What The Matrix Is Communicating - Essay Example

Running Head: COMMUNICATING WHAT THE MATRIX IS COMMUNICATING By The Matrix The most unacquainted prose about The Matrix trilogy today do not have a continued attempt to ascertain the nature of the films’ particular relevance. Attempts thrive to associate The Matrix movies to never-ending discussions in critical, philosophical, religious, and postmodernist ideas. Analysers of The Matrix films have claimed the empathy of the view the films disclose. Even though these views vary significantly, it is clear that The Matrix trilogy attempts to preach certain ideas and messages (Kurt, 2008, p. 2). The following paper attempts to figure out what The Matrix films are communicating, as well as the methods they use to communicate these ideas. By analysing the location, set designs, costumes, movement, and props of The Matrix films, one realizes they attempt to communicate the idea of extreme transformation through technology. Location The Wachowski Brothers shot The Matrix, the first film of the trilogy, in Sydney, Australia (Kurt, 2008, p. 3). Filming occurred on soundstages set up on streets, tops of skyscrapers, and inside warehouses, a process that lasted for around sixty days. The directors were enthusiastic about Sydney as an ideal location for filming. This is because production expertise, competitive prices, and a great essence of teamwork collectively improved Sydney’s appeal. The directors and production team also preferred Sydney’s structural design within the city and its overall topography to American and European cities. The duty of making a sum of thirty production sets for The Matrix also occurred in Sydney. Here, two of the largest sets were the inside the Nebuchadnezzar, the hovering home of Morpheus and his disciples, and the office for the agents (Kurt, 2008, p. 4). This office integrated a whole Sydney office block. There was a key series involving immense filming in an office block. Directors and the production team were unable to achieve this series in a real location. As a result, the director’s team constructed a vast steel structure that resembled a contemporary skyscraper inside the soundstage. Afterwards, the team placed a background of Sydney outside the windows through a translight. Even though the background was a prop, the location of the filming of The Matrix in this particular scene remained in Sydney. Set Design Downward-streaming characters often depict the code that makes up the Matrix, which is the key concept of the three films. This code entails reflections of half-size kana characters and western Latin numbers, signs, and letters. Certain scenes in the film show how crucial the setting of these characters was for production design (Kurt, 2008, p. 4). For instance, one scene depicts the flow of dripping raindrops on a window reminiscent of the Matrix code. The Matrix overall set design leaned on its unique green colour for the entire set when inside the Matrix while the set designers highlighted the colour blue for scenes outside the Matrix, which was the real world. Additionally, set designers integrated network patterns into production sets for scenes within the Matrix. Set designers aimed for these patterns to communicate the hostile, logical, and manmade aspect of the real world. This transformation appeared extreme for viewers. The design of The Matrix set further entailed computer-simulated rain that richly resembled computer codes in the movie Ghost in the Shell (Kurt, 2008, p. 5). This resemblance is crucial to the film’s message of extreme transformation because of its influence on the writing and production of The Matrix. Relating the colour green with computers was the set designers aim to evoke the green tint of the first phosphor neutral computer screens. Costumes The Matrix required the design of thousands of costumes before selecting the ideal ones. The costume designer of the entire The Matrix trilogy, Kym Barrett, made sure her costumes evolved with the films. This way, Barrett’s work would coincide with the character’s developments while maintaining continuity amongst all three movies. More specifically, the protagonist, Neo, endures a lengthy journey in Enter the Matrix where he transforms (Kurt, 2008, p. 6). By the end of this movie, Neo is no longer worried about his destiny and Trinity fully proclaims her love for him. Barrett assured Neo and Trinity’s costumes echoed these new changes in their confidence. Barrett’s attire for Morpheus had to echo his evolving leading character in the rebellion against the Machines. Costumes for characters outside were untidier than when inside the Matrix. However, Morpheus’ personality remains composed. Morpheus acquires strength from his belief that Neo’s destiny is predetermined and able to defeat the Machines and agents (Kurt, 2008, p. 6). According to Barrett, this confidence radiates off Morpheus’ costumes when in the Nebuchadnezzar, in Zion, or in the Matrix. In addition, the main cast wore shoes designed by Barrett and tailor-made by Andre No. 1. For instance, Morpheus wore purple alligator replica boots. Barrett made sure Andre No. 1 made such costumes by hand to suit the actors and their stunt doubles. Movement The Wachowski Brothers deeply depended on slow motion to stylize action scenes in all three The Matrix films. At the same time, certain scenes in the screenplay demanded extraordinary effects. Such effects were part of movement in the films. These extraordinary scenes demanded active camera motion around slow-motion scenarios that neared 12,000 frames a second. The Wachowski Brothers referred to this effect as “bullet-time photography.” “Bullet-time photography” gave The Matrix camera and special effects team nearly infinite adaptability in regulating the speed and movement of on-screen aspects (Kurt, 2008, p. 3). For instance, a fighter springing into the air to kick his or her opponent could speed up to the peak of his or her jump, seem to float in midair, spread his or her leg in an electric-fast movement, then softly land back on the ground. Props The Wachowski Brothers applied props that had roles in plots all through The Matrix trilogy. The roles were developing the narrative and adding to the story’s ending. For instance, one of the agents reads a green folder full of the Matrix characters that make him aware of Neo’s whereabouts. This folder lets audiences know agents are aware of everything. Another prop is the metal device injected in Neo’s stomach while dreaming and pulled out after waking up (Kurt, 2008, p. 11). This prop builds the film’s storyline in the sense that viewers learn that the real world and the Matrix are virtually similar. Within the Matrix, a television reveals the meaning of the electrical symbols that Neo sees on his head. Reference Kurt, E K, 2008, The Analysis of the Design Concepts of the Movie “The Matrix.” Los Angeles, CA: Taskısla, ITU. Read More