6mo ago

Do you consider Matrix Resurrections to be cyberpunk?

The Matrix is one of the most well-known cyberpunk movies; I'm not going to argue its cyberpunk qualities. But 20 years after The Matrix was relevant, we got a cash-grab sequel in Matrix Resurrections.

My question to you is: Is there anything cyberpunk left in Matrix Resurrections? Or has the franchise been so diluted that what's left is no longer cyberpunk? For example, in the first movie Neo was a hacker. By this movie, I really wouldn't call him a hacker anymore. But maybe the themes of "what it means to be human" still remain?

Here's a trailer. You can still watch it on Max.

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There is nothing left of the original Matrix in Resurrections. The cyberpunk core is gone. The hacker spirit is gone. The rebellion is gone. What’s left is a hollow, sanitized product dressed up in nostalgia. Neo is no longer a hacker. He is a corporate symbol repackaged for profit. The themes have been watered down to the point of meaninglessness. This is not cyberpunk. This is marketing.
- He is a corporate symbol repackaged for profit.
  I forgot the line in the movie but they alluded to it. Like they knew they were making a cash grab movie and wanted the audience to know it too.
  
  I forget the exact line, but it's in the scene where his boss is informing him they're making a sequel (to the in universe video game) no matter what, and his only choice was to be involved or not.
I actually liked Resurrections, but not as a good movie, but as a fuck you to the shareholders. It isn't cyberpunk, but I would say that it's punk if you think of it as Lana's way of saying "you are dumb for even considering it, but I don't want anyone else to do it." I would even say that as a piece of art on it's own it's kin of punk, like graffiti sprayed on WB's roster.
- How was it a fuck.you to shareholders?
  
  Did you watch the movie? The entire plot basically revolves around how another matrix game(film) is silly.
I barely consider it a film
Resurrections is an interesting movie in that I think it's the only one I've seen that agrees that it shouldn't exist. Lana Wachowski definitely did not want to make it and does nothing to hide that fact.
As for whether it's cyberpunk? I say no, because it shed most of the cyber aesthetic of the first 3. It being a movie that all but grabs you by the collar and shouts "I shouldn't exist!" does make it punk, however.
- Resurrections had a point?
  Funfact: The Matrix actually has one of.my favorite moments in foreshadowing. See there's this scene where Agent Smith bends over backwards to dodge a bullet....
  See this foreshadows the bullet Hugo Weaving dodged by not reprising the role of Agent Smith in Resurrections!
  
  The point from WB's perspective was to milk a dry teat.
  The point from Lana's perspective was to poison the brand in the hope that WB won't do it again.
  Also Agent Smith isn't shown dodging bullets. He's torturing Morpheus in the office while Trinity and Neo are on the roof with a different agent, who dodges all the bullets but one. I wouldn't count the subway fight because every bullet misses in that one, his and Neo's, and neither is doing much in the way of actively dodging.
I consider it not worth discussing in any capacity.
- Yet here you are lmao
The Matrix has turned into another meh franchise that's just an excuse to sell lots of the funky impossible karate that was impressive and refreshing the first time, but now totally repetitive, annoyingly constantly fast-paced, and stupid sub-plots with zero surprises.
It's devolved into another totally boring and unimaginative franchise that's being milked for all it's worth, like the million Marvel, Fast and Furious or John Wick movies out there.
- John Wick is awesome and unlike those other two had the decency to have AN ENDING
  
  John Wick is awesome
  To each his own. I find it unwatchable. It's unrelenting high-speed sameness from beginning to end. Very tiring to watch and very boring at the same time.
Personally i didn't even like the original Matrix movie but i can't deny it's a landmark for american cinema. But here is a question: has the oppinion on reloaded and revolutions improved over time for the general public?
I remember the hype for the franchise just slowly died down as audienced got dissapointed with the sequels, but now people seem to like them.
Resurrection was weird for me, i can't place my finger on why but it felt like a matrix tv series edited as a movie.
- Reloaded is still good and holds up in many ways.
  Revolutions is a SLOG.
wow, i am shocked at how bad everyone seems to think it was. it was definitely a significant shift from the original trilogy, but i thought it was still a pretty solid film on its own merits. also, definitely still cyberpunk.
- Matrix Resurrections was Terminator Genisys bad. It took real effort not to look away from the screen.
  The action was weak with constant slow motion and no impact. Neo spends the whole movie spamming force pushes. Trinity's return made no sense and had zero buildup. Morpheus was turned into a meme. Smith was just some guy with no presence. The new crew was forgettable. The meta commentary was embarrassing and killed any immersion. It felt like the film hated being a Matrix movie and wanted out.
- I really wasn't trying to make a "let's all shit on Matrix Resurrections" post here. I was hoping for more of a discussion about at what point something stops being cyberpunk. I guess I misjudged things...
  
  I don't think Resurrections is a film that can be talked about plainly. Not right now, anyway.
  It's really interesting because it's an almost objectively terrible movie, but it's self-aware of that, as if it were mocking people for being interested in the first place, deliberately rubbing their noses in the carpet shit-stain they somewhat innocently paid to see. And so, it is a film that wields its audience as a weapon against the producers that forced its birth, and there is essentially no way this plays out without a lot of unbridled anger and resentment.
  I actually like it for having the balls to be that awful. But for a lot of people, who simply do not care about the "broader conversation" this film sits within, there's just nothing else to talk about but how boring that particular Sunday was for them.

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