Quick Summary:
Neo takes on Smith in the final showdown, meanwhile the inhabitants of Zion, the last Human city, fight to save their city from the army of invading Sentinels.

Review/Plot Spoilers:
"The Matrix: Revolutions" closes out the saga of Neo (Keanu Reeves) and company in their battle to stop machines from destroying the last free Human city ... Zion. In this last film Neo has to defeat his arch-nemesis, his opposite, his equal, his yang. Former Agent of the System, Smith. At the beginning of the movie Neo's mind is trapped in a limbo reality between the Matrix and the Machine City, used as a 'backdoor' for Exiled Programs to hide out in the Matrix so as to escape deletion by the Machines.

At the moment Neo's mind is trapped in the limbo with a few other programs. Rama-Chandra (Bernard White) Sati (Tanveer Atwal) and Charra (Rachel Blackman) are waiting for a program called the Trainman (Bruce Spence) who answers to the Merovingian (Lambert Wilson) Rama wants to take his daughter into the Matrix because "She has no purpose." and the Machines delete all programs that do not serve a purpose. The Trainman is the only one who can take people out of the limbo reality (Cunningly called the Mobil Avenue Train Station) Inside the Mobil Avenue, Neo's powers are useless and he can't escape until Trinity (Carrie Anne Moss), Morpheus (Laurence Fishburne, sadly underused this time out) and Seraph (Collin Chou) break him out of the Merovingian's grasp. Morpheus, Trinity and Seraph fight through the Merovingian's "Club Hell" in order to rescue Neo.

When they have rescued Neo he tells them he needs time to think, meanwhile the Machines are massing a final assault to eradicate Zion. Commander Locke and Captain Mafune do their best to prepare Zion's defenses for coming onslaught. Neo eventually comes to the decision that he needs to take a ship to the Machine City (If you watched "The Animatrix" you can call it ZeroOne) Taking Niobe's ship (The Logos) Neo and Trinity head off to the City. What they do not realize is that Bane (Ian Bliss) whose mind was taken over by Smith (See "The Matrix: Reloaded") has stowed away on the Logos. He disabled the Logos's power and then manages to knock out Trinity. At this point one really wants to whack Neo over the head since Bane comes out with lines like "It is inevitable, Mr. Anderson." and Neo still doesn't know it is Smith. Eventually he gets it and then Neo and Bane fight. Trinity turns out the lights and Bane scorches Neo's eyes with a power cable. Fortunately our Messiah's powers have grown to the point were he can sense the "Machine Spirit" in a fiery orange code. Using this to his advantage he whacks Bane over the head with a very large pole.

From this point on when we see a Neo Point of View shot it is represented in the orange code/spirit/whatever the hell it is.

Neo and Trinity eventually get to the Machine City, this leads to another impressive visual sequence the Fetus Fields (Where we are no longer born, but grown) in normal view and then switching into the "code" view of Neo. Swarms of Sentinels attack the Logos and even Neo's new powers outside the Matrix (Because he is linked to the Source) can't stop them. The Logos leaps above the scorched sky and Trinity becomes the first person to see sunlight in hundreds of years. Sadly, proving the old adage about women drivers, Trinity crashes the Logos into one of the Machine's structures. Trinity is impaled on a pole, and after giving Keanu Reeves the opportunity to prove he really can act, she dies. After a tearful goodbye (Really, it was, dragged a little and you end up shouting "Just die already!" but really it brought me to something near a sad emotion) Neo makes a deal with the Machine Leader (Named "Deus Ex Machina" for the Trivia Buffs) The deal is simple: In exchange for Neo destroying the Virus (AKA Agent Smith) the Machines will cease hostilities against Zion. The Machines plug Neo into the Matrix and we are off to our final confrontation between Good and Evil!

Now, we reach the mother of all movie fights. Truly no words can describe how incredibly stunning this fight is. Think of all the great Anim� fight scenes. "Dragonball Z", "Neon Genesis Evangelion", "Street Fighter", "Fatal Fury" - Whatever you like there will be something to please you here. If there is to be anymore Anim� movies remade for an American audience they better include fight scenes like this. At one point I could picture Neo yelling "Kamehameha!"

Smith and Neo begin their final fight against the backdrop of a rain soaked city in the Matrix (We never do find out what city the Matrix takes place in, I think its supposed to be a metaphor, that the Matrix could be anywhere) Special effects do not maketh the movie, but it is nice to see them done well. Here, they aren't done well. They are orgasm inducing! Massive barrels of thunder and lightening take over as more rain falls on Neo and Smith. The scene will make you reminisce of countless Anim� movies, you know the hero seems to be doing well, all of a sudden the bad guy gets more powerful, smacks the hero around, the hero suddenly gets a power upgrade! Thankfully of all the myriad clones (Smith absorbs everyone in the Matrix) Only one of them fights Neo so the scene is less cluttered than the Burly Brawl of "The Matrix: Reloaded" but its still an absolutely impressive spectacle to behold. From a purely technical standpoint (And the fact that the Wachowski Brothers had a never-ending budget) "The Matrix: Revolutions" is light years ahead of anyone in terms Special Effects.

Now, as you will know if you've watched the film, Smith is the absolute antithesis of Neo. Besides the fact that the two are very sharply dressed and very powerful they have nothing in common. So how do you defeat a foe who is every bit as powerful as you are? Simple, let him absorb you. Smith uses his Virus powers to take over our hero, and its true, right before our eyes Neo is transformed into another Smith-Clone. However, the crafty Machines use Neo to destroy the Virus (I wonder if they use Norton?) Using Neo's connection to Smith (Expounded upon in "The Matrix: Reloaded") the anti-Virus is sent through the entire system and Smith and his multitude of clones are destroyed.

Anyway, the Machines keep their part of the bargain and agree to cease their war against Zion. Unfortunately that means little to our hero since he is:

A) Dead.
B) In a coma.

But, since it is the end of a trilogy, the movie needs a happy ending. No we don't get to see a second Death Star explode, nor do we see Indiana Jones riding into the sunset. What we get is a Sati-induced sunset over the newly repaired city of the Matrix. The whole system has been reset and repaired and good news the Architect (Helmut Bakiatis) appears to tell us that anyone who wants free from the Matrix will be allowed to do so. Now, if they are made aware of the Matrix's existence and do not wish to leave what would the Machines do when they have several million people flying around causing Anomalies and Variables and Equations? Anyway, I think I've more-or-less turned this review into an essay, which wasn't really my intention but its hard to talk about the Matrix without going out on a diatribe about the various philosophies it brings up. In the end, however, the talk is finely counter pointed by the stunning orgy of destruction that the battle in Zion and Neo and Smith's final battle bring.

In conclusion: Impressive action both in the Real World and in the Matrix, Neo and Smith's final fight is destined to become part of film legend, despite the resemblance to the Power Loaders from "Aliens" the Anti Personnel Units that the Zion Military use are quite cool and they serve as fodder to the swarms of Sentinels that breach Zion's defenses. Overall, it is as talky as "Reloaded" but thankfully it also has the impressive special effects, wonderful fight scenes and the same level of twisty story-telling that the original had.

This review � copyright 2004 Ash Ketchum and used by the Tomb of Anubis� with express written permission. No duplication of this review in part or in whole is allowed without the same permission. Contact the Tomb of Anubis� for permission and information on doing so. If you're not interested however, then why the Hell are you reading all this crap? Do you have a legal fetish? Does that little copyright symbol get your juices flowing?! GO AWAY!