{"id":93093,"date":"2022-01-07T05:32:27","date_gmt":"2022-01-07T10:32:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/religionprof\/?p=93093"},"modified":"2022-01-06T09:52:07","modified_gmt":"2022-01-06T14:52:07","slug":"discussing-the-matrix-resurrections","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/religionprof\/2022\/01\/discussing-the-matrix-resurrections.html","title":{"rendered":"Discussing The Matrix: Resurrections"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

Here is the YouTube video of my conversation with Tripp Fuller and Donna Bowman, two academics who were the absolutely ideal conversation partners for a discussion of the Matrix movies in general and the most recent one,\u00a0The Matrix Resurrections<\/em>, in particular. Have a listen!<\/p>\n

<\/iframe><\/p>\nLet me highlight some of the things that grabbed my attention in the most recent movie, and\/or that I found worth revisiting in the original trilogy as a result of seeing this fourth one.<\/p>\n\u201cStories never really end\u201d \nEchoes of Total Rekall \nThe exploration of narration, history, truth, storytelling \nIntersected with a recent article about stories creating empathy as well as reinforcing us vs. them binaries through the depictions of heroes and villains and the resolution of conflict between them.<\/p>\n\u201cWhy use old code to make something new?\u201d \n\u201cThe choice is an illusion\u201d \nSo much about getting away from binaries<\/p>\nHow do you know if you want something yourself or if your upbringing programmed you? (The same can be asked about biology, and both apply when \u201cTiffany\u201d asks this question about motherhood).<\/p>\nMorpheus escapes the modal to enter the Matrix, which is not the top layer of reality. The latest movie brought the question of whether we can ever know we are in the \u201creally real world\u201d to the fore. \nWe tell stories that reflect our perception of reality. All our perception is a blurring of story and senses. \nThe Analyst speaks truth even if he does so in the interest of his own hegemony. Thomas Anderson converted elements of his life into narrative. Sublimation. Artists do this, but fantasy can become dangerous when we cannot distinguish it from reality.<\/p>\nNote that machines rescue Neo. This film more than any before it challenges the human-vs.-machine binary (although it had already emerged in the sequels). \nMorpheus\u2019 question: Are memories turned into fiction any less real?<\/p>\n\u201cI don\u2019t know. I don\u2019t even know how to know.\u201d \nThe Matrix turns the profound and inspiring into something trivial. Weaponizes our ideas and dreams.<\/p>\nAbout an hour in Neo wondered whether anything they did made a difference. I loved the way the film highlighted that it did make a difference, and what difference was made. \nYou changed what no one believed could be changed: the meaning of \u201cour side\u201d \nMnemosyne ship name, after the goddess of memory \nWar makes the same noise as the Matrix. \u201cTakes over every damned thing.\u201d \nZion was stuck in a Matrix of its own, believed it had to be us or them. This city was built by us and<\/em> them. \nScarcity breeds violence<\/p>\nSmith: \u201cWhat has the world come to when you can\u2019t even trust a program?\u201d<\/p>\nSati: praying, \u201cnow all we need is a miracle\u201d<\/p>\nSheeple crave certainty<\/p>\nI love that there are \u201cNeo-ologists\u201d<\/p>\nWachowski sisters\u2019 trans experience (Lana & Lilly) connected directly with the story now that we understand them and what the films meant to them in a way most viewers did not when the original trilogy was released. In\u00a0Resurrections <\/em>we see what many observed about the original Matrix film, namely that characters and casting seem to be predominantly non-binary with respect to gender\/appearance.<\/p>\nI was sorry we didn\u2019t get to talk more about Thomas Anderson as suicide survivor and the ending with people\/bots throwing themselves out windows as human missiles. Was this an attempt by the Analyst to trigger him?<\/p>\nIn case you missed it, once again the last words from Lana Wachowski at the end of the credits are:<\/p>\nFor mom and dad \nLove is the Genesis of everything<\/p>\nOn making money and intellectual property franchises (a major theme in the movie as well as in any discussion in the real world about the Matrix franchise): one can make a comparison with rebellious songwriters who make money challenging the system \nThere is an analogy to the One within the world of the films: the Matrix movies are an outlet we need that can stabilize or threaten the system<\/p>\nIn response to a question about Io I suggest that goodness involves being committed to being permanently annoyed, living with imperfection. \nDonna Bowman noted that Io resembles 1 and 0 (binary) as well as Zion with the end letters Z and N lopped off.<\/p>\nOne thing that strikes me as problematic in the film is when Morpheus tells Neo, \u201cIf you want to see Trinity again you\u2019re going to have to fight for her.\u201d At that point they hadn\u2019t really ascertained that she is alive.