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Movie Review: The Matrix Resurrections

Mike Tyrkus

While some may feel that the films that made of the original “Matrix” trilogy (The Matrix [1999], The Matrix Reloaded [2003], and The Matrix Revolutions [2003]) offer an example of something near a perfect trilogy that should never be tampered with, there was arguably a significant drop after the first film in terms of entertainment value and narrative cohesiveness that is addressed and corrected in the newest addition to the series – The Matrix Resurrections.

Convinced that there may be more to his reality than he thinks there is, programmer Thomas Anderson (Keanu Reeves) investigates whether the construct behind his bestselling series of games – “The Matrix Trilogy” – may not actually be a work of fiction. Of course, having been down this rabbit hole before, Mr. Anderson is wary of who to trust and what exactly he can believe is real and what is not. Of course, the audience knows precisely what Mr. Anderson does not and that makes the fog that the hero is in all the more entertaining as it is only a matter of time before he sheds his Matrix construct and becomes the hero Neo from the previous films. At least that is certainly what you might expect, but this installment has a few surprises that it manages to deliver with some surprising vigor.

Although the new chapter – directed by Lana Wachowski (working without sister Lilly for the first time in the series), and co-written along with David Mitchell and Aleksandar Hemon – may not be as cohesive or tightly constructed as the first film in the series, it certainly fares better than the second and third films in that it succeeds in delivering something new and not simply a retread of previous installments. There is also something refreshing about how the entire saga concludes (if it does, in fact, conclude with this film) that echoes the changing social landscape of the real world.

Keanu Reeves in “The Matrix Resurrections.”

Returning from the first few films, Reeves and Carrie-Anne Moss slip into the roles of Thomas Anderson/Neo and Tiffany/Trinity with remarkable ease as if even a day hadn’t gone by (which could, of course, be possible in the digital world). Unfortunately, other than Yahya Abdul-Mateen II role as a possible friend/foe, no one else is really given enough screen time to resonate as characters did in the first go around. That being said, there is something to be said about a film set in a game construct that suggests the audience already understands the characters onscreen and their motivations as they’re standard stock characters of sorts. Also, this is a story primarily about Neo finding his way and reconnecting with Trinity (if possible), so those other characters may just be of peripheral interest to the larger story anyway.

While this film has forgone the green hues that saturated the first three, the cinematography provided courtesy of Daniele Massaccesi effectively creates an identifiable paradox between the real and computer-generated world constructed by Hugh Bateup’s production design work. Again, the film feels more like a continuation of the saga than a simple sequel and that means the look and style of the film evolves, as does the story. That, is what may be most exciting about The Matrix Resurrections in that while is does offer the audience a return to a world they have previously enjoyed and were entertained by, it also manages to offer something new in a way that feels both organic and original to the overall story arc.

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Mike Tyrkus

Editor in Chief at CinemaNerdz.com
An independent filmmaker, co-writer and director of over a dozen short films, the Editor in Chief of CinemaNerdz.com has spent much of the last three decades as a writer and editor specializing in biographical and critical reference sources in literature and the cinema, beginning in February 1991 reviewing films for his college newspaper. He was a member of the Detroit Film Critics Society, as well as the group's webmaster and one-time President for over a decade until the group ceased to exist. His contributions to film criticism can be found in Magill's Cinema Annual, VideoHound's Golden Movie Retriever (of which he was the editor for nearly a decade until it too ceased to exist), the International Dictionary of Films and Filmmakers, and the St. James Film Directors Encyclopedia (on which he collaborated with editor Andrew Sarris). He has also appeared on the television program Critic LEE Speaking alongside Lee Thomas of FOX2 and Adam Graham, of The Detroit News. He currently lives in the Detroit area with his wife and their dogs.

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