r/matrix • u/gwennelsonuk • 17h ago
Kids story - anyone else think it was irresponsible?
Obviously if you're mentally well it's totally fine, but I always thought this Animatrix short was quite irresponsible and potentially dangerous.
It depicts a depressed teenager who's a bit of an outsider who sets himself free via suicide.
It wouldn't surprise me if at least one mentally ill individual has tried to "free themselves" by copying this.
Anyone got thoughts?
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u/Away_Doctor2733 16h ago
Yeah I mean, my husband who attempted suicide had strong dissociation and even had a delusion that suicide would free him from the Matrix. Not because of this. But it seems to be more descriptive of a certain state of mind than really trying to encourage suicide.
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u/gwennelsonuk 16h ago
I'm sorry to hear that.
Is he doing better now?
The Matrix has definitely always been problematic for people with certain mental health issues - it's easy to get too into it.
I myself have often pondered for example how I'd know if my world is real or not, as I imagine most fans have - and people in general throughout history - but acting on it in a way that endangers self or others is where the problem lies.
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u/Away_Doctor2733 16h ago
Yes he's doing much better, IFS is a life-changing therapy.
He loves the Matrix though and so do I. I don't blame the movie for his mental health by any means. I think a delusional person will use whatever narrative suits them to justify their dissociation. So if it wasn't the Matrix it would be something else.
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u/gwennelsonuk 16h ago
As I said, people throughout all human history have questioned their reality - Plato's cave for example.
And of course the wachowskis were inspired by that kind of thought.
So of course some people suffering extreme dissociation will too.
I've been through dissociative episodes myself, secondary to gender dysphoria - so it's no surprise I'm a huge fan of the matrix. To me it's always been so much more than a movie, I used to watch it DAILY in my teens. Somehow every single trans person of my generation is also obsessed - something about it spoke to us deeply.
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u/Away_Doctor2733 16h ago
Have you seen Sense8 and Cloud Atlas? They're my other favourite Wachowski works. Definitely "more than just movies" to me. Cloud Atlas literally changed my life.
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u/gwennelsonuk 15h ago
I love both! Especially Sense8
I have a theory that the actors from sense8 in resurrections are the same characters because as sensates they discovered the truth.
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u/gwennelsonuk 15h ago
I should also say that Nomi's famous pride speech never fails to make me cry.
Actually, before I even came out and was living in denial, I had to turn it off because it made me feel things I wasn't ready to confront yet.
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u/Away_Doctor2733 15h ago
It's so beautiful, Nomi and Amanita have the most beautiful sapphic relationship I've seen on screen.
My own queer journey is very tied to this show because I watched it when I was discovering my sexuality, and my mother banned me from watching it under her roof because of the queer characters, and she ended up disowning me for being bi, and when I finally moved out the VERY first thing I watched the first night in my new place was a marathon of Sense8.
Now I recommend it to everyone! 🥰
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u/gwennelsonuk 15h ago
Your mum sounds a lot like Nomi's mum!
I love how you responded to it though!
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u/Away_Doctor2733 10h ago
Yeah she is very much like Nomi's mum. Glad she's estranged me tbh. Was very painful at the time but long term I'm much happier.
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u/FluffyDoomPatrol 14h ago
That’s preposterous!
If it was true, there’s no way Capheus would be operating, he’d be driving the ship and would have painted Jean Claude on the side.
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u/Hagisman 15h ago
Tv shows and movies have warning labels for this sort of stuff. Animatrix’s situation was portrayed less as suicide than other media.
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u/Michael-Aaron 16h ago
It's more detailed than that; he knew certain things about the Matrix and was being hunted at the very end
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u/gwennelsonuk 16h ago
I know it's more detailed, I'm just talking about how it could have (and probably has) influenced someone vulnerable
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u/Michael-Aaron 16h ago
Interesting point; but what if they were right...
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u/gwennelsonuk 16h ago
Sure, that's always the question isn't it?
But what if jumping off a building just kills you? That seems more likely sadly
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u/Psyboomer 15h ago
As someone who has dealt with suicidal ideation for quite a while in my life, I feel like it would be irresponsible for me to let a movie scene affect me that much. It's not the responsibility of an artist to keep me safe from certain imagery, especially when I am the one choosing to watch. I appreciate that there are trigger warnings for people who might get affected by something like that, but I also believe that allowing suicidal people to think something like a movie could legitimately harm them is anti-thetical to helping them out of their mentality. The only thing that helped me out of suicidal ideation was the realization that I alone am responsible for my state of being. Blaming everything else in the world for how I felt was only harming me.
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u/gwennelsonuk 11h ago
Having been in such a state (my sympathies by the way, I've also been there and know many friends and family who have), I'm sure you can see how to some people the idea of an escape could be very seductive - and some mentally ill people with delusions theme them on media.
