Landmark film

Rating: 9/10 (9 November 2003)

I remember I saw this in the summer of '99 when the The Mummy and The Phantom Menace were also released. Although Star Wars was commercially more successful, I think The Matrix has left more of an influence on cinema since then. The combination of then state of the art special effects (I think it beat out Star Wars for the Oscar), spectacular Hong Kong martial arts, technophobia, and philosophical discussion over the nature of reality replete with quasi-religious overtones left an indelible mark on moviegoers. Though his performance is quite serviceable, the film wasn't dependent on Keanu Reeves to carry it. The rest of the cast is also efficient. On another note, I think I read somewhere that DC Comics writer Grant Morrison came up with the concept but according to him it was pirated by Warner Bros. which owns DC. Whatever the case, it goes without saying that The Matrix is a landmark film.