read the menus on the PSX games I was bootlegging for people. I wasn't super into anime but I loved Ghost In The Shell, so of course The Matrix blew my mind.
When I was in kindergarten Tron made me want to be a software developer and live in a loft over an arcade. The Matrix was similar but it didn't feel like it was about a computer nerd. It was just about a future where you needed to know how to use a Linux terminal and a Desert Eagle.
Looks a billion bucks because it was shot on 35mm both on-location and in-studio with actual built sets at the peak of CG & practical blended combos and it didn't use animated pyrotechnics, squibs, vehicles, richochets, muzzle flashes..etc. The Matrix Resurrections however was shot on digital to give it that actors-doing-cosplay look and on sound stages against green screen with the above mostly animated in post rather than captured in-camera so it was always going to look cheap and forgettable compared to The Matrix which you can tell immediately was photographed to give it that cinematic and timeless classic look.
It's honestly pretty difficult these days to make a movie look as bad as Resurrections. You might wanna watch The Creator. Digital can look great if done right.
@@noenken Agree that it can still look great (The Creator, Paterson, I'm Your Woman, Dragged Across Concrete) but it's still weightless and not even close to being as cinematic and timeless as celluloid. Digital visibly dates a movie very quickly, whereas if you watch movies shot on celluloid from any period, for example Lawrence of Arabia or Alien from long ago with Challengers or Oppenheimer very recently, both sets of movies have the same visually timeless quality to them, despite each set of movies having been made many decades apart. Looking at recent digital entries compared to their predecessors like Furiosa vs Road Warrior, Matrix Resurrections vs The Matrix, Jurassic World, vs Jurassic Park, Phase 4 vs Phase 1, The Hobbit vs LOTR, Horizon vs Open Range, Silent Night vs Paycheck, Moonfall vs Independence Day, The Dial of Destiny vs Raiders of the Lost Ark, Alien Covenant vs Alien and Fincher's The Killer vs Seven, the difference in visual quality is still very noticeable. Comedies and Horror movies especially have suffered from digital - I watched both 'Totally Killer' and 'Ghosted' last year and it just looked like actors doing cosplay vs movies in the same genres shot on film like 'Strange Darling' and 'Mr & Mrs Smith' which comparatively look like professional studio movies. Digital has slightly improved over the years though. 'I'm Your Woman' is the most impressive use of the format that I've seen so far. Some shots actually looked very close to film.
@@thetalentofIt took the film technology quite some time to mature. I believe that's what will happen to digital workflows as well. It will just need a lot more time. We are just not there yet.
The Matrix was such a philosophical + Sci-fi mix that no movie can ever do that
The latest one was a disappointment and an insult to the fans. Love the first Matrix.
I wonder why "fans" dont get it, specially with the interviews of lana online. Its a parody! And a truck off to warner brothers :D
A good chance to get the old cased together and have a great time ;)
The film to really end the trilogy.
6:47-This is a ridiculous statement, as the entire premise of the film violates the laws of thermodynamics. It doesn't even fit in its own internal logic: Why do the robots need solar power? Why not fossil fuels and nuclear power? The Matrix is every bit as science fantasy as Star Trek.
Science fiction doesn't have to be possible or feasible. There's a plenty of unrealistic movies that break basic rules - and are still considered sci-fi.
E.g. every modern movies involving time travel back in time shouldn't be considered true science fiction.
If you really want it explained scientifically sound within the universe, it can be done by introducing another "matrix" on top of the one we are introduced to. In The Matrix this is mainly a MacGuffin. It is a reason, granted a somewhat unrealistic/silly, for the robots to be dependent of us and keep us around. It could be a real thing in, but it doesn't have to be. Comparing it to Star Trek is valid, but The Matrix is more grounded in reality - both in tone and how it depicts that is (or isn't) reality.
The Matrix is my favorite movie of all time for many reasons and you articulated them brilliantly in this piece.
We would get along. Hands down my favorite movie also. And it blows my mind when I meet people who did not see it or dont care for it.
Larry and Andy hit the ground running and blew it all on this movie. This was the brother's absolute best effort and the peak of their talent as film makers and especially screenwriters. Major shame that they weren't able to do what Tarantino did: keep making great movies. I compare it to Ben Affleck and Matt Damon writing Good Will Hunting. That was their first and only attempt at writing a screenplay together and it had a "Matrix" like reception. Blew everyone's minds and won all the awards and made tons of money. Then they wrote "The Last Duel" and that movie bombed hard. The Wachowski brothers should've taken their chips and cashed them in. Because now their legacy won't even be film makers anymore, it'll be... whatever it is now.
pssst your transphobism is showing
The Matrix has pretty consistently remained my favorite movie of all time since it was released. Love videos like this!
As cool as the Matrix was, to me it was never as mind blowing as the T-1000 from Terminator 2 in 1991 and then Jurassic Park in 1993. Those were the 2 movies that made my jaw drop. By 1999, the Matrix stuff did look cool, but it didn't blow me away like it did other people. T2 and Jurassic Park were really the movies that introduced a mass audience to CGI, not The Matrix. There even some movies in the 80s, but they didn't do well in the box office. Plus even in 1999, that Trinity scene got parodied to death by so many other screwball comedies that it lost it's punch.
Yes, Yes, Yes.
I could go on, you got it right.
The Matrix was the most groundbreaking movie since Star Wars 1977.
Bigger in fact.
It's insane how this movie feels fresh and more relevant than ever today.
Because it was shot on film. End of video
lol, no
I saw The Matrix by myself in a small boutique cinema in Oslo months ahead of its Norwegian theatrical release. It was a so-called "Troll in a Box" screening - a cinematic blind date in which you would buy a ticket to go see a movie on a Sunday evening knowing it would likely be a good film but that is all you would know.
Since I had not even heard of the movie, to say that I was blown away by the opening scene with Trinity is a big understatement. I am an architect, a designer of virtual spaces for VR, and a lover of science fiction and The Matrix is my favorite movie and I have seen it more than a dozen times.
if only some director remake or reboot "Avalon" (2001)
Saw The Matrix in the cinema when I was 12 years old. Went alone because nobody wanted to go.
There was no youtube and I didn't see any trailer of the movie, I only saw a small picture of Keanu Reeves with a M4 and decided to watch it.
Boy was I blown away. I couldn't stop talking about the movie to all my friends.
I knew back then I had witnessed something very special, even though my little brain wasn't able to comprehend everything.
I live in Sydney and have visited a couple shot locations. I even have a photo of the staircase used by one of the hosts (the cat déjà vu?) at the Fullerton Hotel in downtown Sydney. I saw Matrix 1 (the best, although I have all four) at a theatre because I just couldn’t get my head around it. Even 25 years later I still enjoy every scene (especially Rage Against the Machine at the end). Good choice Wolfie!
The Matrix is one of those great movies that sets the bar really really high. Instant classic
I remember playing this soundtrack on loop for weeks! such a great influence for those who saw it as teens
I watched this in New York in a united artist theater, which was glorious. I couldn’t stop thinking and talking about it so I saw it two more times.
This is a movie that I will never get tired of watching
"Humans are a strange lot. We have the power to analyze & explore the world around us, yet panic as soon as the evidence threatens to violate our expectations."
-Frans De Waal
Timeless Sci-Fi classic. Great analysis!👍🏻
Back in 1999 ill never forget watching this movie truly jaw dropping visuals and story line plus the soundtrack.
"at least twice" is an understatement.
I watched this thing maybe 50 times now over the years and there's still little details about this movie that jump out at you after 10 or 20 screenings.