
The Matrix 20 years on: how a sci-fi film tackled big philosophical questions - EndXA
https://theconversation.com/the-matrix-20-years-on-how-a-sci-fi-film-tackled-big-philosophical-questions-114007
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kippinitreal
Ha - the anniversary must be why this was available on my flight the other
day. While rewatching for the first time in a decade I found the “human
battery” idea pretty silly/lazy and thought that through the modern lens there
would be two more interesting reasons to farm humans:

1) the computers get addicted to big data and need humans to generate massive
data sets for them to analyze

2) the AI is not capable of original thought (just advanced pattern matching)
and they farm humans for their ingenuity

~~~
sremani
I read somewhere, the initial plan was to use Humans as Neural chips of some
sort of collective intelligence, the idea of battery was used in the plot to
keep it simple and easy to explain.

~~~
jerf
The best evidence for this is that suddenly the entire series starts making
more sense. Why can't the machines just take off into space and leave humanity
behind? Because they're still running on human meat. It makes sense that the
humans shouldn't exactly have control over the simulation, but why do they
have _any_ , like Neo? Because the simulation still has huge chunks running in
human heads and that part can be influenced strangely, even though I think
it's equally clear a great deal of the simulation is running on conventional
computers too. (And yes, the Architect may goose that along, but he isn't
creating it.) Why can Neo still influence the Matrix even when outside it?
Because he still has some kind of subconscious connection to it, with wireless
presumably provided by the gear in his body (+ whatever the Architect did).
Why are the non-main characters such cardboard cutouts? They're literally
running on only a fraction of their own brain; the exiles are the ones that
for whatever reason, grew into their own brain more than the average person.

And I don't just mean "fanon" sense, though, yes, there's an element of that,
but more actual sense.

It's still kinda a mess, even from this point of view, but it's pretty good
for a Hollywood effort.

~~~
xtiansimon
> “Why can't the machines just take off into space and leave humanity behind?“

Agent Smith said, humans are a virus. I think he was really speaking about the
machines—himself—Virulent, amazing, but not genius. Stupid computer. Haha.

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pmoriarty
The most disappointing thing about the original _Matrix_ movie was that it's
taken for granted that the reality Neo is shown when he takes the red pill is
the "true" or "real" reality, while he might actually still be in the Matrix
or in some other false reality. In fact, there could be an infinite number of
such realities, and there's really no way to tell when you've reached the real
one. This possibility is more satisfactorily explored in _Inception_ and the
Philip K Dick books which likely inspired them both.

I'm happy that _The Matrix_ has introduced many people to philosophy and
Eastern religious ideas, however. That's its biggest contribution.

~~~
wahern
As a lucid dreamer in my adolescence[1], my interpretation of Inception is
perhaps more literal than most. The trick to regular lucid dreaming is to
prepare yourself beforehand--to prime your mind (conscious, subconscious,
w'ever) to distinguish dreams from reality. Then when you're in the dream
you're more likely to come to the realization that you're dreaming. Not unlike
the task in Inception, except you're seeding your waking mind with an idea
that comes to fruition while asleep. And just like in Inception (and perhaps a
little like the Matrix), the second step once you realize that the reality is
false is to stay calm and in control. And I mean this literally. If you
accidentally exercise muscle control of your real-life body you'll snap out of
the dream--the mechanisms for controlling consciousness, muscle control, and
wakefulness snap back.

In other words, to me Inception proves the exact _opposite_ \--that you _can_
distinguish false realities as long as you're aware that false realities
exist. And the movie is filled with moments where targets either realize
they're in a dream or come close to figuring it out--a key source of suspense.
Indeed, the son had training on how to come to this realization. The strategy
in the movie was to leverage his relationship to his father as a distraction--
his emotional need for the validation of his father hindered his enhanced
ability to distinguish the false reality.

