A Detective Story

This is one of the anime films from The Animatrix collection, one of nine - the only one done in black and white, and the only one featuring Trinity. Richly textured and beautifully rendered in every way, and the animated version of Trinity definitely does her justice. If you're a fan of The Matrix, you will need to put this on your short list.

I've seen three of the Animatrix episodes, and this is my favorite of all of them. The Second Renaissance provided a flimsy back story to the already flimsy universe. Program was a stylistically impressive number, it just felt kind of silly. I guess what gives this one it's special touch is the direction from Shinichiro Watanabe, director of the incredibly popular (and for good reason) series Cowboy Bebop. It has some of the best elements of Bebop: slick, sci-fi adventure, a no-nonsense, slightly apathetic hero working for hire, a bounty-head (more or less), and a chase scene, all wrapped up in an excellent film-noir packaging. Watanabe's Tarantino-style slickness comes through here full throttle.

A noir style matrix story?

I'm in.

I like this volume. It was also nice that the old fashion detective story and the black and white part of the episode were.

They did a good job, it was different.

I love film noir. The aesthetic, the mystery, the cynicism; it all really appeals to me. In this Animatrix short Ash, a private detective is hired to find Trinity. All other PIs have failed to locate her, either winding up dead or crazy. But Ash perseveres and meets with Trinity on a lonely train, where the Agents are waiting to apprehend them.

Although featuring modern technology the rest of the animation design is of 1940s vintage. This is my absolute favorite look for movies. I wish my whole life was a film noir. If I could go into the Matrix I'd ask the Agents to make that wish come true. One of the better Animatrix shorts and a great short in its own right.

The detective story is not typical for the Matrix Universe. It is a film-noir-esque private eye story, with a strong narrator and a very rich feel. Rich, in terms of its visual appeal. The snowing scenes, the grainyiness, it all stuns the eye.

But what about the story? It is interesting, even if it feels a little out of place. The agents hire a privat detective to track down Trinity. He finds out that they tried the approach before, but with hazardous consequences for the hired detectives. Still, he tries to locate her and eventually succeeds, through Alice in Wonderland references and hackers and chat rooms. Then things begin to get interesting...

All in all, this is a perfectly satisfying short animated movie.

8/10