Back in 1999 I saw The Matrix at the same second run theater as I viewed Fight Club in, only The Matrix did not have much of an impact on me. In fact, it kind of bored me. The techno soundtrack, the overuse of slow motion, quasi-philosophical ramblings, borrowed Hong Kong wire work and bullet time, lurchy and impact-less fight scenes, I just didn't get the brouhaha of appreciation and never checked out the sequels. But it was a huge hit, raking in $470 million worldwide on a budget of $63 million. Cementing the status of an unlikely movie icon in Keanu Reeves, new outsider voices of The Wachowki's, black leather and sunglasses galore in future films (hello X-Men costumes) and dudes thinking black trenchcoats and boots was good fashion.
Cut to this month when we watched the flick again on DVD and plan to check out the rest of the sequels. My opinion has mellowed and I can appreciate some of the visual nuances The Wachowski's brought to the film along with blending genres and giving the film a very specific look. There's some great visuals for the sake of being visual but hey, it was the 90's. It's too bad Red Pill'ers has taken on a sad and negative connotation but at least Keanu Reeves is back in the mix after John Wick.
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