“Our work on Reloaded was concentrated on creating hyper-real virtual cinema in pursuit of super-human events like the Burly Brawl, the Freeway Chase and Neo flying. For Revolutions we focused our efforts on rendering epic, revelations-like confrontations between man and machine, as well as large-scale environments within the real world, like the Machine City and Zion,” explains John Gaeta, visual FX supervisor of the Matrix trilogy. 

He continues, “I hope that our work on both films compliments the most significant contributions to dark science fiction cinema since “Blade Runner,” “Alien” and a host of milestone high concept FX pictures.” 

It seems very probable that the trilogy written and directed by the Wachowski brothers (Larry and Andy) will forever impact the science fiction/action genre. The Matrix Reloaded made film history as the highest grossing rated R film in history, earning over $735 million worldwide. With a seemingly increasing viewer base, the third chapter The Matrix Revolutions is probably bound to a similar if not more extraordinary box office release. 

Exactly what is so universally appealing about the Wachowski brothers’ dream child? Producer Joel Silver explains, “They’ve created an epic story, told it in a visionary way that revolutionized entertainment, and created a thinking person’s action trilogy. Viewers can enjoy the films on a purely visceral level, or if they want to go deeper, there are some very profound ideas to consider.” 

Keanu Reeves who plays lead role Neo adds to the explanation, “These films explore the search for truth, the cost of knowledge, the quest for understanding our lives and the sacrifices we choose to make. Evolution is another important theme of the trilogy,” he adds. 

“In the first film, it’s machines versus humans, who are trying to free themselves from the world of the Matrix where the machines have enslaved them. Reloaded and Revolutions follows the perspective of Machine-created programs trying to hide in the Matrix when they face deletion in the Machine world. Simultaneously, the humans face extinction by the Machines that are trying to destroy Zion. Ultimately, the Machines’ survival is threatened as well, and the humans, programs and Machines have to find a way to cooperate to ensure survival.” 

It is certainly true that many die-hard Matrix fans appreciate the mental work required to grasp the overtly complex philosophical themes dealt with. This film veers so far from the classical narrative conventions, viewers cannot passively accept the unfolding of events. Ironically, one must question the reality projected on the screen in exactly the manner main character Neo is forced to do. 

Story aside, intensive visual FX, elaborate costume/set design and highly choreographed action sequences combine for the over-the-top look of the trilogy. Perhaps the main contributing creative force in designing the style of the film and its outlandish worlds was the work of comic book artist Geof Darrow. Darrow’s images in publications such as Hard Boiled provided the Wachowski brothers with images for highly complex concepts like the strange creatures that populate the Machine City, and the look of Machine City itself. 

On the high concept idea of the trilogy Silver says, “The Wachowski brothers decided to create images that no one could copy. That type of originality takes a lot of time, a lot of money and a lot of talent. The results are staggering. These guys didn’t just raise the bar for action filmmaking, for visionary storytelling, for what is visually possible- they obliterated it!” 

Revolutions has two times as many visual FX as either The Matrix and/or Reloaded. In fact, this undertaking was so massive in scope that Gaeta had to issue out some of the workload to several additional FX vendors including Sony Imageworks, BUF and Giant Killer Robots. 

According to Silver, “It was a massive operation. We had close to one thousand people on the payroll full-time. We were lucky that we had great continuity of incredible personnel from the first film.” 

With so many creative minds at work innovations both computerized and physical in nature were made possible. Even the cinematic effect Bullet Time, the most talked about innovation created for the original Matrix had to be reworked. Bullet Time is the digital effect that made it possible to overlap slow motion fight sequences as seen by a camera at normal frame rate. 

As big of a technological breakthrough that Bullet Time was it was not big enough for the scope of the following films. Gaeta says, “It was evident that we couldn’t go any further by utilizing the technology from the first Bullet Time shots. It was too restrictive and too labor intensive. The concept needed to graduate to the true technology it suggested.” 

The solution to this dilemma came in the form of mocap (motion capture). Mocap is in essence, the creation of virtual reality by means of recording motion data. In the case of mocap used to recreate virtual characters, the main actors wore high-tech body suits and even the subtlest of movements are recorded and replicated virtually. This digital breakthrough enabled the creation of virtual characters that were mirror images of their human counterparts and yet capable of performing super-human stunts. 

Fight choreographer Wo Ping was very pleased with the idea of combining the use of both virtual characters with the real actors/actresses. He claims, “Motion capture is fantastic technology because it helps me to accomplish a lot of moves that can’t be done in real life. With mocap, I was able to enforce the dynamic power and beauty of the kicks and punches in a way that would otherwise be entirely impossible.” 

Here again, with the use of mocap, the trilogy marked a crossroads in film history. The largest mocap performance stage in the world was created for the final “Matrix” chapter. The most mocap ever used in a single film was executed for “Revolutions.” Another first was the creation of the “Zion Mainframe” the largest compartmentalized computer information exchange engine ever used on a feature film. 

Not all of the technical innovations created especially for the trilogy were related to computerized functions. In fact the ability to translate the complicated visuals of The Matrix to screen resulted from combining computer ingenuity with the invention of physical, cinematic rigs and tools. 

Three main fight sequences occur in Revolutions, all of which were made possible by this combination of virtual FX and physical rigs. Equally important to these scenes was Wo Ping’s choreography and the actor/actresses ability to actually fight in real time. 

