Release Date:
Tuesday, June 3, 2003
The Animatrix is a collection of nine original animated short films, each one expanding on a different aspect of the Matrix mythos and each one employing radically different animation techniques. For it, the Wachowski brothers assembled a dream team of Japanese and American animation mastersthe genius nutjobs behind such cult faves as Akira, Wicked City, and Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within. Stories like The Second Renaissance (penned by the tireless Wachowskis and directed by Mahiro Maeda) fill in the back story leading up to humankinds takeover by those damn, dirty machines, while The Final Flight of the Osiris features the sexiest kung fu battle since Michelle Yeoh and Zhang Ziyi kicked gorgeous tail in Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. (The biggest comments from the Wachowskis were sexier and more muzzle flashes, says director Andy Jones. Funny, our editor says the same thing.) Gushes Jada Pinkett Smith, admitted anime fan and costar of The Matrix: Reloaded: This is a project Larry and Andy have had wrapped around their minds for 11 years. They know this world inside and out, every tiny aspect of it. And soon, so will all of you. Resistance is futile. And very, very unlikely.