So Matrix 4 is confirmed! But what will it look like? There are so many questions!

No fear: Today I will be reviewing how Matrix Revolutions ended with Neo, Trinity, and the Oracle in the very last scene. Then I’ll be sharing some hopes and make some predictions as to where this story may go in Matrix 4.

Refresher

In the Matrix Reloaded, the architect explained that their matrix was in fact  the 6th iteration of the matrix, meaning there were five different Matrices that all ended for one reason or another, the first one being a “perfect world” that was ultimately too perfect and so most humans rebelled and whole fields of ‘crops’ were lost, a complete disaster. As a result, the architect found a way to reboot the system in cycles with Neo as the inherent anomaly coded into the matrix itself. This anomaly (Neo) has a choice to restart the matrix, or let the whole system crash, killing everyone inside. While his 5 predecessors chose restarting and saving humanity, Neo 6.0 chooses Trinity and love, rejecting the choice and potentially dooming all of humanity.

Neo and Trinity then decide to go to the machine city. They ‘surface in the desert of the real’ in Matrix Revolutions and upon their crash landing in the machine city, trinity dies in the ship after getting impaled (this is different from her Matrix death which Neo was able to revive her from in Reloaded, where he reached into her matrix body to remove bullets and then restart her heart).

Neo then makes an agreement with the machines, goes into the matrix, lets Smith copy him, and then allows the machines to kill his physical body and thus destroy Smith.

Revolutions ends ambiguously, watching the sunrise on the new 7th iteration of the Matrix. Let’s take a look at this pivotal final scene, as the Oracle shares some important clues as to where Matrix 4 may pick up.

Oracle: Well now, ain’t this a surprise.

Architect: You played a very dangerous game.

O: Change always is.

A: Just how long do you think this peace is going to last?

O: As long as it can.

O: What about the others?

A: What others?

O: The ones that want out.

A: Obviously they will be freed.

O: I have your word?

A: What do you think I am? Human?

…

Oracle: Beautiful! Did you do that?

(Sati nods)

Sati: For Neo.

O: that’s nice. I know he’d love it.

S: Will we ever see him again?

O: I suspect so. Someday.

This final scene tells us that the humans and machines have brokered a peace that might not last forever (thanks to Neo). For now, humans have a choice to be free or to be enslaved. But with Neo and Trinity dead, how will they come back? Why does the Oracle tell Sati she thinks they will see Neo again, eventually?

Theories

Well, here’s one theory: it could be set in a future iteration of the matrix (7+). Maybe it will be titled Matrix rebooted or Matrix resurrected? Since past anomalies probably looked like Neo, it could be that future anomalies will look like Neo again. If so, it’s likely that he will have no memories of his past lives. Connected lives is a theme that we’ve actually seen in other Wachowski works like Cloud Atlas or Sense 8.

Another theory for the conflict could be that in this new version, the war goes from overt to covert.  Humans are supposed to be free, but maybe the machines are thinking of going back on their word, or changing the deal. After all, the Architect never gave his word, since he’s “not human”. So there could be a mystery that needs to be solved, of nefarious actions from the machines or from an outcast program like Smith or the Merovingian.

Another question is, how central will Reeves and Moss be?

Will Neo be a main character, or will he and Trinity be supporting characters like J.J. Abrams’ new Star Wars trilogy. Will Neo become the new Morpheus, guiding other humans who want to escape the Matrix? Will he have memory flashes to past lives he doesn’t understand, similar to blade runner 2049? The future story may depend strongly on why Neo is resurrected.

Lana said

“many of the ideas Lilly and I explored 20 years ago about our reality are even more relevant now.”

So what themes is she referring to?

Propaganda and fake news? Simulated realities and conspiracy thinking? How society can function without trust in systems of authority? Maybe matrix 4 will be about the machines trying to lure humanity back into the matrix, to increase their energy output by making the argument that everyone would be better served to see the world as Cypher did, in ignorant bliss.

There’s also the theme of gender identity, a theme the Wachowskis had wanted to explore with the character of switch. She was originally supposed to be a woman in the real world and a man in the Matrix, thus “switching” her gender and the source of her Matrix name.

Finally, how will this new movie apply cyberpunk philosophy to the modern world? Will there be different levels of simulated realities and matrices, like in Inception?

Unfortunately, I don’t have any of the answers to those questions. But here’s a couple things I hope the writers have done:

Take inspiration from the wider matrix media, such as the Animatrix.

Let’s quickly review what was in the Animatrix, in case you never saw it or you just don’t remember it very well (which is fair, there were nine different stories…)

Here’s a list of the general gist of each of the different nine stories from the Animatrix:

1. The final flight of the Osiris:  A prelude to Matrix Reloaded, it explains how Commander Locke got the crucial piece of intelligence that the machines were digging to Zion and about to lead a full-scale attack.
2. The Second Renaissance Part I: How the Matrix came to be as well as the origins of the war between the humans and the machines.
3. The Second Renaissance Part II: continuing the story of part I.
4. Kid’s Story: How the kid who appears in Reloaded as Neo’s superfan, and opens the gates of Zion for the Logos at the end of Revolutions, was able to unplug himself from the Matrix by believing in Neo.
5. Program: A story set in a sparring program in Feudal Japan between human members of a ship’s crew.
6. World Record: An athlete who pushes himself to his physical and mental limits in the Matrix, wakes himself up briefly, and then frees his mind in the Matrix again.
7. Beyond: When areas in the Matrix glitch, children discover the perfect playground where the laws of gravity don’t apply.
8. A Detective Story: A human detective in the matrix is tasked with finding trinity, unaware that agents are using him to get to her.
9. Matriculated: A human team in the real world bait and catch machines, in order to try to convert them to their cause by changing their programming in the matrix.

