The Matrix Reloaded

7/20/2013

Commander Lock: "Not everyone believes what you believe." Morpheus: "My beliefs do not require that they do." Characters are always talking like this in "The Matrix Reloaded," which plays like a collaboration involving a geek, a comic book and the smartest kid in Philosophy 101. Morpheus in particular unreels extended speeches that remind me of Laurence Olivier's remarks when he won his honorary Oscar--the speech that had Jon Voight going "God!" on TV, but in print turned out to be quasi-Shakespearean doublespeak. The speeches provide not meaning, but the effect of meaning: It sure sounds like those guys are saying some profound things. That will not prevent fanboys from analyzing the philosophy of "The Matrix Reloaded" in endless Web postings. Part of the fun is becoming an expert in t

1/11/2023

I'll tell you something that a lot of people don't know... teachers make lesson plans around movies when they need an easy day. They keep them in their pocket when they feel a little sick, or when they were up all night watching the election returns or, you know, drinking and playing stupid games with the college roommates they still live with because they are single and having roommates is a little more fun. This is one of those movies that I sucked the joy out of and used to teach the philosophy of the Reformation... but, you know, I tried to be the cool teacher and throw in some wire-fu action between stripping all the joy out of it for them. We look at Calvinism and that philosophy... we watch the really cool car chase We examine the concepts of predestination in Christianity, we