The Matrix Turns 25: Keanu Reeves’ Seminal Film is That Rare Sci-Fi Movie Where Nothing is Dumbed Down

By March 31, 2024, 05:43 PM IST

With The Matrix, The Wachowskis don’t condescend their audience – they demand attention, and reward audience trust. Even 25 years later.

The Matrix was released 25 years ago this weekend. The Wachowskis’ genre-mashing masterpiece has been one of the most influential movies of the modern era, influencing not just the way movies are made, but leaving an indelible mark on society itself, for better or worse. We rewatched The Matrix to see if it still holds up. So put on your dark glasses and answer that ringing phone, we’re going back into The Matrix. (Also Read: A glamorous glitch in the Matrix)

Keanu Reeves made a comeback in style with The Matrix

It was the year 1999 and the Y2K bug was all over the news. Humanity had already grappled with the idea that technology in the form of nuclear weapons could end us, but that was hardware. The Y2K bug was the first time that we as a species wrestled with the idea that software, or a few lines of code could have drastic real-world consequences. It was in this zeitgeist that a relatively small, barely-anticipated movie called The Matrix was released.

The trailer, while visually interesting, did not do too much to differentiate it from the slew of reality-bending thrillers that were being released at the time, like The Thirteenth Floor and Dark City, among others. Dark City especially was startlingly similar to The Matrix, and the latter even reused some of the Dark City rooftop sets for the opening Trinity sequence. The Wachowskis were not a known commodity, having only one film to their name, and while Keanu Reeves was a star, he was very much in a downswing after following up the blockbuster Speed in 1994 with a string of flops like Johnny Mnemonic and Chain Reaction.

Watching the movie today, I was instantly transported back to the first time I watched it at the erstwhile Sathyam Cinemas in Chennai. The audience exploded with shrieks and spontaneous applause when the camera swirled around Carrie Anne-Moss’s Trinity halfway through her crane kick. It’s still as exhilarating 25 years later, and that is true of a