Matrix 4 Coming Soon

[The Joker]

Going purely off the trailer, I'm getting "Jurassic World" vibes. Where the numerous call back scenes from the original 1999 Matrix are quite evident, and readily apparent.

Which is probably for the best. Considering the mixed reception both the sequels got back in the day. Personally, I don't really mind those movies. Plus 2003 Monica Bellucci was determinately the word "desire" personified.

[thecolorsblend]

I'm not going to get spoilerific, but the trailer confirms all the details I've read about the movie. This is a shiny and polished trailer being towed by a vintage Aston Martin or Rolls Royce. The themes we're all accustomed to are there, but what strikes me above all else is how fun it feels. It's brighter (check the last scene of Revolutions for reference), the cinematography is gorgeous and in terms of raw power, this seems to be Neo's strongest filmic depiction. We've seen telekinesis abilities before, but they seem to be supercharged even further. Honestly, with the way they're doing the callbacks, and with Neo and Trinity back together, this feels like a victory lap for the franchise. If it really does end here, I'm sure to be leaving the cinema feeling good.

Wondered if I was the only one who noticed that the green coloring for Matrix stuff is gone, as it was at the end of Revolutions. It's a very telling creative choice.

Going purely off the trailer, I'm getting "Jurassic World" vibes. Where the numerous call back scenes from the original 1999 Matrix are quite evident, and readily apparent.

Agreed. One quibble I always had with the sequels was how clean and crisp they looked. The original had lots of grimy alleys, rainy streets, filthy rooftops, etc. whereas the sequels mostly seemed squeaky clean by comparison. I love that the trailer showed more grit and rain and atmosphere.

No doubt about it, the trailer rly has won a LOT of good will for the movie. Not bad for a franchise that was considered down for the count back in November 2003.

[The Joker]

I really hope, due to the Matrix movies being put back into the spotlight with "Matrix Resurrections", that someone posts the entire collection of the 2003 Powerade tv spots featuring one of the Agents that ran around the time "Matrix Reloaded" was in theaters.

Had to do some digging, but according to this vintage article, there were 4 separate 30 second Powerade tv spots, with 2 (I assume) tv spots being edited down to 15 seconds, and the 60 second Theater Powerade ad that ran in theaters.

https://www.adweek.com/brand-marketing/matrix-personifies-wiedens-powerade-push-63812/

The theater Powerade Agent ad is available on some of the official releases of "Reloaded" and franchise collection sets. I think there was a featurette that incorporated footage from the various Powerade Agent tv spots, but it was edited to hell. Some people have posted a few of the spots on youtube, but unfortunately, there's a couple that remain elusive for the time being. Hopefully, that'll change. Those tv spots were hilarious!

[thecolorsblend]

Never was totally comfortable with the product placement, tbh.

Still, that first ad resulted in a pretty memorable moment in theaters. An ex gf and I went to see some movie (X2?) and such was the anticipation to see The Matrix Reloaded that after the agent said "We have quotas to meet", some guy in the crowd hollered "Neo's gonna kick your @$$!" and the crowd in the theater actually cheered.

Never seen that before, never seen it since. But I saw it (or heard it, anyway) that night.

[The Joker]

Hmm. It's funny the stuff you remember.

Honestly, I think it was with X2 that I had a 1st date with a girl who I ended up dating for about 6 months. I distinctly remember seeing the trailers for HULK 2003 (with her whispering a suggestive comment in my ear following that teaser trailer, which is probably another reason why it's a vivid memory lol), and 28 Days Later. When we saw "Matrix Reloaded", it was either our 2nd or 3rd movie night out (although I really want to say it was the 2nd), where we unexpectedly ran into 3 friends of mine. So we all ended up sitting together in the theater right next to one another. Seems like it was then that I watched the Matrix Powerade minute promo with the Agent guy for the first time, but I may very well be mistaken. I do remember possibly seeing the "Freddy vs Jason" trailer for the first time, and "The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen". With the latter being memorable, mainly because one friend doing a quick Sean Connery impression after the trailer ended, which was something of a running joke between us. Plus, I think it was just a few weeks later that Peta Wilson hosted the great "Comic Book Superheroes Unmasked" documentary that aired on the History Channel that summer (subsequent airings exclude her hosting segments).

Only other experiences that can vaguely compare, is that I distinctly remember a good number of people standing up and clapping at the end of a midnight showing for Spider-Man 2, and/or attending a screening of TMNT 2007, with some goofball screaming, "YyeeEEAaaaH!" after the FF2 Rise Silver Surfer trailer ended, with pretty much everyone at that screening looking at him like he's an idiot.

Going back to the summer of 2003, there was perhaps a Disney animated movie or something that was off my radar that had a ton of merchandise and/or product placement, but whenever I think of that time, it sure seemed like stuff for "Matrix Reloaded", and "HULK" was everywhere.