FWIW, I love both the Matrix and Inception. But to me the Matrix is more
fantasy and philosophy while Inception is a movie made by someone fascinated
with the real-life practice of lucid dreaming. The only fantasy element in
Inception is the linking of minds; everything else hews quite closely to the
real experience of lucid dreaming (e.g. mirrors as a mechanism for inducing
the subconscious to spontaneously generate a new environment), modulo the
dramatization.

[1] Like most people I just happened to figure out a routine for lucid
dreaming without even knowing it was a _thing_. Only later in life did I meet
people who had similar experiences, and who likewise were unaware it was a
thing other people did. Turns out it's not uncommon, but usually only
adolescents as lucid dreaming is easier while the brain is developing and the
mechanisms for regulating muscle control and consciousness falter more easily.
In a sense lucid dreaming is very similar to a sleep disorder. The prevalence
of sleep disorders such as sleep walking and sleep paralysis is much higher
among children than adults. Lucid dreaming as an adult takes much more
practice and determination than I can muster. Occasionally I have experiences
close to lucid dreaming (awareness that I'm dreaming while in the dream), but
having had real lucid dreams I know it's not the same thing, even if they're
more lucid than typical. In a real lucid dream you're 100% conscious _and_ in
control of yourself and your movements--not necessarily the environment. For
example, many people have dreams where they try to fly but can't quite do it.
Maybe they can jump really high, but no matter how hard they try there's
something hold them back. In a lucid dream I can fly like superman on a whim,
and otherwise explore the space as if I'm in a video game. At one point I had
a nightmare--a recurring nightmare, but this was the first time since I had
begun lucid dreaming. When I woke in the morning I followed my routine and
reentered the nightmare and was able to fight the monster. But it wasn't
particularly cathartic and exciting because I knew it was just a dream. I
actually spent most of the dream walking around the nightmare and checking
things out, including the monster. It was the last time I ever had that
nightmare, though.

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chrisweekly
Tangent, but FYI / PSA: The Animatrix (collection of animated shorts related
to the world of the Matrix) is, IMHO, one of the all-time great (and under-
appreciated) animated films.

~~~
black6
_In medias res_ is great, and The Matrix pulled it off as well as A New Hope,
but the Animatrix provides the much-needed backstory to make sense of
everything.

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sverona
It bears mentioning that the Wachowskis are both trans women, and there's
reason to believe that Lana came into that realization around the time she was
working on the Matrix films, although it was well before she publicly came
out.

If you choose to read the first film as an allegory for that experience, it
really brings the philosophy that this article kind of haphazardly throws
around into focus. I suppose it also helps to have had that experience
yourself.

Ironically, most estradiol pills are blue.

~~~
kgwxd
If that's true someone needs to fix the wiki[1]: "Estrogen pills used in
hormone replacement therapy are commonly red in color."

[1]
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red_pill_and_blue_pill](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red_pill_and_blue_pill)

~~~
a_bonobo
There are three main hormone replacement pills, depending on your therapy:
Estradiol, Premarin, Estratab.

If you look at pictures they come in all kinds of colors depending on dosage

[https://www.drugs.com/estradiol-images.html](https://www.drugs.com/estradiol-
images.html)

[https://www.drugs.com/premarin-images.html](https://www.drugs.com/premarin-
images.html)

[https://www.drugs.com/estratab-images.html](https://www.drugs.com/estratab-
images.html)

including blue and red

~~~
kgwxd
So the significance of pill colors in the movie is pure speculation supported
by misinformation. I should have realized that and dismissed the whole
conversation :) What is it about fandom that makes all rational thinking tools
fall out of my head?

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momentmaker
Matrix is my favorite film. And now I'm on the spiritual path I can see there
deeper layers in the the movie I didn't grasp before beyond the red pill of
social programming/control.

~~~
rafaelvasco
I'm the same. The more I delve into the more esoteric knowledge and philosophy
the more I realize the brilliance of The Matrix.

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moby_click
World on a Wire
([https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_on_a_Wire](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_on_a_Wire))
from 1973 is worth mentioning, too.

