When The Matrix came out, it wowed audiences with its awe-inducing blend of incredible visuals and a concept the likes of which we hadn’t seen done quite that way before. Christopher Nolan’s Inception had a similar effect on audiences in 2010, baking our noodles with its intelligent premise that also delivered stunning action sequences. As a result, the two are frequently compared, with many citing Inception as “this decade’s The Matrix”, a somewhat reductive statement that nevertheless has seen the two competing for fanfare over the last two years.
Running through every category of each film’s construction, we look to finally decide once and for all which of the two prime sci-fi actioners of the last 15 years is King.
Premise
The Matrix depicts a dystopian future in which the world that most humans believe to be “reality” is in fact a fabricated computer space called The Matrix, constructed by sentient machines to keep the humans under their control. These sentinels use the human beings as batteries, but this isn’t something that occurs unopposed; a small grass-roots group of resistance fighters have “awoken” from The Matrix and exist in the real, desolate world of Zion, where they aim to stop the machines once and for all. Neo (Keanu Reeves), the latest to wake up, is thought by key resistance figure Morpheus (Laurence Fishburne) to be “The One”, the stabilising force who can bring The Matrix to its knees.
Inception, meanwhile, is about a thief named Dom Cobb (Leonardo DiCaprio) who makes a living infiltrating the subconscious of people – usually business magnates – to obtain corporate secrets and information. Cobb, however, has been on the run, which means that he’s unable to see his young children, but when an energy tycoon, Saito (Ken Watanabe) offers him a mission – not to steal information, but to implant it in a target’s mind, a task long-thought impossible – that would mean his record would be expunged, he is all too keen to give it a go.
The Matrix has an excellent concept for a mainstream movie, rooted in some prevailing archetypes of philosophy, which means it’s a tad derivative, but it attaches itself to the action movie aesthetic extremely well. Inception, meanwhile, doesn’t seem to be so clearly pulling from anything other than the mind of Christopher Nolan; therefore it’s that fiendish originality and the sheer insanity of the concept that gives it a slight edge over The Matrix’s more familiar dystopian narrative.
WINNER: Inception
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10 Comments
Agree with all you said. I also think Inception is a better film overall
The Matrix wins for me on all counts. Inception also has ridiculous shoot out scenes, and “levels” that don’t really add up, so they are even equal in their somewhat popcorn cinema approach. But Matrix has more emotional value, and the cooler outfits. The idea of machines taking over, and letting humans dream they are doing something with their lives blows Inception’s dream levels away. Inception is also long winded, and a tad boring. Matrix keeps the flow throughout. There can be only one.
I can’t stand Inception’s writing. Practically every character speaks in straight exposition, and often so much that if you sit down and read the screenplay, that the characters seem completely interchangeable.
I think the Wachowskis did a much better directorial job. They established a film in which the stakes are much higher than Inception’s and also managed to change the way audiences perceive action sequences. They elongated their story far too much, but if the scale is holding both The Matrix and Inception, I see hardly any competition. The Matrix wins with ease.
What the hell?! Inception ripped off a million different movies and ideas. It’s writing was damned horrible, no attempt to hide the exposition or make it interesting to watch. Just plain boring people talking about stuff. Sure the idea’s were cool, and the movie is still cool. But to say it had better writing, and was all from Nolan’s head, while the Matrix was inspired by everything is DAMN silly. Dreamscape anyone? A million of sci fi ideas also borrowed and put into Inception? Nolan himself saying that The Matrix was a direct influence on his movie? Come on….
matrix shows us that we are not free. there are many types of slavery: political, economical you name it. everyone can see it’s own situation there. it’s true art.
inseptions shows that dicaprio has gained a lot of weight.
you be the judge.
Both films are excellent, but for me it’s ‘The Matrix’ all the way; I love Chris Nolan’s work but I simply can’t sit through ‘Inception’ at all, I find it emotionally empty and cold, there’s nothing at stake in the struggle, and the lead character fully deserves to be hunted by the lawful authorities for his dangerous irresponsibility. ‘The Matrix’ was about the survival of mankind, good vs evil, free will vs providence, human vs machine, plus some of the very best action, visual effects, and martial arts sequences yet put on celluloid… the sequels could have been better had the brothers Wachowski concentrated on the films themselves and not split their creative focus with all the other unnecessary crap (video games, animated shorts, online multi-player games, comic books)!
I think it’s a mistake to believe that Inception is intelligent at all – it’s just a complicated story wrapped in a bizarre narrative: there’s no “intelligence” there, though. In the words of Will Self: “Inception is a stupid person’s idea of what an intelligent movie is like.”
The Matrix, is, however, a great movie of ideas, and far more complicated.
Inception is a sure winner of these two ,but it doesn’t make ‘the matrix’ a loser . . . . . . . . . .other than that , , , i think ‘inception’ is the clear winner in the supporting cast category considering the level its actors have reached today mainly tom hardy , josheph gordon levitt and marion cottilard . . . .
Matrix, in every aspect. Its value is hidden in the philosophical message of solipsism and the attractive way of expressing it. Inception, in opposition has a rather inventive idea to offer, but the way Nolan decided to transform it into the movie is simply tragic (and I’ve seen it 5 times to make sure that I’m not an alien, since so far, I’ve met very few people who don’t think it’s a great movie)
I don’t see how anyone in the comments can say that the Matrix has the better story/plot when the external conflict is so ridiculously flawed. Machines using humans for energy? Not only is that ridiculously impractical due to many other sources being more viable, but the fact that it would require energy for humans to be kept alive means that they would run out of their supply very quickly.