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Keanu Reeves, Laurence Fishburne, Carrie-Anne Moss, Hugo Weaving, Gloria Foster ... see more see more... , Joe Pantoliano , Marcus Chong , Paul Goddard , Robert Taylor , Julian "Sonny" Arahanga , Matt Doran , Belinda McClory , Anthony Ray Parker , Robert Taylor (VII)

What if virtual reality wasn't just for fun, but was being used to imprison you? That's the dilemma that faces mild-mannered computer jockey Thomas Anderson (Keanu Reeves) in The Matrix. It's the year... read more read more... 1999, and Anderson (hacker alias: Neo) works in a cubicle, manning a computer and doing a little hacking on the side. It's through this latter activity that Thomas makes the acquaintance of Morpheus (Laurence Fishburne), who has some interesting news for Mr. Anderson -- none of what's going on around him is real. The year is actually closer to 2199, and it seems Thomas, like most people, is a victim of The Matrix, a massive artificial intelligence system that has tapped into people's minds and created the illusion of a real world, while using their brains and bodies for energy, tossing them away like spent batteries when they're through. Morpheus, however, is convinced Neo is "The One" who can crack open The Matrix and bring his people to both physical and psychological freedom. The Matrix is the second feature film from the sibling writer/director team of Andy Wachowski and Larry Wachowski, who made an impressive debut with the stylish erotic crime thriller Bound. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

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81% liked it

31,759,302 ratings

Critics

87% liked it

128 critics

R, 2 hr. 16 min.

Directed by: Andy Wachowski, Larry Wachowski

Release Date: March 31, 1999

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DVD Release Date: September 21, 1999

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Stats: 1,303,774 reviews

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Flixster Reviews (1,303,774)

  • hobster1
    May 22, 2012
    hobster1
    The Matrix didn't invent a new vocabulary. Hong Kong action cinema is clearly the inspiration for the martial arts fighting for example. There's allusions to comic books and Japanese animation as well. That's not its legacy. The point is that The Matrix so perfectly adapted many ... read moredivergent notions into an exhilarating unified science fiction and then brought these ideas to the masses. By and large, this is a dazzling work. Now and then the human destiny presented here can be pretty icky. There are visions of human life in which biology and technology intermingle in a way so unsettling it would give David Cronenberg pause. And Keanu Reeves surfer dude accent can be unintentionally funny. But I suppose that's part of the film's charm. One thrilling set piece after another impresses with such artistic zeal and excitement, it more than makes up for the narrative's occasional lapses in clarity. The Matrix is the inspiring realization of the Wachowski brothers' imagination made real - their self acknowledged understanding of a live action anime fulfilled.
  • superclerk25
    March 19, 2012
    superclerk25
    Pretty good action
  • aquateen2
    February 1, 2012
    aquateen2
    The Matrix is groundbreaking on almost every level. In terms of imagination this is definetely near the top of the ladder. Everything else is fantastic too. It was actually released 10 years before James Cameron's Avatar, which was the next great achievement in imagination and te... read morechnical effects that surpassed The Matrix. But what this amazing piece of cinema has that its achievement sucessor doesn't is a mind-bending plotline that isn't as simple or as camp as Avatar.
  • ajv2688
    December 17, 2011
    ajv2688
    This is an awesome movie! Just when the sci-fi genre was going down the tubes, this film revitalized the entire genre. The special effects are more than memorable, they made the film a household name. The careers of almost the whole cast have been helped by being in this movie... read more. And there is a thought-provoking story behind it all. I highly recommend this movie, it's a contemporary classic!
  • jlewis07
    November 2, 2011
    jlewis07
    Has a few flaws, but they are nothing when compared to everything this movie does right. Fantastic story with thought-provoking ideas and great action sequences that dazzle. It does get a little cheesy at times, but thats only if you don't like Hong Kong action style movies that ... read morethis takes some inspiration from. Everyone knows how influential this movie was to the movie industry, even though it had to pull inspirations of its own along the way. Keanu Reeves has never been better as well. He plays this characters almost perfectly, while Laurence Fishburne and Carrie-Anne Moss are great as well. It's unfortunate that the Wachowski's didn't reach the same heights as this film with the sequels, but we can all still appreciate this movie on its own terms without the sequels.
  • fb100002311865898
    October 17, 2011
    fb100002311865898
    The Matrix offers a little something for everyone. The die-hard science fiction fan will discover a plot that mixes and matches both new and old conventions of the genre in a compelling fashion. Action aficionados will find that there's no shortage of electric excitement, whether... read more it's in the form of hand-to-hand kung fu-type fights or shoot-outs with seemingly limitless ammunition. There's also betrayal, a little romance, some humor, and a moral dilemma or two, all wrapped into a well-produced package. As I stated earlier, the way in which the Wachowskis choose to resolve everything seems slightly contrived, but, in the overall scheme of things, that's a small price to pay for one of the most enjoyable science fiction thrillers to reach the screen in months.
  • fb223580
    October 7, 2011
    fb223580
    A hacker fantasy. Have you ever felt out of place in the real world or frustrated at how ineffectively people and authorities run things? Yearned to explain the entire world in terms of a complex designed software system? Or wanted to reduce the success of an anointed hero in "do... read moreing what's never been done before" to him simply creating edge cases that a programmer hasn't foreseen? Then you'll love this movie.
  • theunknownhobo
    September 21, 2011
    theunknownhobo
    Confusing and pretentious, the Matrix has always been made out to be more than it was and depressingly it gathered a cult following regardless. All the basic threads of this film are siphoned off from other books and movies of a similar genre and then to cast Reeves, one of the W... read moreORST actors of our generation, to play a role that should have been handed to someone with half an ounce of emotion, was criminal. No wonder Will Smith and Ewan McGregor turned down the role. I will never see what everyone else does in this tiresome franchise.
  • fb701560354
    September 3, 2011
    fb701560354
    Keanu Reeves may not be the greatest of actors but he doesn't need to do much here other that do Kung-fu and wield a gun (or lots of them). The Matrix is an ingenious film that has a combination of ground-breaking visual effects and an imaginative premise, which really makes thi... read mores an interesting, thought-provoking film.
  • rjayhutchinson
    August 28, 2011
    rjayhutchinson
    Despite its neat special effects, "The Matrix" ultimately turns out to be a redundant, boring, predictable mess. The concept of the film may be mildly interesting, but the final execution is sloppy and confusing. Unless you're particularly keen on films which rely heavily on conv... read moreoluted action scenes (think "Transformers"), "The Matrix" is hardly a must-see.

