I go for months or even longer without watching some of my favorite movies and then I binge. So I watched all three Matrix movies over the last few days and I’d forgotten how much I loved them. Happy sigh.

‘K, now I’m going to wax all fangirl about the movies so feel free to move on, LOL!

I love the duality in the Matrix movies, the lush quality of fantasy versus the stark reality. Still, there’s something so beautiful about the scene where Link’s wife is running around the dock with the other woman with the rocket launcher trying to take out the main digging machine. The concentration, knowing you’re totally going to die but doing it anyway because why die a coward? Why not take them out if you can?

And the commander of the APU corps as they are on the docks as swarms of sentinels come in – amazing. I love that.

The Oracle, love it! The very first time Neo goes back into the Matrix when they’re all dressed to the nines – gorgeous and then tragic. There’s always that edge in the movies.

And Smith. Agent Smith is one of my favorite movie villains of all time. So complicated and totally batshit crazy! I love a crazy villain! The interrogation scene with they’ve got Morpheous in the agent headquarters and they come in with the helicopter? Fabulous! What imagination!

No small amount of tragedy in the movies though, I like that too. There are several points, usually between Neo and Trinity that I get weepy.

And speaking of Trinity – that moment in the first movie when she’s just jumped from one building to the other, being chased by agents – she’s on her back at the bottom of the stairwell and she’s telling herself, “get up, Trinity, get up, Trinity” it’s sort of one of my little mantras. I love her character! When she goes into the club and meets Monica Belluci (and oh my god, honestly, I adore her, what a completely beautiful woman Belluci is!) that little moment when Bellucci wants to kiss Neo, oh that was good! And when Neo saved her life! And at the end, when she tells Neo what she was going to say to him the first time he saved her life? *weeps* Motorcycle Trinity, helicopter Trinity, soft Trinity in a dress – she’s a wonderful heroine.

Jada Pinkett as Niobe is fab too! That scene on the freeway with her and Ghost? Loved it! And when she’s piloting the Hammer back to Zion in revolutions and the sentinels are all over the ship and she’s just totally kicking ass with Morpheus at her side.

And who doesn’t love Morpheus? What a great metaphorical character he is. This is a man who’s gained legendary status and he’s so humble in that strength. He believes in Neo even when Neo doesn’t. Even at the end, he believes – puts aside his status and his pride and pours that belief into Neo. That’s strength wielded wisely. As opposed to Locke, who can’t believe in anything and now he’s empty and bitter and holds on to Niobe as a way to get back at Morpheus but he doesn’t truly get Niobe the way Morpheus does. Morpheus inspires because while he owns his power, he doesn’t misuse it.

There are so many wonderful meta themes in the movies. I’m always in awe of the way all the important things in the universe are layered into the movies with such a deft touch. And yeah, sometimes a heavy hand, but still, if I can create characters that are half as vivid as Mifune on that damned dock, I’ll count myself fortunate indeed.