Final Flight of the Osiris, Program, and Detective Story are great stories for Lana’s team to draw inspiration from. Matriculated also has a lot of potential for the possibility of human/machine identity fusions.

Bring back the philosophy of the previous films, especially Matrix 1

But what elements of philosophy will they explore this time? This remains a true mystery for me. They’ve already explored free will and fate, as well as reality. Will they explore identity this time? Creating reality, or trusting facts and information?

Will Matrix 4 say one final goodbye to Neo and Trinity? Start a brand new trilogy?

Clues for Matrix 4

I’m surprised that I haven’t read anyone else who have thought about this, but here’s a major relevant place to look for clues for Matrix 4: Cloud Atlas and Sense 8.

Why? Let’s look at who is reported to have already written the script: Lana Wachowski, Aleksandar Hemon, and David Mitchell. Again, the script is already written. It’s the production that will be starting in 2020. Therefore, to glean what this mystery script contains, the best indications of what the story will be about should be by watching the Season 2 finale of Sense 8. Why? Because guess who wrote the script for the finale? That’s right. Lana Wachowski, Aleksandar Hemon, and David Mitchell.

I wouldn’t be surprised if Bae Doona features in Matrix 4 as well. She was a pivotal character in the cyberpunk section of Cloud Atlas, and she’s a major character in Sense 8’s series as well. She has worked many times closely with the Wachowskis, so she seems like an obvious choice, especially considering how the Wachowskis seem to like working with people they know and trust.

Bae Donna waiting for Lana’s phone call (scene from Cloud Atlas)

I admit I have not watched Sense 8. The premise seemed too confusing for me to want to watch it, but now that I know Season 2 may contain clues to Matrix 4, I may have to watch it after all.

What do you think? Any ideas on what the Matrix 4 will be about? Leave your thoughts in the comments below.

 

Did you Enter the Matrix in 2003?

If you’re reading this blog then that means that you’ve probably seen the Matrix trilogy. But! Have you seen the secret footage embedded in the 2003 video game Enter the Matrix? Few people know that the Wachowskis shot about an entire hour’s worth of additional footage to add to this video game’s story line, a first of its time.

Enter The Matrix tells a tale that runs parallel to The Matrix Reloaded.

Having some Deja Vu?

The Logos

The story begins with the crew of the Logos (comprised of Niobe, Ghost, and their smart-mouthed operator Sparks) as they race to acquire a message left in the Matrix by the crew of the Osiris (whose story was told in the short digitally animated film The Final Flight of the Osiris in the Animatrix). Once their team manage to get their hands on the package, they relay back to Zion a frightening message of a giant machine army digging towards the final human city. As a result, Niobe’s crew will have to assist Neo, Morpheus and Trinity while the rest of the Zion fleet mobilizes outside the city to protect it from the imminent machine attack. You play as either Ghost or Niobe, and the story will change in small ways based on which character you chose, and which decisions you make.

Unfortunately, since the game came out in 2003 you can probably tell that the graphics haven’t aged very well. However, Anthony Wong as Ghost and Jada Pinkett-Smith as Niobe deliver excellent performances as voice actors, in addition to the live footage the game delivers in between moments of action.

To watch the entire series of footage in chronological order, you can see it here (42 minutes long) or if you lots of extra time and want to see the video game cutscenes as well, you can watch it in its full entirety here (1 hour 16 minutes).

Is it worth the time? What’s new?

If you are a big fan of The Matrix Reloaded, then I highly recommend you watch these extra scenes. It provides a lot of extra information about things like how important the information was of the machines digging towards, as well as Niobe’s relationship with Commander Locke, and Ghost’s relationship with Niobe. It was also incredibly rewarding to see some of the exact same scenes we saw Neo in, with the same characters, but with new main characters going through them.

We get to revisit Persephone, for instance, and the Keymaker, as they interact in very important ways with Ghost or Niobe. We also get to revisit Agent Smith as he interacts with humans inside the Matrix, and relive the fear that he and his fellow agents caused anyone who crosses his path. We even get to see what choice words of advice the oracle gives for both Ghost and Niobe.

Will Niobe eat the Oracle’s cookies, or have some of her candy? Does she even have a choice?

Noteworthy elements

I also really enjoyed Sparks’ character, as a much more interesting operator than Link was. While Link never questioned Morpheus and always did as he was told, keeping his fears and thoughts mostly to himself, Sparks constantly is eager to explain why captain Niobe’s decisions are dangerous, reckless, and will surely lead to his untimely demise.

The final thing I want to mention is the orchestral score. It’s just as good as the soundtracks in The Matrix and Reloaded, from Don Davis of course. While some tracks are the same, it occurs to me that the Original Soundtrack for the first and second Matrix movies probably did not include any additional soundtrack work Davis did for the videogame. As such, it’s almost worth it alone just to listen to the soundtrack. But if you want to save yourself some time, you can always simply watch it all on YouTube.

Why you might not have heard of the game

For all its excellence, sadly, the game play for Enter the Matrix is what holds it back. It’s laggy, the controls are difficult to work with as are the angles, and ultimately it makes what would be otherwise a great game of sound and storytelling a slog that isn’t fun enough to keep up with unless you’re a die-hard matrix fan.

A new opportunity

Which is why WB has a real opportunity here at releasing a new video game for Matrix 4 that is up to par with the times. Can you imagine a Matrix video game with the mechanics of the Arkham Asylum series?

Anyways, did you play Enter the Matrix, as I did, way back when? What did you think of it? If not, go watch the cutscenes. Are they a good complement to Reloaded? Let me know in the comments below.