“The Matrix”, a masterpiece of science fiction, marked its era and continues to generate lively discussions. But a question remains when we watch the film: why is the matrix green?
When The Matrix was released in 1999, viewers were introduced to a strange virtual world dominated by the color green. Thus, directors Lana and Lilly Wachowski, accompanied by cinematographer Bill Pope, made a clear distinction between the real world and its dark colors, and the Matrix, with predominant green.
Welcome to the real world
This choice of lighting continued in Matrix Reloaded and Revolutions, with the characters still evolving in the same fake world. But why did the creators of the saga choose to use this color? It was necessary to distinguish the real world from the computer simulation, but why was this color ultimately used?
The explanation is very simple: it is a reference to old computers, as explained in particular by the cinematographer of Matrix Resurrections, Daniele Massaccesi. “The dominant color of the Matrix was green, because old computers showed green text on a black background. So the Matrix was green”he indicated in the columns of Première in December 2021.
The Matrix’s dominant color was green, because old computers showed green text on a black background. So the Matrix was green.
Mysterious lines
Furthermore, the green lines that we see scrolling across the screen in the film, particularly in the opening scene, are nothing more than… sushi recipes! In October 2017, designer Simon Whiteley made this revelation during an interview for the site cnet.com.
After refusing a first design whose characters were not traditional enough for their taste, the Wachowskis, who wanted to obtain a rendering “more Japanese, more manga,” then called on this young artist.
He then used his wife’s cooking manuals to create the code, then running it across the screen from top to bottom, as is traditionally done in the Japanese writing format called tategaki.
“The Matrix code was relatively simple to create. The strange thing is that of all the things I’ve designed, this has remained the most iconic and memorable”he confided during an interview for Wired in 2019.
Warner
-Change of style for the 4th film
22 years later, cinematographers John Toll and Daniele Massaccesi decided to change their visual approach for Matrix Resurrections, leaving out the green tint of the Matrix. For the 4th part, Lana Wachowski asks the duo to take inspiration from the painter Caravaggio, famous for his style oscillating between bright lights and darkness.
“We moved away from green to look for these magnificent colors. We wanted to create a beautiful reality that doesn’t exist. See something beautiful. The story is no longer monochrome, it unfolds like a rainbow. It’s not about one person, it’s about all people.”analyse Daniele Massaccesi.
We moved away from green to look for these magnificent colors. We wanted to create a beautiful reality that doesn’t exist.
The latter also took over alone the reins of the image of Matrix Resurrections after the departure of John Toll due to health problems within his family. After a very pragmatic, storyboarded and very controlled visual approach in the original trilogy, Lana Wachowski wanted to take a 180-degree turn.
Thus, the director and her cinematographer favored improvisation on set: spontaneity in the choice of framing and the use of natural light were the credo of the two artists.
“I worked for a few days on Speed Racer then on Cloud Atlas. It was probably the first time that Lana and Lilly Wachowski filmed on real locations.”recalls Massaccesi in an interview with IndieWire.
“They were a little worried about the lack of control, but ultimately realized that they loved the quality of natural light and the ability to capture unique moments. They also realized that they should seize the serendipities when they produce – we must be ready to take advantage of the moment when something unprepared arises and seems good to us”he specifies.
If you want to rewatch the saga while taking the red pill, it is available on the Max platform. Resurrections is also available on Netflix.
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