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Critic Reviews

Todd McCarthy
June 5, 2007
Todd McCarthy, Variety

A must-see among genre fans, especially guys in their teens and 20s, for whom the script's pretentious mumbo-jumbo of undergraduate mythology, religious mysticism and technobabble could even be a plus... Full Review

Jonathan Rosenbaum
June 5, 2007
Jonathan Rosenbaum, Chicago Reader

There's not much humor to keep it all life-size, and by the final stretch it's become bloated, mechanical, and tiresome. Full Review

Ray Conlogue
April 25, 2003
Ray Conlogue, Globe and Mail

For those who have been waiting for movies to catch up with the graphic possibilities of comic books, wait no longer: The Matrix is among us. Full Review

Peter Travers
May 11, 2001
Peter Travers, Rolling Stone

The Matrix soars with its feet in the air -- the rest crash-lands.

Kenneth Turan
February 14, 2001
Kenneth Turan, Los Angeles Times

An apocalypse of kinetic joy. Full Review

Jay Carr
January 1, 2000
Jay Carr, Boston Globe

Silly and dense!

Roger Ebert
January 1, 2000
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times

The Matrix did not bore me. It interested me so much, indeed, that I wanted to be challenged even more. Full Review

James Berardinelli
January 1, 2000
James Berardinelli, ReelViews

The movie is kinetic, atmospheric, visually stunning, and mind-bending. Full Review

Rod Dreher
January 1, 2000
Rod Dreher, New York Post

A more technically dazzling synthesis of action choreography and cutting-edge computer graphics has not been seen since James Cameron's T2.

Steven Rea
January 1, 2000
Steven Rea, Philadelphia Inquirer

As Keanu says: Whoa!

Critic ratings and reviews powered by RottenTomatoes.com

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Facts

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    • Neo: What are you doing?
    • Trinity: I'm going with you!
    • Neo: No, you're not!
    • Trinity: No? Let me tell you what I believe. I believe Morpheus means more to me than he does to you. I believe if you're really serious in saving him then you're going to need my help. And since I am the next ranking officer on this ship if you don't like it, I believe you can go to hell because you're not going anywhere else.
    • Neo: There is no spoon!
    • Neo: I know Kung Fu!
    • Morpheus: Show me!
    • Morpheus: The pill you took is part of a trace program. It's design to disrupt your input/output carrier signal so we can pinpoint your location.
    • Neo: What does that mean?
    • Cypher: It means buckle your seatbelt, Dorothy because Kansas is going bye bye.
    • Morpheus: You have to let it all go, Neo. Fear, doubt, and disbelief, Free your mind.
    • Neo: I know what you're trying to do.
    • Morpheus: I'm trying to free your mind, Neo. But I can only show you the door. You're the one that has to walk through it.
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  • Which movie has this tagline : " What is The Matrix ? " ?  Answer »
  • "There is no spoon" Name the movie where that sentence was said.  Answer »
  • "The best thing about being me. There are so many me's." Which film in the MAtrix Trillogy is this quote from?  Answer »
  • ***What Movie Is This Tagline From "Reality Is A Thing Of The Past."***  Answer »
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