One of many issues I take pleasure in about being a journalist is that tales, concepts, and ideas can come from all kinds of locations: working example, when on a date and discussing the subject of flicks, it was introduced to me that The Matrix is a ‘comfortable’ film.
I cracked a smile at that; for many who don’t know thrust of The Matrix is that robots rose up towards people and enslaved our consciousness in a digital world whereas they use us as organic batteries, with the few individuals who escaped from the system now coming into the titular Matrix to free chosen people from this digital jail. From that premise, and the darkish, cyberpunk tone of the film, I’d by no means have thought to explain it as comfortable.
But then, as the discussion went on, I was brought round to my date’s thinking.
Ultimately, The Matrix is a happy movie as it’s got a lot of the archetypes of a viewing experience that one leaves happy and uplifted; the good guys win over the bad, Neo is ‘The One’ and a promised saviour, no one major dies, and the scenery-chewing Mr Smith gets ‘killed’ in a most satisfying way.
After all, there’s extra to this. In contrast to the successive Matrix films that attempted to hammer house the sort of philosophical chatter one would possibly anticipate from mildly inebriated college college students, the primary film was taught, fantastically shot, and classy, albeit in a really late-Nineteen Nineties means.
The pacing was on level, beginning with a younger Keanu Reeves as Mr. Anderson and his journey to grow to be Neo. On the time it was darkish, gritty, and had just a few challenges for these of a squeamish nature – the mechanical bug that enters Neo’s physique by his stomach button, and the waking of real-world Neo in a gross, nearly Giger-esque bio-battery pod – but this was then constructed up right into a really feel good second, the place Neo “is aware of Kung-Fu” and does job at heading off a more durable, extra skilled Morpheus.
All through The Matrix, there are quite a few ‘really feel good’ and comfortable moments all set at a satisfying tempo. Who can neglect the traditional “weapons, a number of weapons” second, the totally sensible and revolutionary bullet-time slow-mo hall shootout, Neo’s capability to dodge bullets, and the rescue of Morpheus? And naturally, the ending, which is mainly a cluster of heroic, air-punching scenes.
I may argue that, within the face of more moderen sci-fi/cyberpunk storytelling, The Matrix is a bit old-hat and nearly one-note. However then that’s what makes it a contented film: you don’t must overly work your gray matter to have an satisfying time. And its motion, digicam work, and route all stand the take a look at of time; I reckon the colour palette helps nullify any CGI that might look somewhat ropey in 2026.
So with all that in thoughts, and given January is taken into account to be a quite miserable month within the Northern Hemisphere, I’d counsel giving The Matrix a watch this weekend if you’d like a little bit of a pick-me-up.
It must be obtainable to stream within the US on HBO Max and Apple TV+, in addition to on different on-demand providers, and on Now TV within the UK in case you go for the Leisure tier.
Equally, for what it’s worth, may I suggest looking at grabbing The Matrix on 4K Blu-ray. I believe it is a type of films that may at all times be evergreen and price an addition to at least one’s bodily media assortment; in 4K, the motion ought to look quite crisp, too.
Try the widget beneath for any 4K Blu-ray deals on The Matrix in your space.
After which head to the feedback to let me know in case you agree that The Matrix is a contented film, and inform me what films you’d advocate as left-field comfortable, feel-good flicks.
Follow TechRadar on Google News and add us as a preferred source to get our professional information, opinions, and opinion in your feeds. Make sure that to click on the Observe button!
And naturally you may also follow TechRadar on TikTok for information, opinions, unboxings in video kind, and get common updates from us on WhatsApp too.
