The Wachowskis were not very well known when the Matrix was released in theaters in 1999. They had a movie come out before the ground-breaking action film, but otherwise they were practically unknown to most of the world. The Matrix was released on March 31st, 1999 starring some B-list actors and exploded into the phenomenon that we know of today. Reality was questioned, guns were shot and black leather was everywhere when the Matrix graced the silver screen, and it immediately became a classic.
For those who may not know, the Matrix is a film where the main character, Neo (Keanu Reeves) is the Chosen One who can defeat the oppressive regime that made the reality we know today to be an illusion. Keanu Reeves is comfortable in his role and absolutely kills it being the badass action hero that we all know and love today. Laurence Fishburne as the stoic Morpheus is awesome in his own right and the rest of the cast is really giving their all from start to finish.
The scene most people associate with the film is the slow-motion 360 degree spin of Neo dodging bullets. It’s been replicated to death and parodied in every way, but the fact that there is so much love given to one scene is a testament to the impact that it had on filmmakers all over the world. Today, the effects are vastly inferior to what we have today, but at the time, this was high quality effects that blew everyone’s mind. The imagination that it took to do something that no one had ever done before is truly admirable.
There is a lot more movie than just that scene, the action and visuals are so impressive that I would argue that they are still very good. The story is pretty predictable and formulaic, but I argue that if a movie is able to make the same story fresh and entertaining, the fact that the story is predictable should be an afterthought. The Matrix presents a highly entertaining movie where the entire landscape of Hollywood would be changed forever.
