[109758] in Cypherpunks
"The Matrix"
daemon@ATHENA.MIT.EDU (Tim May)
Sat Apr 3 13:18:35 1999
Date: Sat, 3 Apr 1999 10:03:53 -0800
To: cypherpunks@cyberpass.net
From: Tim May <tcmay@got.net>
Reply-To: Tim May <tcmay@got.net>
I saw "The Matrix" yesterday.
This won't be a review, or even a mini-review. Dozens of them are available
on-line.
I went in with no real expectations...I hadn't been following the buzz, and
I didn't even know it was done by the brothers who did "Bound" a few years
ago (the "Wachowsky brothers," or somesuch).
Basically, it's an "instant classic."
Not perfect. Nothing is. But every bit as good and as original as "Blade
Runner," which I had the same "instant classic" reaction to in 1982. And
"Terminator" in 1984-5, "Star Wars" in 1977, and "2001" in 1967.
The premise is not fully convincing, but it creates a bizarre world with
images from Heironymous Bosch (and vastly more realistic/believable than
the snoozer "What Dreams May Come" of last year). The "pod" scene is
amazing.
Even better are the fight scenes. Amazing.
All of the actors do a fine job, whether due to natural abilities or due to
nearly perfect casting. Keanu Reeves, who can be really bad at times, is
ideally cast for this flick. Carrie-Anne Moss, the female warrior chick,
will no doubt always be remembered for her latex warrior suit. (And
learning to fly a military chopper in a few seconds.)
Lots of great lines.
An original and unpredictable (to most viewers, it seems) plot line.
Not cyberpunk in the Raymond Chandler smoky bar sense, but in an even
better and more original sense.
Who needs to wait for the likely disappointment of a "Neuromancer" movie
when one is hit with an orginal and thrilling flick like this?
--Tim May
Y2K: Hope for the best, prepare for the worst, enjoy the ride.
---------:---------:---------:---------:---------:---------:---------:----
Timothy C. May | Crypto Anarchy: encryption, digital money,
ComSec 3DES: 831-728-0152 | anonymous networks, digital pseudonyms, zero
W.A.S.T.E.: Corralitos, CA | knowledge, reputations, information markets,
Licensed Ontologist | black markets, collapse of governments.
