The Matrix franchise, and while it made a lot of interesting decisions, it needed one big change: the villains should have been humans, not the Machines. Understandably, a Matrix reboot would have to involve Machines, as they are the ones that created the Matrix, meaning that there wouldn't be much of a story without them. However, The Matrix Resurrections would have been a lot more interesting if it centered on a human conflict, as it would allow the story to be far more complex while avoiding a retread of the original trilogy.
Set 60 years after the original Matrix trilogy, The Matrix Resurrections follows Neo and Trinity as they once again have to break out of the Matrix and attempt to take down the Machines. While it does go in some new directions, the main plot of The Matrix Resurrections retreads the original movie, hitting many of the same beats as the first film. However, following a human conflict would have allowed for a much more dynamic film, making Resurrections stand out from the original trilogy. The villainous humans in the original trilogy are some of the most memorable parts of the franchise, and Resurrections would have been the perfect opportunity to capitalize on that. There are even some perfect set-ups that would have allowed for this human story. Sadly, though, Resurrections decided not to take advantage of them.
The Matrix Resurrections' Villain Repeated The Original Trilogy
Most of The Matrix Resurrections is a carbon copy of the original film, with the story literally resetting Neo and Trinity, causing them to not the events of the original trilogy. After Neo and Trinity are resurrected, the two characters are faced with more Machines, including another Agent Smith. While The Matrix Resurrections attempts to use this repetitiveness as a form of commentary, with the film getting meta at some points, pointing out the flaws of a film does not redeem the film of those flaws. Not only does The Matrix Resurrections repeat the original film - in repeating it, it takes out some of the best elements. Cypher's arc in The Matrix adds a lot of depth to the franchise's themes, and without a stand-in for him, The Matrix Resurrections just feels like a weaker version of the original story.
On top of feeling repetitive, The Matrix Resurrections' need to retread the first movie's story retroactively makes the original trilogy worse. The entire story of the original trilogy is leading up to Neo's big sacrifice in The Matrix Revolutions, with Neo dying in order to give humans the opportunity to leave the Matrix. By bringing back villainous Machines and reviving Neo, The Matrix Resurrections pulls the rug out from under the weight of the original trilogy, making the story of the first three films entirely pointless. In order to feel fresh and keep itself from hurting the original trilogy, The Matrix Resurrections shouldn't have had the Machines as the film's main villains, setting up a new story in the process.
The Matrix Already Set Up Human Villains
While human villains may sound bizarre in a Matrix movie, the series has already been using them since the original film. The Matrix features Cypher, a human who decides he doesn't want to leave the Matrix, causing him to work with the Machines. Cypher goes on to sabotage Neo and the rest of the resistance , making Cypher just as villainous as the Machines. Having humans fight against their own self-interest is an incredibly unique concept, as it is very much something that would happen in real life. Human villains would add much-needed depth to The Matrix Resurrections, allowing the film to tell a much more complex story than its predecessors. One of the most famous scenes in The Matrix, for example, is the red pill and blue pill scene - but the conflict between the red pill s and the blue pill s is never shown. This begs the question of whether there would be some kind of conflict between those who want to destroy the Matrix and those who want to stay in it. However, The Matrix Resurrections completely ignores the strong potential that this human set up has.
Matrix 4 Teases A Human vs. Human Conflict
Another interesting human vs. human conflict is set up in The Matrix Resurrections due to one new element: the good Machines. Sometime between The Matrix 3 & 4, some of the Machines switched sides, now working with the humans against the evil Machines. Some of the good Machines are even friends with Bugs, working alongside Neo and the crew throughout the film. In a world where humans were enslaved by Machines, it would make sense that some humans wouldn't trust these reformed Machines. This idea comes with a lot of potential for an all-new story, as it could put Neo at odds with many of the humans, such as the citizens of IO. If The Matrix Resurrections wanted to keep the story centered around Machines, this human conflict would have been the perfect way to do it.
The Matrix Resurrections Fell Into Its Own Sequel Trap
Having humans as the main villains is just one of the many directions The Matrix Resurrections could have gone, but having Cypher in the original Matrix trilogy is so much more interesting than hundreds of mindless robots, and for The Matrix Resurrections to work, it really needed to tap into these human villains.
