“Is ‘The Matrix’ (1999) a good film?”
The Matrix (Wachowski, 1999) is an interesting film. I’ve personally seen it 3 times now, and yet I have a very difficult time recalling the events of the movie. I think it’s a good film and it has so many layers to it; you can pull something new from it every time you watch! But it is a very discombobulating movie.
The first time I watched it (when I was about 13), I was blown away by the effects and the performance of the cast. I grew up seeing Hugo Weaving in Lord of The Rings (Jackson, 2001) so I was incredibly conflicted seeing him as the villain, Agent Smith. He does a great job! Although I’ll admit, watching it again, I didn’t remember his acting being as cheesy as it truly was.
The second time I watched it, at age 15, I was scared. I didn’t like The Matrix when I saw it the second time. I didn’t remember any of the dark themes that are constant throughout this film from my first viewing. (I only remembered what a 13 year old would remember from a Keanu Reeves action film.) I was taken aback by the dissociative reality the characters lived in. I watched so intensely as Neo grew from a computer hacker, numb to life, into this kickass hero, dodging bullets. But it was so jarring to be pulled in and out of reality, I couldn’t enjoy it. It took me many years to realize why I was so scared of the film, but even before I figured it out, I really did not like this movie.
This week, I watched The Matrix for the third time. There’s many awesome moments and themes to pull from. I always knew about the “Jesus” complex of the film; with Neo being the chosen one to save humanity with his sacrifice. But learning about the correlations between Neo transitioning into who he was meant to be, and how that mirrors the trans experience, really resonated with me (as a trans-nonbinary person). Being able to more fully connect with the main character, really helped my understanding and dissection of the film.
However, I (like myself from 5 years ago) couldn’t really bring myself to enjoy watching this movie. I think the themes it portrays are so powerful, and I could talk about The Matrix for days! But I can’t enjoy the actual act of watching the film. I have trouble with dissociating from reality and so watching a movie that jumps between reality and not; watching a film that prides itself on blurring the line between actuality and a facade, is really difficult for me. I had to take constant breaks from the film to reconnect to my own reality and it made watching this two and a half hour long movie last almost 4 hours. It was a struggle to not be sucked into the characters’ world, and I suppose I can commend the acting along with the wonderful (albeit dated) special effects for being able to build a world so convincing and captivating, that I could slip out of my own reality.
All of this being said, I personally think that yes, the Wachowski sisters’ 1999 action film, The Matrix, is a good movie. It’s a gift that keeps on giving. Every viewing of this film has left me with different questions and impressions. Even the soundtrack was brilliantly well thought. (Yes, that grating soundtrack with Christopher Nolan-esc “wooom”s and electronic synths was done completely on purpose to help with world building.) It’s a great film that everybody should be willing to watch at least once.
“Did you enjoy ‘Jaws’ (1975)? Why or why not?”
I enjoy Spielberg’s “Jaws” to a certain point. I think there’s a lot one can learn from his film, but it’s not the type of movie in which repeated viewings are really necessary.
Yes, if you watch a movie multiple times, you will certainly pick up on more things each time. “Jaws” is no different and should be viewed a few times. However, I first watched this movie as a child, then again in high school, then again at a friend’s house, and then again for every cinema class I’ve taken. And in each class, I would dissect the film for a different reason, specific to each class. So I feel as though I have a pretty good grasp on this movie.
After watching it so many times in a year, it starts to become almost dull. That dolly zoom while Martin Brody is at the beach and everything starts to go wrong? It’s an awesome shot! It builds tension and brings you into the character's fear! But after seeing the movie 3+ times a year for 3 years, there’s no impact anymore. You hear the music swell and you just think: “Oh here comes the dolly zoom. Oh the kid is dead now? Alright.”
It’s like repeatedly watching a movie with a twist ending. After a while, the twist loses its impact.
That’s how “Jaws” feels to me. It’s an incredible movie with so many things to learn from and admire about it…but it’s lost its impact.
All of this being said, I still like the movie. It has some funny moments, some tense moments, and some scary moments. I just feel as though I’ve seen it too many times in close succession to gain anything by watching it again.
“Greatest Of All Time: 2000”
There were almost 4,000 films released in the year 2000 but of those 3,949 films, I believe that 5 made an impact on our society as a whole, defined my personal life, and showed how it felt to live during that year.