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u/Psyboomer 11h ago
Tbh, if someone is delusional enough to try and kill themselves not just out of despair, but because they are trying to "escape the matrix," then the responsibility has fallen entirely on their support group at that point. Someone that deep in delusion cannot conciously make any safe decisions for themselves. The film-makers can not really be blamed. At that point the person needs to be monitored, and it is truly up to the people around them to notice that there is a serious problem. Unfortunately many people do get seriously delusional and do not have the support to help them through it. We need better mental healthcare infrastructure, that's the only thing that will help in the long run.
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u/guaybrian 14h ago
The one saving grace for me was that Michael Popper wasn't alone. He was depressed and lonely but was also actively seeking out a community, even if it was online.
In the end he didn't jump because he thought he was alone. He did so because he no longer thought he was alone.
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u/gwennelsonuk 11h ago
I do appreciate it myself, and I'm not criticising the story - it's actually beautiful in it's own way.
I'm just expressing how it could be dangerous to some vulnerable people.
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u/guaybrian 10h ago
I hear you. I've had the same thought.
I just hope that the underlining motive of Kid jumping shines through and doesn't read as suicide as a solution
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u/depastino 12h ago
I don't think it glamorizes it. If you're already suicidal, watching any number of things could potentially trigger you.
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u/gwennelsonuk 11h ago
Combined with the third film, he basically escapes and helps aid in the battle of Zion, it's a seductive heroic fantasy that could be dangerous to some people.
Another commenter misunderstood me as wanting censorship - I wouldn't ever support that, but I do believe it should at least have a content warning on the DVD and Blu-ray releases.
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u/depastino 11h ago
I'd argue that the vast majority of Matrix trilogy viewers have never seen the Animatrix. The movies have been on TV numerous times and the Animatrix never has to my knowledge.
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u/Chexzout 13h ago edited 13h ago
Imagine a world where all artists are restricted by imagined responsibility to not offend or upset anyone 🙉🙈🙊
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u/gwennelsonuk 11h ago
It's not about offending or upsetting people and I'd never advocate censorship - but it could at least have had a content warning on the DVD and Blu-ray releases
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u/Jalex2321 15h ago
No. Until now, I never thought of it that way.
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u/Weary_Transition_863 12h ago
I'm trying to free myself without doing that cuz I think it'll just wake me up in another body as the.conscuousness clings to this reality. It seems most likely that to free yourself, you have to realize the truth, that there is no spoon, then you will realize that it is not the spoon you are bending but only yourself. Thats theoretically the truth, but to fully realize that is really hard. The consciousness clings to this reality, and it seems like a concept you would have to live in for some time and allow a slow gradual loosening of the hold on this world, rather than an abrupt instantaneous awakening. There are a lot of strings to let go of gently rather than cutting all of them all at once. Otherwise upon death by suicide or natural causes or otherwise, the consciousness probably just freaks out and frantically shoves itself into another body.
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u/gwennelsonuk 11h ago
UPDATE - I wanted to clarify something.
I'm a HUGE fan of the series myself and would never want it censored, but I also know how media can influence the mentally ill and believe it should at least have had a content warning.
I'm deeply opposed to censorship and this isn't about me disliking it or being offended - I actually enjoyed it a lot - I'm just concerned it could be dangerous for some vulnerable people.
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u/hrdooku 6h ago edited 6h ago
Many franchises are calculated too much to be angsty but kid friendly and romanticize certain popular themes in fiction, have simple answers to complex issues, one-sided moral dilemmas. This is to gain more audience, thus more money of course. Simulated reality is even more popular these days and all Matrix films are rated R, but that doesn't mean they are really mature in many aspects. Too much complexity brings restrains at dramatization. And while Animatrix itself doesn't cause loneliness, violence or suicidal thoughs, negligences in upbringing and mental health can trigger consumerism and seeking bias confirmation in various fictional media and online communities like fan forums.
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u/adamwill86 15h ago
Don’t watch things with suicide in them if you’re suicidal. Problem solved.
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u/gwennelsonuk 11h ago
I'm not concerned for myself - I'm thinking about vulnerable people who might have been exposed and picked up ideas from this.
Also, there was no kind of content warning on the DVD or Blu-ray release.
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u/Fairyandchef 15h ago
I’ve often felt this way about it tbh and still do. Inception too. For me it is really making me wonder if it’s a plausible way out
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u/gwennelsonuk 11h ago
I think Inception actually made it much more clear that suicide isn't the answer.
But in kids story suicide literally set him free - and I do think that could be dangerous.
It'd surprise me if nobody has ever at least attempted suicide after watching it.
There's been people who even murdered others under the delusional belief it would free them from the matrix - and that's not even how it works in the movies or other media but mentally unwell people are by definition not rational.
It at the very least needs a content warning.
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u/4d_lulz 16h ago
You might as well say that any movie depicting crime is irresponsible since there are crime victims in the world that might get triggered.
It's an interesting, but obviously fictional story. Some people might read more into it than they should, but it doesn't mean the creators were irresponsible.