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Matrix Paper

The Matrix (1999) is recognized as a groundbreaking film due to its performances, innovative CGI, and its exploration of postmodern philosophical concepts, particularly Jean Baudrillard's simulation theory. The film illustrates the collapse of the distinction between reality and simulation, as characters live in a hyperreal world created by machines, exemplified by Cypher's betrayal and the transformation of Sentinels into human forms. Ultimately, The Matrix serves as a commentary on the nature of reality and identity in an increasingly digital age.

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22 views3 pages

Matrix Paper

The Matrix (1999) is recognized as a groundbreaking film due to its performances, innovative CGI, and its exploration of postmodern philosophical concepts, particularly Jean Baudrillard's simulation theory. The film illustrates the collapse of the distinction between reality and simulation, as characters live in a hyperreal world created by machines, exemplified by Cypher's betrayal and the transformation of Sentinels into human forms. Ultimately, The Matrix serves as a commentary on the nature of reality and identity in an increasingly digital age.

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seifabdelmeguid
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We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Seif AbdelMeguid 900221201

The Matrix (1999) has come to be seen as one of the most ground-breaking and

influential works produced by Hollywood in the twentieth century. This is partly because

of the film’s actors' tremendous performances, as well as the film’s innovative CGI

effects that were seen in many of the movie’s scenes. Yet, one could argue that the

main reason behind the movie’s success is its story’s reliance on key postmodern

philosophical concepts that were emerging throughout the century. Chief among these

concepts is Jean Baudrillard’s simulation concept. This is because of the concept’s

direct relatability with the viewer’s lives during the era of the internet.

To understand this connection, one has to first understand the simulation and

hyperreal concepts. A simulation is an imitation of an object that then acts as a

substitution for the real, and the hyperreal is a situation in which the simulacrum makes

some or all believe it is the real object not a mere copy (Sturken & Cartwright 307).

These concepts can be easily seen in the movie. The movie’s main premise is that

humans have been put in a simulated world, that is a perfect copy of the real one, by

highly intelligent machines which have secretly assumed control of the world. Therefore,

The humans who are unconsciously living in this machine-created world are collectively

made to believe that it is real. This is a direct reference to the aforementioned concept

of the hyperreal, since the distinction between the real and the copy have collapsed.

The Matrix also touched on the concept of the copy’s acceptability. This is

another key part of Baudrillard’s simulation concept, which is when a copy becomes a

perfectly acceptable basis of knowledge and experiencing the world. This can be

observed in the scene of Cypher’s betrayal. To elaborate, the character Cypher decides
to betray the crew of the Nebuchadnezzar by trapping them inside the Matrix. This was

done in exchange for him being admitted back into the matrix and forgetting about the

truth of the Matrix. Thus, Cypher has accepted this simulated world as a mean for

experiencing life , even though he consciously knows that it is a simulation.

Finally, Baudrillard also suggested the possibility of creating a hyperreal identity

that bears no resemblance to the real. This can be seen in the matrix with the case of

Agent Smith and the Sentinels. This is because in the real world, the Sentinels are large

tentacled machines that roam old human cities in search of any rebellious humans.

Nonetheless, unlike other characters whose appearances are not altered upon their

entry into the Matrix, Sentinels turn into normal-looking humans wearing suits and

glasses. Thus, Sentinels are also a direct reference to the simulation concept, because

of their hyperreal identities.

Work Cited
Sturken, Marita, and Lisa Cartwright. Practices of Looking: An Introduction to

Visual Culture. MTM, 2018.

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