The Matrix released in 1999. (Photo: Warner Bros)
‘A reading list’ is a new series that suggests good reading material that is either related to a particular film or TV show or something that enhances the understanding of the topics, plot elements, or themes that a movie or TV show explores.
The Matrix is said to be one of the best science-fiction films ever made and was lauded for its central theme, action, visual effects, story and performances. Its action sequences have set the standards in the genre ever since it was released.
The movie was set in a future in which AI beings have enslaved humanity to harvest their bio-electric power to run a huge scale simulated reality in order to keep them unaware of the actual reality. The ‘glitch in the matrix phrase’ has become a common way to describe out of the ordinary occurrences in the world.
Wish to get a deeper understanding of the movie’s themes and other topics it explores? Here is a reading list for you.
1. Neuromancer by William Gibson
The book that inspired The Wachowskis when they were making The Matrix. It was William Gibson’s iconic cyberpunk novel that gave the word “matrix” that has now entered the geek vocabulary. This book is a must-read for not only fans of the movie, but for anyone remotely interested in cyberpunk. It can be a complex read and needs oodles of patience, but by the time you finish it, you will be left feeling utterly lost in its world. The movie shares only the word and its usage of Matrix, so rest assured, this is a whole new story.
2. More Than This by Patrick Ness
Patrick Ness’ More Than This has a heavy Matrix vibe and you must read this book to know what I am saying, as if I explain even a little, I would be entering the spoiler territory.
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3. Simulacron-3 by Daniel F Galouye
Simulacron-3 is one of the earliest works of fiction to show a virtual reality. The simulated world is built in this book for the purpose of marketing research and to obviate the need for opinion polls which costs money. The beings inhabiting the world are conscious, but like most living in the Matrix, are not aware of it. Doesn’t this sound like something a real-world corporation can really do if that kind of tech becomes available?
4. Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? by Phillip K Dick
Also called Blade Runner: Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?, this novel was the primary basis of Ridley Scott’s groundbreaking Blade Runner. It is set in a post-apocalyptic earth where life on the planet has been ravaged by a global nuclear holocaust, leaving most living beings extinct. Humans keep specially built androids as slaves. The story follows Rick Deckard who is charged with killing six androids.