Stew

Roland of Gilead is not of our world. The gunslinger and protagonist of Stephen King's The Dark Tower series, he is on a journey through many worlds, some we've seen in other King novels, along with a party of characters from “our” world. I won't spoil the epic saga for any who have yet to read it. Currently, I'm reading Wolves of the Calla, the fifth of the seven-volume series. Early on in the book when Roland's companions, his “Ka-tet”, tell him of the various genres of literature in their world, he is puzzled over the separation. “Do people in your world always want one story-flavor at a time? Only one taste in their mouths?” he asks. “Does no one eat stew?”

The Matrix Trilogy was ultimately loved or hated by critics and fans alike. It is a series of films that work on many levels at once, borrowing a lot from various theologies and philosophies as well film genres, most notably science fiction, action and kung fu. The Wachowski brothers have never publicly offered their own interpretations upon what the films were supposed to be. Like any great work of art, they remain open to myriad perceptions. There's not necessarily any one correct take, although some are better than others and the viewers' enjoyment seems wholly dependent upon which reading they subscribe to. Those seeking a simple special-effects typical Hollywood action-fest may be disappointed in where these movies end up. The commentary I listened to today cited one critic as saying he “didn't want to think in his action movies.” They didn't name the reviewer, but I vaguely remember hearing that ridiculous statement. I should probably add at this point that this post WILL contain major spoilers for those who haven't seen these films.

Dr. Cornel West is a notable African-American Harvard professor who enjoys a small role in the second and third films as a member of the human council. Ken Wilber, author and philosopher, joins West in a very insightful commentary track on all three films. Both seem to explore common traditions and characteristics of various faiths and ideas in this world, and how the Wachowskis, in their opinion, explore them in the trilogy. Their views of faith and religion are strictly academic and anthropological, and should be taken as such, but they come to a fair interpretation of the movies that holds up. Here are some of the ideas they explore:

1) There is a Trinity of existential levels being explored, the body, mind, and spirit. The realm of the BODY is the “real” world, filmed primarily in blue tones, the world where humanity survives in Zion. Man has a physical body as do their enemies, the machines. The second realm is the realm of the MIND, which is the Matrix, which is filmed in tones of green. We see a lot of cool martial arts, gunplay, and car chases in the Matrix over the course of the films. While we are seeing physical representations of confrontation, these are actually conflicts of THOUGHT, as humans plugged in to the system confront the programs, and physical bodies are merely avatars, representations of self-image. Revelations that characters such as The Oracle are programs show the deceptive quality of this realm, and the complexity of the films beyond a simple clash between good and evil, and man and machine. Finally, there is the realm of the SPIRIT, represented by gold. Only as his powers grow is Neo able to perceive this level, and understand the true nature of the conflict. Man built the machines but the complex programs grew sentient, developed “souls” of their own. Man was flawed, and it was man that rendered his world unto darkness to destroy his enemies. The Matrix too is a flawed system. Therefore....

2) ...neither side can prevail. A typical Hollywood ending would be man's victory over machine, the destruction of evil by good. But both are halves of a whole and representative of the dualistic nature of existence, that one cannot survive without the other. Neo destroys Smith in the first movie, but in fact frees him. After likening humanity to viruses in the first installment, Smith himself emulates humanity and goes on to replicate himself over and over. He even manages to cross over into a human body at one point, the first clue of the commonality of spirit. It is as futile for Neo to destroy him as it would be for him to destroy Neo. Ultimately, a union of both takes place and only then is there resolution between the worlds of the mind and the body. Neo sacrifices himself for all beings, a true messianic trait. And yet....

3) ...many things he does counter not only religious ideas of what a savior should be, but the very things the aptly named Morpheus dreamt of. At the end of the first film, the most self-contained, it seems that the prophecy has been fulfilled, that Neo is in fact the One. But when you watch the movies as a whole, the initial film isn't as self-contained as it seems(And the latter two don't hold up as well on their own, particularly the third one). Neo still questions his role, even after accepting that his mind can do amazing things within the Matrix. Many times people turn to their “savior” for answers, and his response is “I don't know.” He honestly doesn't, he's honestly human, and perhaps this demonstrates some sly brilliance in casting Keanu Reeves as someone without answers. He has doubts, and his choices are undeniably human. He chooses to save Trinity over Zion it seems in the second film, putting eros over agape, and placing his love of an individual before his love of all humanity. Neo is no god, no perfect being, not even a god made flesh. He's just a man with some gifts, and the fifth or sixth such individual to come along. Yet in not trying to live up to some idealized version of what he is supposed to be, by BEING HUMAN, he succeeds where his predecessors failed. And saving Trinity wasn't damning humanity after all, since...

4)...they're in it together. In the first film she is his guide, the one he calls to for help when facing agents, the only one who can work with him as one in saving Morpheus. When he dies, she brings him back and when she dies in the second film, he brings her back. When blind as Frank Herbert's Muad'Dib, at least to the physical world, Neo depends on Trinity to fly him in to the machine city. And since his perceptions extend to the realm of the spirit by this point, and he sees the beings of light, she needs him to guide her. When she dies, she's still with him and when he confronts and merges with Smith, he dies not long after. They die together saving the world, and man and machine begin a new understanding thanks to their sacrifice.

Obviously there's a lot more to touch upon, but these were some of the highlights the philosophers spoke of that I found interesting, and reasonable takes on what the Wachowskis were saying. Agree or disagree, it shows how multifaceted the films are, and how many levels they can be appreciated and enjoyed. Perhaps some time in the next week I'll listen to the second commentary track by critics, and share that here as well.