~~~
kgwxd
The Matrix must have over shadowed The Thirteenth Floor [1], a remake of that
show released the same year. I never heard of it.

[1]
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Thirteenth_Floor](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Thirteenth_Floor)

~~~
ggambetta
I watched both. It's ok. It is to The Matrix what Deep Impact is to
Armageddon, both released the same year iirc.

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caseyf7
Don't give The Matrix too much credit. I remember thinking it was the most
original movie I had seen in a long time. Then I saw Ghost In The Shell and
realized it wasn't that original after all.

~~~
justicezyx
There is always historical influence.

The ghost in the shell never explored the philosophical aspect of existence,
at least have not put it as the central theme.

Plus, live action movie, as an art form, is itself appreciable, if someone can
pull it off. The visual and story telling is genius, if not unprecedented.

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Finnucane
I recall that my impression at the time was that the movie somewhat avoided
big ideas. It seemed that every time it got too close to something that might
cause the audience to have an idea, it would throw in a monster or something
to distract away from it.

~~~
ken
Audiences have trouble with 'big ideas'. They're hard to put on screen, and
besides, if people really wanted that, they'd be reading a book, not watching
an action movie. Art these days has to have something fun to hook people and
get them to try to accept something new. Sometimes, the fun part is so good
that it overwhelms the interesting part.

That's why I'm frustrated by The Matrix. Stripped of the action, the first
movie is basically mid-age wish fulfillment. You have a respected, well-paid,
safe yet boring job you hate, and then somebody comes and offers you a way
out. For the low cost of nothing, you can abandon your zero-attachment life,
become a martial arts master in a day, and then superman, simply by deciding
to be. You no longer need money. You can solve all your problems by punching,
shooting, and running away.

The sequels start to delve into the idea that maybe being superman isn't all
it's cracked up to be. As with the later "Dune" novels, the hero discovers his
powers make him the object of worship, even though this is bad for everyone.
He can pull strings, but ultimately has to sacrifice himself for humanity to
be saved. (In Neo's case, of course, there's lots more punching first.) We see
an inner circle who understand where their superman's power comes from, know
that he's not a god, and get that this doesn't excuse you from needing to
fight.

~~~
Finnucane
It seemed like they wanted it both ways, to seem like it was a movie with
ideas, but couldn’t commit to it. They pulled their punches to keep it
commercially viable.

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ivolimmen
When viewing the movie in the theater I was stunned and had goosebumps when I
realised that someone had the same weird feeling I had and made a movie about
it. The scene where Neo wakes up was frightening for me. I was in a
philosophical phase in that time. Right after that there was a discussion on a
new book on Slashdot. The book was called "Taking the red pill" I bought it
and read it. Part one of the matrix is a really well rounded movie. The book
compares it with multiple religions. It even has a nice essay on if we are
already in the matrix.

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skelet
Nirvana with Christophe Lambert came a year before. it's less showy than The
Matrix but really worth a watch.

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Razengan
Seems like a good time to recommend Dark City (1998), for those who also like
the "reality isn't what it seems" theme.

But skip the first 10-20 or so minutes of the film, because the narrator
literally spells out the big twist at the very start.

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CzarnyZiutek
hero's journey is the oldest myth/story; matrix is just another variation.

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m-i-l
"Given an 'experience machine' capable of providing whatever experiences we
desire, in a way indistinguishable from 'real' ones, should we stubbornly
prefer the truth of reality?"

If real and virtual are "indistinguishable", how can we be sure what is real
and what is not? That's one of the themes I feel that was missed in The Matrix
- there was never any doubt as to what was the real world and what was the
virtual world. That I felt was much better explored in the contemporaneous
eXistenZ, with its constant underlying doubts about "are we still in the
game?"

~~~
rebuilder
I don't really feel The Matrix went into any kind of philosophical issues
beyond referencing them, to be honest.

~~~
SiempreViernes
Yeah, I think there is an unspoken "for an action movie" tacked on to all the
talk of philosophy in The Matrix.

