Released in straight-to-video in 1985, Megazone 23 is a sci-fi action thriller almost as heady with ambitious ideas as The Matrix– and, perhaps coincidentally, the two share a number of similar plot points. They even got to work with the writer and director of Ninja Scroll, Yoshiaki Kawajiri, in their 2003 animated portmanteau movie, The Animatrix. In interviews, the Wachowskis openly referenced the likes of Ghost in the Shell, Akira, and Ninja Scroll as inspirations for The Matrix. The Matrix also helped popularize some of the John Woo movies and classic anime among western audiences. When The Matrixemerged in 1999, its fusion of action, sci-fi, and edgy ’90s design (all tight black leather, wrap-around shades, and dual pistols) made it a colossal hit. Ghost in the Shell has certain story elements in common with The Matrix – most obviously the cyberpunk idea of physically jacking into a virtual space – but it seemed to be the aesthetics of the anime that really caught their eye. But they also wanted to draw on the cool design, camera angles, and sense of dynamism seen in the best Japanese anime.
With The Matrix, the Wachowskis wanted to mix up a heady cocktail of Hong Kong action, cyberpunk, philosophy, eastern and western myth, as well as the bold stylings of Japanese and American comic books. When the Wachowskis were laying out their vision for what would become The Matrix in the late ’90s, they sat down producer Joel Silver and showed him a VHS tape of Ghost in the Shell – Mamoru Oshii’s classic anime adaptation of Masamune Shirow’s manga.
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