The Road To El Dorado (Bergeron, Paul, Katzenberg, 2000) is a movie about two con men, Miguel (Kenneth Branagh) and Tulio (Kevin Kline) as they stumble into an adventure to discover the famed city of gold: El Dorado. They befriend a horse and a fellow thief, Chel (Rosie Perez) as they find themselves being praised as gods by the citizens of El Dorado. They have to choose between a life of luxury and abandoning the city to save the people from evil conquistador, Hernán Cortés (Jim Cummings). The Road To El Dorado was released March 31, 2000 by Dreamworks alongside their award winning stop motion film Chicken Run (Park, Lord, 2000). Despite being nominated for 10 awards and being awarded Best Composer for Hanz Zimmer’s work on the soundtrack, it was considered a huge flop. It only grossed $76.4 million and was pulled from theaters after only 3 months as it couldn’t recover from its $95 million dollar budget. But in spite of its failure in 2000, it’s gained a resurgence in the last few years. However it was always a big part of my life.
I grew up in a family that was very particular about films and even more picky about animated films. So I was never introduced to animated films Bratz Fashion Pixiez (Fassett, 2007), The Simpsons Movie (Silverman, 2007), Chill Out, Scooby-Doo! (Sichta, 2007), or other animated films my friends were watching. But The Road To El Dorado was a huge part of mine and my sister’s childhoods. It was a brilliantly acted, wonderfully animated film with a fun and catchy soundtrack. This movie defined my childhood as my sister and I connected to Miguel and Tulio. At one point, we even had the entire script memorized! This movie truly
deserved more recognition. However, it’s not unprecedented that it had a difficult time in the box office, as Disney had released an animated counterpart to Dreamworks in the same year.
The Emperor’s New Groove (Dindal, 2000) follows a self centered emperor, Kuzco (David Spade) as he finds himself transformed into a llama by his power hungry advisor Yzma (Eartha Kitt). Kuzco learns to care about others from a humble llama herder, Pacha (John Goodman) and his family. The movie was a much smaller Disney release due to issues during production. The production team decided to change the plot midway through. Having read the original plot, it’s clear to me why they changed it. The first draft contained some very dark themes and was mildly confusing. The final product was a winner in my book. And others would agree. For being such a seemingly mild concern to Disney, it was a major success, grossing $169.3 million off of their $100 million budget. It was nominated for 22 awards and won 5 over 2001 and 2002.
This was another film that was a very big part of my childhood. It's a wonderful family film that not enough people have seen. I feel as though it was another defining movie of my youth. I loved the characters and the animation was so unique. Not to mention it stars legendary Eartha Kitt. The soundtrack is light and fun. As a kid and young adult, I was always disappointed to hear that my friends hadn’t seen this movie. I would ask everyone if they had seen The Emperor’s New Groove, The Road To El Dorado, or Treasure Planet (Clements, Musker, 2002). Only a few people would respond yes. But if you ask someone if they’ve seen American Psycho (Harron, 2000), most would answer with a resounding “of course”.
American Psycho is based off of Bret Easton Ellis’ 1991 novel American Psycho. It follows Patrick Bateman (Christian Bale), a powerful investment banker, as he narrates his day to day life while masking his psychopathic personality from his friends and coworkers. He sees everybody as insects and struggles to keep his murderous fantasies at bay. It all
comes to a head when he murders his coworker, Paul Allen (Jared Leto), in the infamous “Hey Paul” scene. The film itself was first released at the Sundance Film Festival in January of 2000, but was showing in theaters by April. It was a controversial film as it was praised by Christian Bale’s outstanding performance, while also being poorly rated for its violent imagery; Roger Ebert himself rated it 3 out of 4 stars. Despite being polarized by audiences, the movie was a big success; grossing $34.3 million dollars off of a mere $7 million budget.
It’s difficult to describe this film from the perspective of the 2000s, as I didn’t see it until last year, but it’s easy to see its impact on our society. It grew a big following in the years after its release and has since become a cult classic, alongside Pulp Fiction (Tarantino, 1994) and Fight Club (Fincher, 1999). Its influence in our society can be clearly seen in various places. Including music videos from the likes of Kanye West, Maroon 5, and a parody video by Huey Lewis and “Weird Al” Yankovic. It’s also become a staple in pop culture and is referenced in a multitude of films and television series. I had always heard references to American Psycho in tv shows and movies, but I never understood that those were actual references until I saw the film myself. And now, whenever I hear Huey Lewis & The News, I find myself doing Christian Bale’s little dance and hear him say “Too hip to be square!” from the “Hey Paul” scene.
On the opposite spectrum of American Psycho, we can find another gem from the 2000s: How The Grinch Stole Christmas (Howard, 2000). The movie is based off of the Dr. Suess classic and follows The Grinch (Jim Carrey) as he steals Christmas from the Who’s until he learns how to love.
