Matrix: Resurrections trailer is sheer perfection, both fresh and familiar

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  Back in the Matrix? Thomas (Keanu Reeves), aka Neo, has been having dreams that don't feel like dreams. [credit: YouTube/Warner Bros. ]

Those attending last month's CinemaCon in Las Vegas were treated to a sneak preview of the first trailer for The Matrix: Resurrections, the fourth installment in the hugely influential franchise that launched with the premiere of The Matrix in 1999. But the trailer was not released to the general public—until now. The Resurrections title is apt, since we do indeed seem to be going back to the beginning: an alternate version of that simulated reality, with some new faces and many similar shots, and very much the same theme of discovering (or in this case, rediscovering) one's power. It's at once familiar and fresh... in other words, sheer perfection.

(Spoilers for first three films in the franchise below.)

It's hard to overstate the deep cultural impact of The Matrix. It redefined the sci-fi film genre and shaped an entire generation of fans—plus, it raked in $460 million worldwide, garnered multiple Oscars, and sent star Keanu Reeves' already healthy career into the Hollywood stratosphere. We still refer to taking the "red pill" when searching for a metaphor to represent choosing between an unsettling, life-changing truth or blissful ignorance. Who can forget Reeves' meme-worthy utterances ("Whoa!" or "I know kung fu") or Laurence Fishburne's fabulous sunglasses-wearing Morpheus? This is also the film that gave us "bullet time": a special effect—used for the rooftop scene where Neo (Reeves) dodges bullets fired by one of the Matrix's Agents—in which the shot progresses in slow motion while the camera appears to move at a normal speed through the scene.

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