| The Matrix Reloaded |
| 2003, Warner Bros. Directed by the Wachowski Brothers. Starring Keanu Reeves, Laurence Fishburne, Carrie-Anne Moss, Hugo Weaving, Matt McColm, Jada Pinkett Smith, Monica Bellucci, and Lambert Wilson. Rated R for sci-fi violence, sexuality including partial nudity, and some language. |
| Grade: C |
| Review by Anthony |
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| The 1999 sci-fi blockbuster The Matrix revolutionized special effects and showed us a world in which the human race is trapped inside a computer program that humans perceive as the real world. This much-anticipated sequel delivers more gravity-defying action and continues the story of Neo, the one chosen to free humanity. Machines are digging closer and closer to Zion, the last real city/home of the human race. There is a prophesy that the war between humans and machines will end when the One enters a room called the Source. Neo is told by the Oracle that in order to get there he will need to find a man called the Keymaker. He sets out with Morpheus and Trinity to find the Keymaker, save Zion, and end the war. The story has its high moments and overall isn't too bad, but it's hindered by enigmatical plot concepts concerning the history behind the matrix. In all fairness, I also found the first movie to be a little confusing in this field; but it became clearer after subsequent viewings. The Matrix Reloaded, however, reportedly can't be fully comprehended without the direct-to-video-and-DVD movie The Animatrix, a series of mini-movies about the matrix done in Anime-style animation; and the odds are that most people going to see this movie aren't going to be big enough fans to care about seeing some animated spin-off. Inevitably, the fight sequences are very impressive and are laden with more bullet-time special effects a la Matrix. Unfortunately, as Steven D. Greydanus of decentfilms.com accurately points out, there are times when the fight scenes are rather pointless and without any driving force. While this may not diminish the visual impact of such moments, it does leave them lacking in dramatic impact. This is an example of the story serving the fighting and special effects rather than the other way around (contrast this with X-Men 2, a superior recent sequel on a number of levels). The movie's philosophical musings about choice aren't very thought-provoking nor do they even (like much of this movie) make much sense. The actual choices the main characters make are at times interesting and significant, but the movie's premises about choice are lacking in edification (not to mention logic), leaving us with a lot of typical Matrix-ish jargon. The Matrix Reloaded shows us our first look at Zion - a look we're better off not seeing. The inhabitants of Zion have some type of vague religion of sorts, which involves a ritual type of orgy. Alongside this is a sexual encounter between Neo and Trinity. Needless to say, this movie is a lot more promiscuous than the original and should be approached more cautiously (it's also worth mentioning that Christianity is apparently part of the illusion of the matrix; the only religion of the real world is the above-described). |