NICS analysis of The Matrix

The Matrix
Narrative – follows something along the lines of Todorovs theory. It’s about an ordinary man finding out that he is “the one”, and is destined to save the human race from the robots. It’s an apocalyptical story, with lots of fight and chase scenes with A LOT of gunfire/explosions, making it very conventional in that way. Also a lot of escaping is needed, for example Neo escaping the Agents. Use of sfx to emphasise the action are also used, such as explosion, knife slashes, breaking down doors etc. It is also made to seem as if rebelling and crime is a good thing, in this case, as the humans need to fight back against the robots, which are in charge. Lots of destruction happens along the way, especially to cars, buildings and the urban environment around them, however there are also many casualties on the human side, which makes it seem as if they have little chance of success. Overall it has the very conventional good vs evil, good being the humans, and evil being the robots.
Iconography – clothing is very dark and mysterious, with everyone wearing a lot of black leather when they are in the matrix, and ripped, worn out clothes when they are out of the matrix, which shows a vast binary opposite. The Agents wear their recognisable suits and ear pieces and sunglasses (which never seem to be damaged no matter what they go through!!!), which makes them look like ordinary office workers. Overall the costumes look very cool (for those times), and I think they are used to create a split between the good and evil side. The main props are guns – they are everywhere. Other props include machinery, however there are not that many other props involved.
Lighting varies, often being natural outdoor but also being dark and gloomy. Overall there is a very grey tone to which makes it seem very sinister and serious, creating a tense mise-en-scene. This matches with the buildings and clothing, which are very grey and urbanised. Special effects are used a lot in the film, especially strings and green screen which are used to perform the many stunts and awesome fight scenes in the film.
Characters –
Hero – Neo – this breaks the conventions, as Neo is seen as an ordinary, rather shady character who does some illegal things (being one of the most notorious computer hackers in the world). However he also has is work life, which is very mundane, like many office workers. However he turns out to be destined to save the world, and it taken in by the humans who make him realise that the world is fake. He ends up saving everyone, however the villains (robots) are not destroyed, which isn’t that common in A-A films.
Princess – Trinity – she is a very powerful character, who is brave and outgoing, which breaks the stereotype of female characters always being the damsel in distress and utterly hopeless. She does some pretty awesome stunts, and often saves Neo, which turns the typical hero saving the princess relationship around, and creates a positive representation of women.
Villain – the main villain who are fought would be the Agents, however they work for the robots. They are superior and very hard to defeat, and are feared by everyone, even Neo, the chosen one. They are used to create a tense atmosphere, as the humans are never safe, as anyone can be an Agent.

Settings – the main setting is a large, urban city, however its whereabouts are left untold which creates the feeling of unease as we don’t know exactly what’s happening and where. This represents the world as we think it is, which is said to be created to store us. The binary opposite setting is the real world, which is dark, desolate by humans and filled with dangerous robots. This is used to create a tense atmosphere as we start to question what’s real and what isn’t. Overall the settings are exaggerated heavily to make the film seem more dramatic, and these new environments bring us into them.