'There is no spoon'

Take a good look at the style A Matrix poster. Nifty isn't it? Now imagine that in place of Keanu Reeves, you would see a leather clad Ewan McGregor, and in place of Laurence Fishburne, you would see (gasp) Val Kilmer. That was the movie that almost was. Perhaps it's just me, but I can't imagine anyone else playing the doe-eyed computer hacker Neo with the same ingenuity as Mr. Ted 'Theodore' Logan himself, Keanu Reeves. Face it, Ladies and Gentlemen, no one can utter the word 'Woah' (with the possible exception of Joey 'Blossom' Lawrence) with as much mono-syllabic brilliance as Mr. Reeves.

Some years after its release, The Matrix is still being discussed in hot button issue debates. Is the film too violent? Does it glamourize violence? Are we all just test tube babies drowning in goo while big metallic bees suck us dry? Should Keanu Reeves and Carrie Moss wear tight leather in every film they make? Yes. These are all very important topics for discussion, and I plead with all of you, to go home (if you are home, go to where there are actual people you can actually speak with) and talk about these things.
I am especially concerned with the metallic bees. I was stung by a bee once, it was a very unpleasant experience. I'd hate to think I was merely brunch to one of them.

The Matrix is just the first film in a trilogy. Matrix: Reloaded and Matrix: Revolutions are the two sequels and are due out in succession starting in 2003. Laurence Fishburne, Keanu Reeves and Carrie Moss all signed contracts to appear in all three films before shooting for the first one even began. Can you imagine the wheeling and dealing their agents and managers would have had to do had the first film been a complete bomb? As my favourite Keanu Reeves alter ego is wont to say with frequency, 'Bogus Dudes!'


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