“The Matrix Resurrections” Trailer is a Dazzling Head Trip
“I’ve had dreams that aren’t just dreams.”
This is how the first trailer for The Matrix Resurrections begins, with Thomas (Keanu Reeves) speaking to a shrink (played by Neil Patrick Harris) about his experiences—which he’s clearly forgotten—years ago. “Am I crazy?” Thomas asks him, and although he’s told “we don’t use that word in here,” you get the feeling neither Thomas nor the shrink really believes he’s sane.
Thus, our long wait for actual footage from director Lana Wachowski’s return to the franchise that she and her sister Lilly began in 1999 is here. Sure, we got that beguiling peek this past Tuesday, but this is the real deal. We see Thomas (Neo to you and me) bump into Carrie-Anne Moss’s Trinity at a coffee shop, yet neither remember each other. (There’s undeniable chemistry, however, so much so Trinity asks, “Have we met?”) We see Thomas taking blue pills, keeping him firmly in the harshly bright, non-real world that we all live in, and we see Thomas on an elevator, surrounded by a bunch of mopes looking down at their phones (sound familiar?).
Then things kick into proper gear when Yahya Abdul-Mateen II’s character appears with a red pill. “Time to fly,” he tells Thomas. It’s clear Abdul-Mateen II is playing a Morpheus-like role here, leading Thomas back into the real world—the terrifying, AI-controlled Matrix beneath the glossy cover story the rest of the world is living in—where he was once Neo.
The trailer doesn’t give us that much in the way of specific plot points, but it gives us enough. Neo’s headed back into the Matrix, and it appears his number one reason for doing so revolves around Trinity. It’s a thrill to be back in this world, one that the Wachowskis unleashed on us 22-years ago. Back then, and seemingly out of nowhere, we were introduced to a fully-realized techno-dystopian mythology worthy of Mecha-Homer. It was a shock—the effects alone were mind-blowing—but the franchise wasn’t just a showcase of The Matrix‘s totally novel “bullet time” technology, it was a showcase for a slew of great performances led by a then under-appreciated Keanu Reeves.
While Reeves is now a beloved (and rightfully respected) performer, it’s still thrilling to see him back in action as Neo, to see Carrie-Anne Moss return as Trinity, and to plunge back into the world of the Matrix (post red pill) that ushered in an era of mind-melting special effects that are now par for the course.
Wachowski directs from a script she co-wrote with Aleksander Hemon and David Mitchell. Joining Harris, Reeves, Moss, and Abdul-Mateen II are Jada Pinkett Smith, returning as Niobe, and newcomers Jessica Henwick, Jonathan Groff, Priyanka Chopra Jonas, Christina Ricci, Telma Hopkins, Eréndira Ibarra, Toby Onwumere, Max Riemelt, and Brian J. Smith.
The Matrix Resurrections hits theaters and HBO Max on December 22. Check out the trailer below:
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Featured image: Caption: (L-r) CARRIE-ANNE MOSS as Trinity and KEANU REEVES as Neo/Thomas Anderson in Warner Bros. Pictures, Village Roadshow Pictures and Venus Castina Productions’ “THE MATRIX RESURRECTIONS,” a Warner Bros. Pictures release. Photo Credit: Courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures
