Date: Tue, 20 May 2003 10:10:46 -0400
From: "Michael Walsh" <MJW at mail.press.jhu.edu>
To: <WSFAlist at keithlynch.net>
Subject: [WSFA] Re: The Matrix Reconsidered
Reply-To: WSFA members <WSFAlist at keithlynch.net>

>StrongL at MTMC.ARMY.MIL 05/20/03 08:49AM
>	The literate Mr. Walsh  quotes Lucretius "What is food to one man
>may be fierce poison to others."  Actually, I do not find either of the
>opinions of Mr. Shirley or Mr. Benford to be fierce poison.  Indeed, they
>may well be more insightful than my own initial reactions to the Matrix
>episodes.  Certainly, they pointed out some important resonances that I
>missed.  And where they agreed with my own humble thoughts, they =
expressed
>those thoughts more eloquently than I.
>	My problems with the Matrix saga are at least twofold.  First, I
>don't think that the production team upheld their side of the classical
>science fiction bargain by making their story plausible on its own =
merits.
>Both the initial premise and subsequent logic of the Matrix world don't =
hold
>water, and that destroys my initial willingness to suspend disbelief.  =
What
>remains is the intellectual equivalent of cotton candy:  tasty enough in =
its
>way but certainly not good nutrition.  Second, the whole notion of the
>Matrix reality-behind-reality strikes me as dangerously close to
>rationalizing paranoia.  I see the movies as interesting fiction, but I
>wonder if everyone in the audience has the same understanding.
>	That said, the first 2 episodes of the Matrix story were a =
wonderful
>Japanese anime style over the top super-martial arts thrill ride with =
some
>cyberpunk babble thrown in, and I will probably watch episode 3.

Perhaps "All Will Be Resolved" in the final flick.  Perhaps . . .

Anyway, I was wondering if anyone has seen any interviews with the =
Wachowski Brothers where they might have commented on Philip K. Dick?  =
Certainly PKDs concerns of "What is human" and "What is real" is pretty =
much at the core of the films.

And lastly, a snippet from the Slate.com review: "and maybe even convince =
yourself it's spectacular. (Some people thought The Phantom Menace [1999] =
was a good movie - - there's a collective delusion for you.)  <http://slate=
.msn.com/id/2082928/>

And lastly, for more Matrix than you havetime for (2,460 hits) go to =
news.google.com and do a search for: Matrix-Reloaded.

mjw