The showdown between Neo and antagonist Agent Smith, takes place in what has been come to be referred to as the Super Burly Brawl. Silver says of this sequence, “The Super Burly Brawl is like the ultimate comic book battle between two superheroes wreaking havoc on the world, which the audience will have never witnessed in live action before. It’s a fantastic experience to watch how the Wachowski brothers have developed Neo and Smith’s rivalry to this final, incredible resolution in Revolutions. 

Challenges posed by the scripted fight included the need for torrential downpours as well as abrupt changes in scenery. The two characters begin to fight in the street, fly 2,500 feet into the sky, in and out of a skyscraper, and then crash all the way to the ground and further as the fight is resolved in a large crater. 

To begin with, the filmmaking team had to invent rainmaking machines that produce larger than usual raindrops with expanded surface area that could be lit more dramatically and effectively. 

Actor Hugo (Lord of the Rings) Weaving who plays Agent Smith muses, “The rain was so heavy that it was hard to speak without starting to have bubbles and streams of water running out of your mouth. You couldn’t hear yourself speak, so finding the right tone in that scene was really difficult because I had no notion of what I sounded like.” 

At the beginning of the sequence on the street, there are hundreds of Agent Smith replicates observing the fight. These were created by combining live acting doubles with dummies and virtual FX. The doubles controlled the movement of the dummies and then more virtual Agent Smiths were added in postproduction. 

The production department invented Tuning Forks, which were special rigs that simulated actor/actress weightlessness during fighting. The Twisty Belt was invented to allow for unrestricted multi-dimensional rotations when the fighting sequences required flips combined with handsprings as well as face to face combat. Another invention for the trilogy was the Yak Rig. This device simulated free falling and was named because of the not so pleasant reaction actors often experienced after using it. 

The sequence within which Trinity played by Carrie-Ann Moss and Morpheus played by Lawrence Fishburne show off their fighting capabilities is titled the “Club Hell Coat Check” sequence. Here a track system had to be installed along the ceiling so that the performers could be hung upside down. Another difficult and potentially dangerous challenge here was choreographing all of the explosives and squibs to the movements of the actors so that nobody was injured. 

Moss who broke her leg during training was very nervous when faced with this scene. She explains, “When I walked onto the Club Hell set, it reminded me of when Keanu and I shot the Lobby sequence in The Matrix. The pressure to get every move right and be in sync with all the squibs and the explosions was immense. I was nervous about getting back on the wire again after breaking my leg, but the wire team really helped me out.” 

She continues, “I wound up nailing a couple of big moves in one take and got a “hurrah” from the Brothers, which is really rare. Completing the Club Hell sequence was definitely one of the highlights of the projects for me.” 

Silver adds, “The Club Hell Coat Check fight takes the wire concept even further than the Lobby sequence in The Matrix. It’s exciting to see how we were able to expand and elaborate on the artistry from the first film in this arc that culminates in “Revolutions.” 

The third main fighting sequence in Revolutions is the Siege on Zion. Here Zion soldiers and civilians are attacked by the evil Sentinels. The “airbike” was a device created for the simulation of the Sentinel tentacles grabbing and throwing the soldiers. This machine was nicknamed the PMS machine… or please make it stop! 

Nona Gaye who plays Zee says of this scene, “We were jumping and running through tunnels and landing on our knees and getting cut up. It was really a little more strenuous than I had expected it to be. Every bruise was worth it however because The Siege is incredible.” 

Production designer Owen Paterson praises the combination of talent and energy that was required to produce the look of the trilogy. He says, “The entire production design flows from the minds of Larry and Andy. To take something from being written word, to a drawing on a piece of paper, to something that’s built physically or virtually in a computer is a wonderful thing.” 

Perhaps overlooked till thus far was the strength and drive required of the actors and actresses themselves. According to Wo Ping the actor/actresses were better prepared for the third installment than they had been for the first. He claims, “The cast arrived in much better shape, much fitter, with a far greater understanding of the demands that would be placed on them.” 

However, as prepared as he was, Reeves thought that the second and third films were by far harder than the original. He admits, “Training for these two films was probably three times harder than preparing for the first.” 

His efforts paid off, because it seems unanimous that everyone involved with the film was impressed with Reeves drive and devotion for the project. Moss says, “There is no one who is harder on themselves than Keanu. There were times that I would cover my eyes and ears worried that he was pushing himself too far. I completely commend and applaud him for going there. He really took his fighting and physicality to a level that I don’t think any American actor has ever done.” 

On The Matrix experience as a whole Reeves admits, “I loved working with Larry and Andrew. I respect the opportunities they gave me and the ideas and imagination of this beautiful story. Everyone involved with these films was asked to do their very best, and it was challenging, but that’s what makes it really good- rolling up our sleeves and trying to realize this dream. How could anyone involved not be excited by the opportunity to hopefully do the best work that one might ever get the chance to do in his/her creative life.” 

Stunt Coordinator R.A. Rondell concludes with a smile, “We’re all ruined! We’ve hit such a tremendous benchmark with these films that working on anything else is going to be a bit of a letdown. The ability and expertise of this crew makes what we were able to achieve pretty unlimited. We’ve done as many as 70 takes in one day to make it perfect, to find a magic moment. We’ve become such hyper-perfectionists that it will be a letdown to not go that extra distance!” 

--Lauren Freeman 

© 2003 PREVUE Magazine. All rights reserved. Photos: © 2003 Warner Bros. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.