<\/p>\nElsewhere on The Matrix Resurrections <\/em>see Brian LePort\u2019s post:<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"wp-embedded-content\" data-secret=\"Ger4USrfn1\"><a href=\"https:\/\/brianleport.home.blog\/2021\/12\/31\/trinitys-comment-to-the-analyst-in-the-matrix-resurrections-and-how-the-sequels-correct-the-original-spoiler-alerts\/\" class=\" decorated-link\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\">Trinity\u2019s comment to the Analyst in \u201cThe Matrix Resurrections\u201d and how the sequels correct the original (spoiler\u00a0alert)<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" class=\"wp-embedded-content\" sandbox=\"allow-scripts\" security=\"restricted\" style=\"position: absolute; visibility: hidden;\" title=\"\u201cTrinity\u2019s comment to the Analyst in \u201cThe Matrix Resurrections\u201d and how the sequels correct the original (spoiler\u00a0alert)\u201d \u2014 Le Portology\" src=\"https:\/\/brianleport.home.blog\/2021\/12\/31\/trinitys-comment-to-the-analyst-in-the-matrix-resurrections-and-how-the-sequels-correct-the-original-spoiler-alerts\/embed\/#?secret=22fYcdqDgT#?secret=Ger4USrfn1\" data-secret=\"Ger4USrfn1\" width=\"500\" height=\"282\" frameborder=\"0\" marginwidth=\"0\" marginheight=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<a href=\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/bibleandculture\/2021\/12\/28\/the-matrix-resurrections\/\" class=\" decorated-link\" target=\"_blank\">Ben Witherington also blogged about the movie<\/a>:<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"wp-embedded-content\" data-secret=\"UlsnYUDbsB\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/bibleandculture\/2021\/12\/28\/the-matrix-resurrections\/\" class=\" decorated-link\" target=\"_blank\">The Matrix Resurrections<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" class=\"wp-embedded-content\" sandbox=\"allow-scripts\" security=\"restricted\" style=\"position: absolute; visibility: hidden;\" title=\"\u201cThe Matrix Resurrections\u201d \u2014 The Bible and Culture\" src=\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/bibleandculture\/2021\/12\/28\/the-matrix-resurrections\/embed\/#?secret=D6ZPxvx4TV#?secret=UlsnYUDbsB\" data-secret=\"UlsnYUDbsB\" width=\"500\" height=\"282\" frameborder=\"0\" marginwidth=\"0\" marginheight=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\"><\/iframe><\/p>\nFinally, if you haven\u2019t already, see my post written right after seeing Resurrections<\/em> for the first time here:<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"wp-embedded-content\" data-secret=\"t9aTn0gbuE\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/religionprof\/2021\/12\/the-matrix-resurrections.html\" class=\" decorated-link\" target=\"_blank\">The Matrix Resurrections<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" class=\"wp-embedded-content\" sandbox=\"allow-scripts\" security=\"restricted\" style=\"position: absolute; visibility: hidden;\" title=\"\u201cThe Matrix Resurrections\u201d \u2014 Religion Prof: The Blog of James F. McGrath\" src=\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/religionprof\/2021\/12\/the-matrix-resurrections.html\/embed#?secret=56rtrWzokc#?secret=t9aTn0gbuE\" data-secret=\"t9aTn0gbuE\" width=\"500\" height=\"282\" frameborder=\"0\" marginwidth=\"0\" marginheight=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Here is the YouTube video of my conversation with Tripp Fuller and Donna Bowman, two academics who were the absolutely ideal conversation partners for a discussion of the Matrix movies in general and the most recent one,\u00a0The Matrix Resurrections, in particular. Have a listen! Let me highlight some of the things that grabbed my attention […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":136,"featured_media":93041,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[99],"tags":[7117,17181,12462],"class_list":["post-93093","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-matrix","tag-matrix","tag-resurrections","tag-the-matrix"],"yoast_head":"\n<title>Discussing The Matrix: Resurrections<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Here is the YouTube video of my conversation with Tripp Fuller and Donna Bowman, two academics who were the absolutely ideal conversation partners for a\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/religionprof\/2022\/01\/discussing-the-matrix-resurrections.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Discussing The Matrix: Resurrections\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Here is the YouTube video of my conversation with Tripp Fuller and Donna Bowman, two academics who were the absolutely ideal conversation partners for a\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/religionprof\/2022\/01\/discussing-the-matrix-resurrections.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Religion Prof: The Blog of James F. 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Goodwin Chair in New Testament Language and Literature at Butler University in Indianapolis, Indiana, USA. BD University of London, PhD Durham University. Author of John's Apologetic Christology, The Only True God, Theology and Science Fiction, and The Burial of Jesus, as well as (with Charles Haberl of Rutgers University) the two-volume Mandaean Book of John critical edition, translation, and commentary. 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