Occasionally a film will come along that not only captures the imagination of the general public, but also the interest of educators and academics. The Matrix (and to a lesser extent the film’s two sequels) have managed to do just that. The movie is now being used in universities throughout North America and Europe in classes as diverse as Pop-Culture, Philosophy, English literature, and even “Cyber Theory.”
The philosophical symbolism in The Matrix is clear: the “reality” we see around us on a daily basis is not reality at all, but only our perspective of reality. The film takes this concept to an extreme, by showing humans living in nurturing “pods,” unaware of their true surroundings, and being force fed images and sensations of an idealized world.
Philosophically, the plot of The Matrix is very similar to Plato’s Allegory of the Cave, in which prisoners are bound inside an underground cavern, where they see shadows of objects dancing on the cave walls in front of them, but never the objects themselves. It’s easy to see how The Matrix could be useful in explaining philosophical concepts like these, but educators are taking things much further, and even using The Matrix as an example of postmodern English Literature and “Pop-Culture Spirituality.”
Brandeis University, for example, offers sophomore English classes based on The Matrix, and junior and senior level classes in communication and pop-culture also use the film in their curriculum. One Brandeis graduate commented that after four years of college, he had seen the film no less than eight times in various classes.
Other universities have also added The Matrix to their curriculum, including prestigious schools such as the Yale, Penn State, Berkeley and Brown, proving that the academic fascination with The Matrix is a widespread phenomenon. And even though the sci-fi fans who originally adored the film have since moved on, The Matrix refuses to go away, and boasts hundreds of active web sites exploring the concepts and meanings behind the film.
There are dedicated Matrix message boards and forums in nearly every language you care to name; and it’s not just the usual crowd of cyber-geeks discussing the film ad nausea; university professors, theologians, philosophers, political scientists and even physicist all get in on the act, debating the implications and lessons of the movie.
Ironically, one group of professionals who have never been particularly impressed with The Matrix is film critics, most of whom slammed the film for its one-dimensional character studies, less than stellar acting and cheesy dialogue. Even the trademark rope-fighting effects which were so impressive back in the 90s are beginning to look a bit amateurish and silly these days.
But even if it is not the greatest film ever made (or even in the top 1000!), there is still SOMETHING about the Matrix that continues to capture the attention and imagination of intellectuals, free thinkers and other academic types the world over.