Outside of "Terminator 3", green was a popular color that summer.

[thecolorsblend]

Going back to the summer of 2003, there was perhaps a Disney animated movie or something that was off my radar that had a ton of merchandise and/or product placement, but whenever I think of that time, it sure seemed like stuff for "Matrix Reloaded", and "HULK" was everywhere.

That's the way I remember things going too.

I'll add that until I went to the midnight premiere of TDK, I had NEVER been to anything remotely close to The Matrix Reloaded premiere. To be fair, I didn't go to The Phantom Menace midnight premiere so who knows how that went down? But The Matrix Reloaded midnight opening was freaking insane. People running around in black trench coats, girls dolled up like Trinity all over the place, some forward-thinking actual twins were dressed up like the Twins, on and on and on.

People can say what they like about Reloaded's critical reception and the aftermath and all that. But for pure excitement and anticipation, Reloaded is (now) second only to TDK in terms of sheer bonkers insanity and glee that I've ever witnessed for a new movie's opening night.

And that rly seemed to be the peak. The marketing push for Revolutions was more subdued. It's almost a chicken or egg type of thing. Were people tamped down because of Reloaded shock, hence Revolutions marketing was scaled back? Or was Revolutions marketing scaled back, leading people to be tamped down? It's hard to say after all these years. But like I say, Reloaded's midnight premiere was a thing of legend for me for a long time.

[The Joker]

I love reading stories like that. Sounds like it was a one hell of a positive experience! I'm kinda picturing this like the opening theater scene in "Scream 2". Only it's a bunch of Neos/Trinitys, rather than a bunch of Ghostfaces running around, and no Jada Pinkett getting stabbed to death. 

I agree that "Matrix Revolutions" marketing really did come across as noticeably more subdued than that of "Reloaded". Why that was is a pretty good question... Most people, from what I remember, that I spoke to about "Reloaded" liked it overall. It was only on the internet that the reception came across as being more negatively received. To me, it was a heck of a spectacle of a movie. CGI was continually getting better and better, and "Matrix Reloaded" surely pushed the then-capabilities to the very limit. I still remember imagining a Superman vs Brainiac drone androids scenario during the Neo vs 100 Agent Smiths fight scene in "Matrix Reloaded" when I initially watched it.

By far, the longest line I've ever was in when attending a midnight showing was with "Star Wars Episode III" back in 2005. There's a Wal-Mart that's like right across the street from the local theater, and the line stretched alll the way over there. I am not entirely sure if that's ever happened before, or since around here to be perfectly honest. I missed out on a "The Dark Knight" midnight showing (weirdly the local theater to me didn't even bother with a midnight showing for "Batman Begins" in 2005, which was first shown for a evening showing), but I did attend a "Dark Knight Trilogy" screening in 2012 where "The Dark Knight Rises" would play at midnight following "Batman Begins", and "The Dark Knight" (with intermissions included). I think it started like at 6pm, and we didn't get out till about 3am or later. Pretty cool experience. Tons of people, and some were in costume. Unfortunately, I get home and pretty much find out about the Aurora, Colorado incident which pretty much dampened the feeling of, I guess you can say, exhilaration I still had at the moment.

[The Dark Knight]

I always remember that a student managed to take the day off school to see Reloaded. For whatever reason I couldn't do that. But I remember that being a huge deal, as if this person would be laying their eyes on something almost mythical. The first movie was a special effects extravaganza and everyone knew the storytelling devices were mind bending. People knew the movie would be pushing boundaries and perhaps even revolutionize the genre. The anticipation was huge. As a youngster I enjoyed the movie, and for a period of time I bought into the sequels sucked narrative. Freeing myself of those chains was liberating, because as an adult I appreciate it on another level.

Honestly, Reloaded is my favorite Matrix movie even though the original is a stone cold classic. I don't hate Revolutions but I think Resurrections can surpass it. Whether or not it eclipses the first two films remains to be seen. I'm just after a good movie that honors the brand.

[thecolorsblend]

Honestly, Reloaded is my favorite Matrix movie even though the original is a stone cold classic. I don't hate Revolutions but I think Resurrections can surpass it. Whether or not it eclipses the first two films remains to be seen. I'm just after a good movie that honors the brand.

I've had a complicated relationship with the trilogy over the years.

One criticism that I stand by is how the style of bullet time went from being a very clever, unique and original effect in the first film mutated into something that looks like slow-mo CGI in the sequels. Not sure if those shots actually are CGI. But they definitely look like it. The reality-warping nature that bullet time had in the first film is therefore lost in the sequels.

The ideas, meaning, philosophy and all that other stuff is wide open for debate. But I maintain that the bullet time effect suffered in the sequels.

[thecolorsblend]

The poster