A classic story and a classic movie that is often taken for granted. It was a massive success when it was released, as it grossed $345.4 million from a $123 million budget. It was even the highest grossing film in 2000! And it continues to be a success and a staple in our modern society. Especially around this time of year, I can’t blink without seeing a reference
to Jim Carrey’s Grinch. I grew up loving Jim Carrey, but didn’t see How The Grinch Stole Christmas until I was in middle school. But now, like many people who grew up in the early 2000s, I find myself watching it every year.
And last, but certainly not least, we have X-Men (Singer, 2000). It’s a confusing film as most people can’t decide if it’s good or not. But it did change our society, and there’s no doubt about that.
X-Men is the first installment in a film series about Marvel’s X-Men. It follows Wolverine (Hugh Jackman) as he struggles with his identity as a “mutant” and tries to fit in with a new found family (the X-Men) while also protecting Rogue (Anna Paquin), a stowaway he found in his truck while traveling.
This movie was pretty successful as it grossed $296.3 million from only having a $75 million dollar budget. It was nominated for 11 awards and of those, it won 6! But that’s not what makes this film great. What sets this film apart, is that it completely changed how we approached comic book movies. It was the first comic based movie since the flop that was Batman & Robin (Schaumer) in 1997. People were very angry at George Clooney’s “nipple” Batman and the market for comic movies dwindled. When X-Men hit the scene, people weren’t excited to see more of their beloved comic characters ruined like Batman. But then they were met with Hugh Jackman as Wolverine, Sir Ian McKellen as Magneto, and Sir Patrick Stewart as Charles Xavier. It was the miracle the industry was looking for! People loved it! And so, over the years, there was a revival in the comic movie industry. We were given gems like Spider-Man (Raimi, 2002) Batman Begins (Nolan, 2005), and Iron Man (Favreau, 2008). This movie redefined the comic movie industry and changed film forever.
These five movies The Road To El Dorado, The Emperor’s New Groove, American Psycho, How The Grinch Stole Christmas, and X-Men define the year 2000. It was a year for bold choices and experimentation. The world had just experienced the turn of a century and
they were doing big things. We were given blockbusters like How The Grinch Stole Christmas, but also flops like The Road To El Dorado. We were ready to try things again, like X-Men, but also make big strides and make something new like American Psycho. It was a strange time and we were given some beautifully strange films.
“American Identity”
When thinking of the copious amount of films in American cinema, it can be difficult to find just one movie that defines the American experience. There are so many movies one can point at and say “That’s America!”, but there are only a few that I personally think really encapsulate America to me. When I think “America”, I think American Psycho (Mary Harron, 2000).
American Psycho is a grotesque horror based off of Bret Easton Ellis’s 1991 novel “American Psycho”. The film takes place in 1987 New York City, where we follow Patrick Bateman (Christian Bale) as he commits atrocities like murder and dismemberment; all under the noses of his friends and colleagues. We as the audience are given his internal monologue; a both helpful, and unsettling addition to his story. We hear him fantasize about many things from killing the people in front of him, to him being jealous of his coworkers, or even daydreaming about the dead women from the night before. He lives his whole life under the guise of being a respectable and reserved investment banker. That’s America.
Now hearing me say “American Psycho is America” might be very disconcerting, but hear me out. People run around their daily activities, absorbed in their own life; many thinking they need to be better than someone else. This is perfectly shown in the business card scene when we hear Bateman get jealous of his rival’s business card. When he asks to see Paul Allen’s (Jared Leto) card, we hear Bateman’s inner thoughts: “my god...it even has a watermark”. He was so set on being the best and the smartest in the room that when he finds out he’s not, he spirals. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve met people that go through the same thing:
“I got a 94 on the test! What’d you get?”
“I got a 96.”
I can almost hear Bateman’s voice, “my god...it even has a watermark” in these situations. However, not everyone is in the business of trying to one up each other. But everyone, and I mean everyone, goes around daydreaming.
It could be as simple as daydreaming about dinner, it could be as complex as daydreaming about being famous, it could even be (god forbid, like I do) daydreaming about being a director! Everyone goes about their day daydreaming about something. Bateman happened to daydream about murder, but to each his own. We follow him around as he constantly fantasizes about what he’d rather be doing. Sometimes I wish it was as easy as saying “I have to return some videotapes” to get out of situations when I’d rather be watching tv or sleeping.
Patrick Bateman is an incredibly unsettling and, quite frankly, a terrifying person. I’ve never met anyone like him and I pray I never will. But at the same time, he bizarrely demonstrates the American experience with his facades and his daydreaming, all while trying to stay ahead in a money/business centered society. The way his character is so disconnected from our reality, while also being a mirror image of our society is, well...scary. And what is America besides terrifying?