The Matrix set a new standard and transformed scifi action films winning Oscars for its technical verisimilitude. Director/cowriter Lana Wachowski revisits the series with The Matrix Resurrections, a clever update that brings back familiar storylines, characters, and twists.
Thomas Anderson (Keanu Reeves) is a computer game programmer whose Matrix game is drawn from his memories. His regular trips to the coffee shop often coincide with a married mother named Tiffany (Carrie-Ann Moss). The two feel a connection, and when a figure appears from Thomas’ past, it sets things in motion for a radical reassessment of their reality. And so begins a rediscovery of their past and the seeds to a new beginning.
The conceit here is The Matrix, a self-aware reflexive game with references to the real world, is the very essence of the film’s narrative while reimagining the past as present and future with iconic moments reenacted or referenced in quick flashbacks and familiar characters in new iterations. Neil Patrick Harris and Jessica Henwick are good additions, but the real draw here is seeing Reeves’ Neo and Moss’ Trinity reunite. The power of love is a mighty powerful thing, and their bond is what drives the story.
Action scenes which introduce new wrinkles to ‘bullet time’ (from the original film) are well done, but the novelty has worn off to a degree. Further, the hand to hand combat, while proficient, misses the world class, exotic fight choreography from earlier Matrix films. Finally, the absence of Matrix stalwarts, Laurence Fishburne and Hugo Weaving, is noticeable.
Considerable plot points are packed into the film, and not everything makes sense the first time; it requires repeated viewings to understand its intricate narrative. It is better than The Matrix sequels? Yes, but nowhere near the original.
*** of **** stars
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